In 1895, Greenfield, Iowa, was recovering from a town fire and, as such, had just built a new, grand courthouse in the center of its town square, the hub of this small community of about 1,200. It was then that Edward and Eva Warren first announced their vision for continued improvements. On the east side of the square, the Warrens envisioned an opera house for the community, storefront for their business and living quarters for their family. Edward was an educated man who had become partner and then sole owner of a dry goods store in town. His wife, Eva, was instrumental to the business, as well as the idea itself; she was an accomplished musician and a strong supporter of the arts.
The E.E. Warren Opera House and Warren Dry Goods Store was designed by Charles E. Bell and John H. Kent, architects known for their courthouses and civic structures in the area. Completed in 1896, the 3-story, 12,750-square-foot brick structure featured copper turret and accents, intricate stenciling, expansive windows, and other distinctly ornate and Romanesque-inspired details that gave it incredible character and charm. It became the grand lady of the Greenfield town square and brought theater, music and local acts to the community. It was a destination for culture, art and commerce.
As with many great things, this, too, came to an end. The auditorium had a short life as an opera house; the last documented act was performed in 1930. By 1940, the auditorium portion was in complete disuse. In 1971, the Warren Opera House enjoyed some national fame after being outfitted with a town clock and serving as the focal point for the dramatic final scenes of Norman Lear’s “Cold Turkey”, a comedy starring Dick Van Dyke. Consequently, a group of Greenfield citizens formed the Opera House Heritage Center Association and managed to place the opera house on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. However, the association fell short of its goal to generate support and interest in reinvesting in the community icon.
Greenfield faced further challenges, typical for small, rural towns in the mid-late century. Economic downturn, declining population, and a lack of professional and cultural opportunities stifled potential redevelopment of the historic building. Not even the retail space, home to the dry goods store and many later tenants, would remain in use after the 1980s.
Renewed Hope Prevails
The Warren Opera House was gifted in 1994 to Main Street Greenfield, a group focused on revitalizing the community’s main street area so local businesses and restaurants can survive in the future. In 1995, the town became a Main Street Iowa Community, a designation by the Des Moines-based Iowa Economic Development Authority that indicates the community’s interest in capitalizing on the unique identity, assets and character of its historic commercial district.
Four years later, the E.E. Warren Opera House Association (EEWOHA) was created to form a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization appropriately set up to redevelop the property. This new group of community visionaries was determined to make its plan for the opera house happen. The Warren Cultural Center would offer the community an auditorium, retail space, art gallery and two guest suites, closely resembling the Warrens’ original intent. The biggest hurdle was the initial hesitation from the community. The scale of the multi-million-dollar project seemed out of reach for the small town and belief in the project was hindered by years of talk with little traction.
EEWOHA put plans in motion that began with $3.3 million in public funding, coming from state and historic tax credits, Iowa Community Cultural Grants, Community Development Block Grant, HUD Main Street Iowa Challenge Grant, I-Jobs Grant, Jeffris Family Foundation, Jeffris Heartland Fund and Grayfield Tax Credits. Once this large amount was secured, support from the community followed. The remaining $1.2 million was gathered through private donations in a mere six months. With funding for construction costs in place, EEWOHA moved forward with its agenda to acquire the adjacent Hetherington Building and Taylor Building, both originally constructed in the same era as the opera house for storefront spaces. Together, these two unoccupied spaces—in similar distraught condition—added 9,250 square feet of space necessary for the new programming goals. The association’s relentless work was starting to pay off. It was also just beginning.
The next step for EEWOHA was to coordinate detailed plans for the renovation of the building, and, for this, it turned to outside experts and began to assemble a team. Our firm, INVISION planning | architecture | interiors, which has offices in Des Moines and Waterloo, Iowa, participated in a competitive selection process. Our unique approach, centered on the long-term plan and success of the center, showed EEWOHA that it had a partner who also saw more than a great restoration opportunity. Our process, beginning with an in-depth discovery of the opportunities, proved that a straight restoration may not be enough for the Warren Cultural Center to thrive. We wanted to help keep EEWOHA going by imagining the future and planning for sustainability—not just fixing up the old building. We joined the steadfast efforts of EEWOHA and finalized the major subcontracting team by December 2010.
Detailed Planning and Design
Through a quick yet extensive discovery process involving many community members and even more questions, project drivers were set. The goal was not to reuse, renew or repurpose the building for something different but rather to recreate this grand old lady in its entirety—the structure, the architecture, the significance to the community and the use of the space. The significance of this project was that the very vision of Edward and Eva Warren was to be restored. In addition, we discovered ways to accommodate new needs and provide sustainable support for the future of the Warren Cultural Center by adding management offices, catering spaces, leasable offices and a flexible community center.
PHOTOS: Cameron Campbell, Integrated Studios