Finding New Purpose
A slow but steady trend of returning to the office is helping define the future of many of the region’s smaller office buildings – and whether they have a future at all.
One of the more intriguing conversion projects is Heller Pacific’s The Diggs at 3rd and R streets. The 4-story building dates back to 1912, when it was the headquarter for the Thomson-Diggs Company Hardware.
“The Diggs is a special building I have admired for the past 20 years,” says Michael J. Heller, president of Heller Pacific, which plans to convert 205,000 square feet of concrete building into 132 residential lofts and retail space. “The history gives it soul and character that is very difficult to duplicate with new construction.”
Originally written by Ken Smith, comstockmag.com, April 2025