ALPS Lonoke Storefront Rehabilitation

ALPS, Inc. / Laminate.com has long anchored Downtown Lonoke from its historic Front Street storefronts. This project intentionally reclaimed space within the building to strengthen that downtown presence: former light-industrial floor area became 1,376 square feet of new boutique retail for Tricia’s at the street, offices moved upstairs into a former storage mezzanine, and the micro-manufacturing floor expanded into the former office footprint.

The façade had been substantially altered over decades, with a metal canopy, panels, and later finishes obscuring—or damaging—much of the original building fabric. Because too little remained for a full historic restoration, Kudzu worked with what the building retained: removing the non-historic layers, repairing exposed masonry, rebuilding compromised portions of the façade, and introducing a compatible new storefront, awnings, lighting, and signage. The result is a renewed place for local commerce that honors the building’s past without pretending it can be returned to something it no longer is.

Historic photograph courtesy of the Lonoke County Museum. Project photography by Graham Biles.