Join AIA Northeast Wisconsin to celebrate you, our members, and send off 2025 in style with a Holiday Highrise Tour and Jingle Mingle Social!

We'll start off with a guided tour of the 222 Building, an 11-story, 200-foot-tall Art Deco and Mid-Century Modern high-rise in downtown Appleton. The project showcases how modern life-safety, accessibility, and energy-efficiency standards were integrated into a mid-century structure while preserving its historic character and architectural integrity. Attendees will learn how FITWEL wellness strategies, code coordination with the AHJ, and collaboration among architects, engineers, and contractors enabled the building’s transformation into a compliant, resilient, and wellness-focused workplace. The tour also highlights the revitalized public plaza that reconnects the site to the surrounding downtown community. Presented by Brian Sternberg, AIA - Hoffman Planning, Design, and Construction Inc.

Following the tour, we'll head down the block to unwind at Vault 202 Brewery and Taproom with dinner & drinks (on us!) and a relaxed holiday social event, a great opportunity to catch up with your fellow AIA Northeast WI members and reflect on the year.

Agenda

• The guided tour will begin at 3:30 PM. Please arrive in the lobby 10–15 minutes early to allow for check-in and PPE verification. Hard hats, high-visibility vests, and safety glasses are required for participation — please bring your own PPE; limited equipment will be available on-site.
• Following the tour (approximately 5pm), attendees will head down the block to Vault 202 Brewery and Taproom for dinner, drinks, and a relaxed holiday social event.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the design and construction challenges involved in adapting a mid-century high-rise structure to meet current building codes, accessibility standards, and energy performance expectations.
• Explore how FITWEL wellness principles, and energy-efficiency measures were integrated into the existing historic envelope to promote occupant health and comfort while maintaining the building’s architectural integrity.
• Analyze the design and code coordination required to integrate modern high-rise life-safety systems—such as fire command, and emergency power —into a historic structure, including negotiation of equivalencies and exceptions with the AHJ.
• Evaluate the collaborative processes among architects, engineers, and contractors that enabled the successful transformation of the 222 Building into a compliant, resilient, and wellness-centered workplace for the next generation.
• Assess the planning and design strategies that activated the adjacent plaza, creating a public realm connection that enhances community welfare and promotes engagement between the building’s tenants and downtown Appleton.
• Discuss the lessons learned in balancing preservation standards (National Register eligibility, Secretary of the Interior’s Standards) with performance-driven upgrades necessary for high-rise rehabilitation.

Submitted for AIA/CES approval

No refunds day of event.

This event is hosted by AIA Northeast Wisconsin with special thanks to our holiday sponsors, Builtech and Specified Architectural Solutions | Carlisle SynTec Systems.