Modern Love
THC’s Tax Credit Programs Preserve Midcentury Buildings
For many Texans, the idea of a Midcentury Modern building being historic is somewhat surprising—60 years isn’t that old, right? But now that many of the state’s Midcentury buildings are officially designated as historic structures, they’re in the spotlight for good reasons.
Historians and developers are using preservation and incentive programs to allow both groups to work together to rehabilitate these handsome structures by preserving them and providing a new home for Texas businesses and residents.
The Texas Historical Commission’s Texas Historic Preservation Tax Credit is responsible for significant increases in historic preservation projects across the state. Since 2015, when the program began accepting applications, the THC has assisted more than 460 projects, which have been successfully completed and certified, representing total costs of nearly $5 billion.
Many of these projects are large commercial structures in Texas’ urban downtowns, but the following projects represent rehabilitations of Midcentury Modern buildings in medium-sized cities across the state.
Fairhaven Retirement Home, Denton, 1965
History—Denton’s senior citizens needed a safe and comfortable living facility in the late 1950s. Out of this search emerged the History Fairhaven Retirement Home. The Denton Business and Professional Women’s Club led the project, eventually hiring O’Neil Ford, one of Texas’ most famous Modern architects. Ford was raised in Denton, making him an ideal architect for this forward-thinking project. The building—a simple, homey structure with two large courtyards—includes numerous public rooms for entertaining and residential rooms with large windows to enjoy the natural landscape.
Rehabilitation—After several years of abandonment, Fairhaven was purchased for redevelopment for continued use as an assisted living facility. A former mechanical space that is no longer needed was converted to an additional craft and lounge area, and a beauty salon was added. Despite damage by vandals, some notable Modern features remained and were repaired, including exposed beams and a copper fireplace cover in the main lounge area.
Petroleum Building, Longview, 1953
History—Longview was a growing city in the mid 1900s due to the rise in industry after the East Texas oil field’s discovery. This downtown office building was initially constructed as a five-story parking garage known as Downtown Auto Park. Only three years after construction, the upper stories of the garage were converted to offices, and the building was redesigned in a sleek Modern style. The ground floor housed a coffee shop and a jewelry store, the second level remained open parking, and the upper floors were used by office tenants.
Rehabilitation—This project combined state and federal historic tax credits as well as Low Income Housing Tax Credits to convert the former office building into mixed-income housing. The Petroleum Building had been neglected for decades, suffering loss from the elements as well as damage and destruction from vandalism. To maximize housing space, the second floor was enclosed with glass walls, which were held back from the façade to keep the sense of its former use as open parking. The interior was built out from the concrete structure, except for the historic elevator lobbies and tiled corridors that remained, which were carefully repaired.

Sun Plaza, El Paso, 1966
History—Sun Plaza is a Modern public housing complex within El Paso’s much-older Magoffin Historic District, where many single-family homes date to the turn of the 20th century. The neighborhood was significantly impacted by federal highway construction and Urban Renewal projects in the 1950s and 1960s. Fifty houses in the Magoffin neighborhood were torn down to clear 10 acres for the development of 330 units of housing for low-income seniors. The development included a nine-story tower and 22 cottage buildings, each composed of multiple bungalow units with varying colors of brick to increase the feel of neighborhood variety. Although the complex has a distinctly different feel from the rest of the district, it has become an important part of local history.
Rehabilitation—Sun Plaza has been continuously occupied and managed by the local housing authority. This rehabilitation project was undertaken through a public-private partnership program. Building systems were updated to increase comfort, efficiency, and safety. Finishes were also updated throughout, though floor plans in most units were unchanged. The tower building was repainted with a modern color scheme. Inside the tower, hidden Midcentury Modern features like a brise soleil wall were uncovered and exposed.
Franklin Building, Ennis, 1944
History—When originally constructed in 1905, this building was a typical turn-of-the-century commercial structure. In 1944 the building’s facade was significantly altered when it became home to a Ben Franklin five and dime store. An ornate brick parapet was removed, upper windows were infilled, a stucco coating was applied to the masonry, and the original storefront was replaced with large, aluminum-framed, plate glass display windows.
Rehabilitation—Due to the alterations, the Franklin Building was originally listed as non-contributing in the 1986 National Register nomination. Due to the extent of alterations and the application of hard stucco to the masonry, the building could not be restored to its original appearance. The first step to utilize the historic tax credits was to determine the district could be updated with a later period of significance, in which this building could be considered contributing in its Modern configuration. As the rehabilitation was planned, the building was then treated as a 1944 building. The interior was subdivided into small office spaces, for single or two-person businesses, with a communal meeting room and service spaces. Exterior stucco was repaired and painted, and new signage references the original Franklin store sign.
