Alvis Hotel

Students focused on ideas for reuse of the remnants of the historic Alvis Hotel next to the Pauls Valley Amtrak station. The hotel burned in September 2009, leaving only portions of the shell of the building.
Pauls Valley, Oklahoma – Spring 2012

As part of the IQC Community Workshop course, students focused on ideas for reuse of the remnants of the historic Alvis Hotel next to the Pauls Valley Amtrak station. The hotel burned in September 2009, leaving only portions of the shell of the building. An adjacent three-story structure is also on the site. Students came up with ideas about what can be done to use the space while respecting the history of the building’s ruins.

During the semester, students traveled with Professor Ron Frantz and Associate Director Hope Mander to examine a variety of historic buildings, renovation projects, and new construction. The field trips to Pauls Valley, Shawnee, Oklahoma City, and Sulphur provided interesting precedent studies to help the students envision a future for the Alvis Hotel. Along the way, property owners, developers, construction company representatives, Main Street directors and volunteers, and preservationists helped explain behind the scenes information about the building projects. The students were surprised by the great projects and dedicated people in Oklahoma, especially in the smaller towns.

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