Duluth, Minnesota’s historic high school is a gem of the city’s past. So when Saturday Properties purchased the building to renovate it into apartments they vowed to preserve its historic elements. The one area that won’t be old fashion? The electrical system. The owners recruited Power North member, Hunt Electric, to update the electrical work throughout the old school.
Since 1892, the Duluth landscape has been defined by the Old Historic Central High School. This Lake Superior brownstone building has been a pillar for locals and tourists alike. While the building is beautiful and one of a kind, it became too much of a financial burden for the school district. The investment by Saturday and the work done by Hunt will give the school a new life while protecting its history.
“Right now we’re just in the demolition phase so we’re putting up lots of string lights and running turtles to protect electrical devices,” explains Andrew Ristinen, one of the Hunt apprentices working on the project. Turtles, or RAB TCB Turtles are plastic covers that keep electrical equipment dry in wet locations.
Hiring a union shop like Hunt shows how this immense undertaking is dedicated to benefiting the community.
There are lots of benefits of working for a union according to Ristinen. “I’ve worked for a private company before and usually you don’t get bigger jobs. Here, you get to know a lot more of the trade and get to know a lot more people.” He also adds, “Safety is so important to our team.”
Eventually, the Hunt team will light up the whole building. When the place is finished in fall of 2023, the Zenith HCHS will host 122 apartments and a large common area.
In a recent news article by WDIO, the Director of Operations for the project, Dan Markham stated, “Professionally, there are more eyes on this project than any other in the city, except maybe the hospital down the road. But this has such a historical significance. We understand how important it is to the citizens of Duluth. We are building something for the future, but are stewards of this amazing resource.”
The future isn’t far away. In less than a year, new tenants will start moving into the historic building. Thanks to Ristinen and the rest of the team at Hunt, they’ll be living with safe and completely updated electrical throughout the place. We’re excited Power North will play a part in the legacy of this priceless piece of Duluth history.
