The Granby Street Apartments 
Renovated Ames Department Store 
Norfolk, VA  

The Granby Street Apartments are located in a renovated Ames Department Store in Norfolk, VA. When Julia visited this building, she was under the impression that it was a renovated big box building, meaning a large, one-room, free-standing building. However, the Granby Street Apartments are a part of a downtown revitalization project that is happening in Norfolk, and the Ames Department store is actually an older building with many levels and many rooms. The renovation is a beautiful example of adaptive re-use. There are approximately 49 apartments in the building. The misunderstanding of the term "big box" in her pre-visit research in Norfolk has led her to realize that it is a fairly new term, and exploring what "big box building" means to people has become an interesting aspect of the research. Julia articulates "big box building" as a free-standing, warehouselike building, with one main room taking up basically the entire building.

 

back to big box map