Centennial Hall is the former library at St. Cloud State University and was emptied years ago upon completion of the new library.  GLTArchitects was selected to design the adaptive reuse of this 35-year-old building.  Centennial Hall now houses the entire College of Business, along with the Philosophy department and Student Services. In addition, the project includes student gathering spaces, the existing auditorium and the Husky Bookstore.  The second floor is connected to Atwood Memorial Center (and Brown Hall in the future) via skyways, creating an internal connection as identified in the Campus Master Plan.

The remodeled interior spaces of this 5-story building maintain the feel of the original style but have been upgraded to meet today’s needs.  The central stair tower and concrete columns on all floors retain the original exposed concrete finish.   In many locations, the concrete “pan” ceiling was left exposed, which was another feature of the original era. A dramatic feature was created by adding a clearstory to the roof.  This allows the interior of the building to be flooded by natural light and creates a visual connection between the third and fourth floors.  A bridge with a glass guard rail was added to span the new opening.   New windows on the third and fourth floors created striking views of the campus and the city beyond and brought additional light into the core of the building.  A small building addition was added to the east side of the building.  In addition, new mechanical and electrical systems were added to meet current functions and codes.