Last week, Why Not Us (WNU), the women’s investment group, announced that Westbrooke Construction of Urbandale will be the general contractor for renovations of the Centennial building at 100 E. State St in Jefferson. This is an important next step in returning the building to an attractive restaurant that will draw visitors to the historic downtown square.
Interviews of three contractors were conducted by a sub-committee of the WNU board of directors assisted by architect on the project, Pete Franks of Glenwood and Chris Deal, a mechanical engineer from Jefferson familiar with the effort.
Westbrooke’s resume includes the Centennial building roof project for the City of Jefferson; renovation of the building where Greater Life Chiropractic is located in Jefferson; the rebuilding of the Catholic Church in Stuart after it was severely damaged in a fire; along with restorations of the Perry Chief building in Perry and the Kibbey Building in Marshalltown. The company also has extensive commercial kitchen construction experience, another significant consideration in Westbrooke’s selection.
WNU board president Peg Raney said, “Westbrooke has been involved in many historical renovation projects since 2008 and has been passionate about returning these buildings to their glory for communities. This company truly appreciates the character of these wonderful old buildings and is a perfect partner to make our vision come to life.”
Using the “design/build” concept, the contractor is selected and then works with the entity and its budget to get the project completed.
Kevin Conway, the Westbrooke owner, Franks and Deal will finalize the budget and timeline. WNU will release the expected completion timeline as soon as possible. “We know the community, in addition to the WNU group, is very interested in when the restaurant will be open. We are all very excited about its return. In the very near future, the restauranteur who will operate the business will also be officially announced,” said Raney.
