Crews making progress on Hotel Besse, Kelce School of Business
PITTSBURG, Kan. – Work continues on historic Hotel Besse in downtown Pittsburg with masonry repair work and the removal of windows.
Passersby soon will see buck hoists installed on the exterior of the building. These temporary elevator systems are used on construction sites to transport workers and materials vertically — and as the tallest building in Pittsburg and for many miles around, the Besse is very vertical!
The work is part of a project known as Gorilla Rising, which preserves and returns to use the historic hotel, and includes a new home for Pittsburg State University’s Kelce College of Business being built two blocks to the south.
One of the most historic buildings in Pittsburg, the Besse has been vacant for several years. It soon will be home to student apartments and a suite of offices that will serve the public.
“The Besse Hotel has been vacant and falling into disrepair for too long,” said City Manager Daron Hall. “This renovation will save that iconic structure, preserving memories and laying the groundwork for new ones.”
On the inside, crews have gutted each floor in recent months and started framing on the first five floors. By the end of July, it should be completed all the way to the 13th floor — the top floor, according to project leaders.
Crews will follow the framers to rough in plumbing and electrical, which will take most of the summer to complete.
New windows will be installed later this year, starting on the top floor and working to the bottom, and drywalling will begin.
When it’s complete, entrances from the alley and Fourth Street will take student residents and guests into the lobby. There, the public can access the new home of the Center for Reading and the new home of the Small Business Development Center.
Student residents will use an elevator to continue to the mezzanine level, which will be communal space, and to their apartments on the 2nd through 12th floor.
Each of the apartments on the 12th and 13th floors will be suite-style. Because the elevator doesn’t extend to the 13th floor, each apartment will be two-story and will feature two bedrooms on the 12th floor and a living space on the 13th floor that is accessible by staircase.
All work has been reviewed and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service because the building, dedicated in 1927, is on the National Registry of Historic Places.
Kelce College of Business
At 216 N. Broadway, initial work has gotten underway on the next Kelce College of Business.
The spring was unseasonably rainy, and the site first had to be cleared of debris and then dirt work and gravel work done, which weather delayed.
Concrete will be poured by the end of June.
By July, passersby will see steel starting to go up.
Both projects, known collectively as Gorilla Rising, are to be completed by Fall 2026.
“Thanks to the shared vision, hard work, and collaboration of leaders at the city and state level, and the donors who realized the value of this investment, this will help Pittsburg and the university continue to thrive together during a time when many cities the size of ours are not,” said President Dan Shipp.
Funding
Funding for the project comes from a combination of private and public donors and partnerships; a grant from the Kansas Department of Commerce; and gaming revenue, a Revolving Loan Fund contribution, and in-kind support from the City of Pittsburg.