Ace Hardware
Prairie Side
Perceptions about metal buildings can be difficult to overcome, and this project dealt with a municipal ordinance that could have been formidable. With the Butler Builder®, architect, customer and community working together, this project served everyone.
Project
Overview
When a city hadn’t seen a steel pre-engineered building in more than two decades, Butler Manufacturing® and longtime Butler Builder® Bane-Nelson, Inc. proved what precision engineering can achieve.
Owner Gary Dickes partnered with Bane-Nelson and Partners in Design Architects to create a 20,000-square-foot retail environment that combined structural integrity, visual appeal and long-term efficiency. The design leveraged Butler’s proven systems — including TextureWall™ insulated wall panels, primary framing, insulation system and the Express Mezz™ system — to maximize usable space while ensuring aesthetic approval from the City of Kenosha, Wis.
Butler engineering precision allowed non-standard column spacing and a two-level mezzanine layout that expanded retail area without compromising performance.
The result: a modern, light-filled environment that meets stringent energy codes, resists Wisconsin’s climate and reflects the trusted quality of Butler systems.
The outcome? Delivered on time and on budget, Prairie Side Ace Hardware demonstrates that when precision matters, Butler builds with assurance — redefining expectations for steel construction in Kenosha.
That architecture firm was Partners in Design Architects, also based in Kenosha. Together, they provided creative solutions and delivered the best building for Dickes’ growing business.
“It was the perfect opportunity to work together,” said Eric Milgrin, project manager for Partners in Design. “The Butler products offered a nice solution and allowed us to create an aesthetically pleasing design while saving the client some money.”
Early in the process, Dickes looked at plans from other architects that called for a block building with a flat roof, which was a no-go for Dickes. Nelson mentioned the idea of a pre-engineered steel building.
“Gary wanted to maximize the site,” Nelson said. “Ace has a formula that shows how additional square feet of retail space equates to X amount of dollars in sales. So, he wanted to maximize the footprint of his store.”
“The first thing that jumped out at me is that it seemed there was a lot of flexibility in the architecture with the steel building,” Dickes said.
But the path forward contained a significant obstacle: perception.
Kenosha has an ordinance restricting metal buildings. This was a real worry for the team.
“We thought it might be a little bit of an uphill battle,” Nelson said, and he was correct. “There were requests from the city that the new building blend in with the neighborhood. Aesthetics was important,” Dickes remembers.
The team knew it could be a challenge to convince the city to allow the Butler exterior metal wall panels, so Nelson and his Butler Area Manager took time to show the architects the various wall panel options in the Butler product line.
“Coming into the project, I thought the pre-engineered building might be inflexible in terms of the options for skinning the exterior,” Milgrin said. “I was impressed with the number of finish options available from Butler.”
The team proposed the Butler TextureWall™ Panel Wall System with a stone wainscot along the base for city for approval. The factory-insulated metal wall system has a durable stucco-like exterior appearance.
The interior panel face is factory-finished in a way that was perfect for the retail space Dickes envisioned. Milgrin supported the choice because the TextureWall panels created a pleasing aesthetic look while providing the high R-value needed to meet the code requirements in that part of Wisconsin.
Their preparation paid off and the project won approval for a Butler pre-engineered metal building.
Early plans had as much as 22,000 sq. ft. of interior space, but after some adjustments for city approvals, the building came in just under 20,000. Then, the team was able to do even more to help Gary maximize his store. They looked at the space needed for the retail shelving and discovered he could fit in more by moving the steel columns. They settled on a non-standard column spacing of 33 feet so they would fall at the end of the aisles.
“The Butler design team made it happen,” Nelson said.
I know you wouldn’t attach this to a hardware store, but I hear it over and over how people tell me the store is beautiful. What we did with a steel building and exposed grey beams and white ceiling insulation, works for a hardware store.
Another idea that helped to maximize the retail space was to stack the store’s office space using a mezzanine.
“We were one of the first to use the Butler Express Mezz™ System,” Nelson said. In addition to saving 200 sq. ft. of retail space, the Express Mezz System also saved budget. “We compared the price with conventional steel. The labor cost was half, and the materials were lower too. We would not have been able to achieve this building with this result on his budget with a conventional-type building. It just would not have happened.”
Since opening in 2021, the store has become a local landmark. Of course, it’s one thing to drive by Prairie Side Ace Hardware. It’s a totally unique experience when you step inside. “Customers comment on it all the time. The high ceilings and natural light are noticed instantly,” Dickes said. "It’s not what they expect from a retail space."
With Butler products and a commitment to finding the correct solution for the job, Kenosha has a retail store that breaks down perception and builds up the community.
