116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Greiner Plaza back on its feet in Washington
Couple renovate, reopen building after 2022 fire
WASHINGTON, Iowa — It’s been a struggle, but the Greiner Plaza, the former public library in downtown Washington, has reopened after a devastating fire in November 2022.
“It was a difficult process, I think, in a lot of different ways,” Greiner Buildings CEO Matt Greiner said. “It’s been strange, because on one hand, it’s been a great thing, we were able to redo this our way, and it turned out very good. But on the other hand, it was a lot of time and a lot of pressure.”
Greiner Buildings moved back into the renovated space in April. The other tenants, including the Washington County Riverboat Foundation and Main Street Washington, soon followed.
The building’s $1.8 million in renovations included conversion of a former storage closet into office space, structural improvements to the roof, and a vaulted ceiling visible on the front facade, reaching over a spacious conference room.
Most of the aesthetic decisions were left to Ashley Greiner, Matt’s wife and office manager, who said she was pleased with how the building turned out.
“When you walk in here, it just is a calming feel,” she said. “It’s very up-to-date, a more modern look.”
At some points during reconstruction, the Greiners met with others in the building, which was without a roof. They brainstormed and, as complications developed, recalibrated the plan.
“We had to tear a few walls apart,” Matt Greiner said. “They started cranking out renderings, and to me it was going to look kind of like a Pizza Hut, which — nothing against Pizza Hut — it just wasn’t the look.”
The talent of several team members proved essential during those brainstorms, as did the sense of resolve throughout the company, and a shared vision of how the building needed to turn out, he said.
“We could’ve probably torn it down, and some people thought that would have been smarter,” Greiner said. “I don’t know that we ever really seriously considered that. Once we decided, ‘This is what we’re doing,’ and the conceptual renderings came out, we’re all in. And once we’re all-in, it’s just got to be excellent. That’s our standard.”
The renovation and upgrade was helped along with a $50,000 grant from Main Street Iowa.
“They didn’t have to (rebuild). They could have taken insurance money and gone somewhere else,” Main Street Washington Executive Director Samantha Meyer said of the grant. “We wanted to make sure that they knew they were still wanted downtown.”
A combination ribbon-cutting and confetti-popping event held at the building in August was well attended, and tenants say they’re happy to be back in the upgraded space.
“It was super nice before. I think it’s even better, now,” said Washington Economic Development Group Director Mary Audia, whose office is in the building. “Everything is lighter and brighter, and Greiner Buildings did such a great job getting everything back together for us.”
Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com
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