High-Profile: February 2026 | Page 16

16 High-Profile Focus: Restoration and Renovation February 2026

High-Profile Monthly publisher, Anastasia Barnes, recently interviewed Allison Toonen-Talamo, building envelope and historic restoration consultant at Walker Consultants, about the positive impacts of early planning on historic restoration projects, and the factors influencing a project’ s design, scope, and long-term durability.

Anastasia Barnes: When owners come to Walker about restoring an existing structure, what are the most common issues they don’ t realize are driving longterm risk or cost until your team gets involved?

Allison Toonen-Talamo: Early decisions are often driven by a visible issue such

EMD Serono

Allison Toonen-Talamo

Erland Construction, Inc. / www. erland. com

www. high-profile. com

as a leak, facade distress, or deferred maintenance item without full awareness of how that condition may relate to broader building performance or longterm durability.

Another frequent issue is underestimating how the use, scale, and history of the building influence risk and cost. In some cases, owners may inherit conditions from previous renovations or maintenance campaigns that were intended to address isolated concerns but unintentionally contributed to more widespread deterioration. Without a holistic understanding of how systems interact, well-intended repairs can sometimes shift problems rather than address underlying contributors.

For historic properties in particular, owners and project teams may not realize how much pre-work and early coordination is required before construction begins. Landmark status, historic district oversight, and agency review processes can significantly influence scope, schedule, and sequencing. When Walker gets involved early, we help teams understand the building’ s designation, applicable review requirements, and what to expect, allowing projects to move forward with fewer surprises.

AB: How has the approach to restoration

The Fessenden School

601 Edgewater Cafe

79 W Monroe for Landmarks Illinois / photo by Ryan Griffin-Stegink

evolved over the past decade, particularly in terms of materials, building science, and lifecycle planning?

AT: Over the past decade, restoration has become much more grounded in context and building science, rather than relying on standard details or materials that are assumed to work everywhere. One of the biggest drivers is location. Assemblies or products that may perform well in a climate like Texas don’ t necessarily translate to places like Massachusetts, yet owners and project teams sometimes assume they can carry details or standards from one region to another without adjustment. That mindset has shifted, and there is now more emphasis on understanding climate, exposure, and regional construction practices before committing to a repair approach.

There has also been a noticeable shift in how teams think about materials in relation to a building’ s era. Historic and early-20th-century buildings behave very differently than mid-century or late- 20th-century structures, and expectations around moisture management, air movement, and durability have evolved over time. Owners of historic properties may be cautious about introducing newer materials, while buildings from the 1950s through the 1980s often require a reassessment of whether original materials still align with today’ s use and performance expectations. The focus today is less about old versus new, and more about whether materials are appropriate for the specific building.

Another important evolution has been a broader awareness of how repair interventions affect interior environments and occupants, particularly when buildings are changing use. When properties shift from office or industrial to residential, exterior repairs and material selections can influence interior comfort and air quality. These considerations are now more commonly part of restoration conversations, rather than being treated as secondary concerns.

Overall, restoration has moved toward a more thoughtful, lifecycle-oriented approach, one that recognizes that materials, climate, building age, and use all play a role in how a building performs over time.

AB: Can you walk me through a recent restoration project where early intervention changed the outcome for the owner, whether financially, operationally, or in extending the life of the structure?

AT: A good example comes from projects where Walker is brought in early, before a repair scope or capital plan has been fully defined. In those situations, our team typically starts with a visual review of the exterior envelope, focusing on facade components and, in some cases, roofs and windows. From there, we help owners understand what conditions appear most urgent versus those that can be addressed over time. That allows repairs to be phased by elevation or priority, which is especially helpful when an owner is working within an annual or multi-year budget. Those early assessments give owners a clearer picture of the overall health of the building exterior and help inform planning decisions rather than reacting to individual issues as they arise.

When we’ re brought in later, often after construction has already started or when issues have become more visible, we follow a similar technical approach, but the process becomes more challenging from a planning standpoint. Visual reviews are typically performed in specific“ drop” locations, and until all planned areas are reviewed, it can be difficult to fully understand the extent of conditions elsewhere on the building. While preliminary estimates with allowances can be developed, older or more deteriorated buildings can vary significantly from one area to another, which introduces more uncertainty as the

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