HISTORICAL
BUILDING RESTORATION
IN PLANO, TX.
The Legacy Business District was conceived by Ross Perot in the early 1980s. Frito-Lay joined in 1985 with a 556,000-sq-ft campus — the first of what is now a 2,665-acre district spanning 40 years of North Texas corporate development. With median year built 1993 and the oldest campuses now at or past 40 years, Legacy's first-generation buildings are entering their initial envelope restoration cycle — and their first window of National Register eligibility.
What Historical Building Restoration Includes
Conservation-grade envelope restoration for Plano's first-generation corporate campuses — from curtain wall sealant replacement to masonry facade repair and compliance documentation.
Historical Masonry Restoration
The buff and gray masonry veneers common to Legacy District's original 1980s-era campus buildings have now experienced 35-40 years of North Texas thermal cycling, hail exposure, and DFW hail corridor damage events. Original sealant joints — designed for a 20-25 year service life — have long exceeded their engineered lifespan. Mortar joints in masonry veneer panels have opened from differential movement between the veneer and structural frame.
We assess the full facade condition, identify zones requiring immediate repointing versus zones that can be maintained on a schedule, and apply mortar systems matched to the original joint profile and color — so that restoration work doesn't visually disrupt the architectural consistency that defines Legacy's campus character.
Architectural Detail Preservation
The first-generation Legacy campuses — Frito-Lay (1985), the original Perot-era office towers — established an architectural vocabulary that defined North Texas corporate development for a decade. Their horizontal banding, punched window patterns, masonry veneer systems, and entry canopy details are character-defining features that differentiate them from later generic suburban office product.
As AT&T's $1.35B global HQ (announced January 2026 at 5400 Legacy Drive) reshapes the corridor and creates competitive pressure on surrounding 1980s-1990s buildings, maintaining the architectural integrity of these earlier campuses is both a preservation priority and a competitive positioning requirement.
Adaptive Reuse Envelope Work
The former J.C. Penney HQ — 1.8M sq ft on 50 acres, built in the early 1990s — is undergoing $1B redevelopment into The Park at Legacy. This is the clearest example of Legacy District's first-generation building stock entering adaptive reuse: corporate single-tenant campuses being converted to mixed-use development with modern performance requirements. The envelope work on these conversions must integrate current energy code compliance with the preservation of architectural character that anchors the redevelopment identity.
We coordinate curtain wall gasket replacement, sealant system upgrades, insulation retrofits, and waterproofing membrane replacement scopes that bring 30-40-year-old building envelopes to current performance standards without altering the facade profiles that define the redevelopment's architectural vision.
Historical Documentation & Compliance
Frito-Lay's Legacy campus (1985) and the Perot-era office towers (early 1980s) are entering the 40-year window for National Register of Historic Places eligibility. Federal historic tax credits (20% of qualified rehabilitation expenditures) on a Legacy-scale campus represent significant financial benefit — a 1M sq ft rehabilitation with qualified expenditures of $50/sq ft generates $10M in federal tax credits alone, before Texas state program credits.
We provide the significance assessment, scope narrative, and materials specification package required for SHPO Part 1/Part 2 submissions. For Legacy campuses where architectural records from the original specifying firms are available, we incorporate original design documentation into the tax credit package — which strengthens the significance argument and accelerates SHPO review.
Industries We Serve in Plano
Legacy District's First Buildings Are Entering Restoration Age
The Legacy Business District was conceived by Ross Perot in the early 1980s and now spans approximately 2,665 acres. Frito-Lay joined in 1985 with a 556,000-sq-ft facility on 300 acres — one of the first and oldest major campuses. The J.C. Penney HQ opened in 1992 at 1.9M sq ft. With Plano's median year built at 1993, the entire Legacy corridor is now at or approaching the 30-40-year mark where original waterproofing and sealant systems require systematic replacement.
AT&T's announcement in January 2026 of a $1.35B global HQ at 5400 Legacy Drive — targeting partial occupancy in the second half of 2028 — will introduce a new benchmark for campus quality that raises the bar for every neighboring property. Buildings that were Class A in 1990 are now competing against one of the largest corporate campus investments in US history.
Plano's hail exposure is severe: May 2024 caused $2.3B in regional damage and June 2023 storms caused $7-10B in insured losses. The high density of glass-curtain-wall Class A towers in Legacy makes post-storm envelope inspection a recurring annual obligation — and systematic sealant and curtain wall restoration a proactive alternative to reactive damage repair.
The oldest major campus in the Legacy Business District — now 40 years old and entering its first comprehensive envelope restoration cycle
Announced January 2026 at 5400 Legacy Drive — raising the competitive bar for every neighboring 1980s-1990s campus in the corridor
June 2023 ($7-10B) and May 2024 ($2.3B) storms confirm Plano's position in the DFW severe weather corridor — envelope integrity is a recurring operational priority
Why Choose Griffin Restoration
Commercial exterior restoration since 2000
Licensed in TX, OK, AR, and LA
56' and 72' — self-performing capability
Full coverage for commercial projects
Historical Building Restoration FAQ
How is historical building restoration different from standard renovation?
Historical building restoration focuses on preserving the original character-defining features of a structure — its masonry patterns, ornamental details, material palette, and spatial form — rather than updating or replacing them. In Plano, the relevant buildings are not Victorian-era structures but the early Legacy District campuses built in the 1980s and early 1990s — Frito-Lay's original 556,000-sq-ft facility (1985), the former J.C. Penney HQ (1992), and the first-generation office buildings that established the Legacy corridor. At 30-40 years old, these buildings are approaching or past the age where original sealant systems, curtain wall gaskets, and waterproofing membranes must be addressed — not as renovations, but as systematic building envelope restoration.
What are the Secretary of the Interior's standards for historic preservation?
The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation govern work on properties listed on or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. In Plano, these standards are increasingly relevant as Legacy District's first-generation buildings approach and exceed the 50-year threshold for National Register eligibility. Frito-Lay's campus (joined 1985) and the first office towers of the Ross Perot-conceived Legacy Business District (early 1980s) are entering the window where preservation standards apply — and where rehabilitation tax credits become available to owners undertaking envelope restoration work.
How do you balance modern code requirements with historical preservation?
Plano's DFW hail corridor exposure is severe — May 2024 caused $2.3B in regional damage; June 2023 storms caused $7-10B in insured losses. For Legacy District's 30-40-year-old Class A towers, the challenge is upgrading original curtain wall systems, sealant joints, and waterproofing membranes to current performance standards without altering the building envelope profiles that define each campus's architectural identity. We use silicone and polyurethane sealant systems that meet current energy and moisture performance requirements while matching the original joint geometry and color, and waterproofing membranes that address modern hydrostatic performance standards without requiring substrate demolition.
What types of buildings qualify as historically significant?
In Plano's Legacy District, the threshold is approaching. Frito-Lay joined Legacy in 1985 — that campus turns 40 in 2025. The Legacy Business District was conceived by Ross Perot in the early 1980s; its first buildings are now over 40 years old and approaching National Register eligibility. The former J.C. Penney HQ (opened 1992) is 30+ years old and undergoing $1B redevelopment as The Park at Legacy. These are among the most significant examples of late 20th-century planned corporate campus development in Texas — and significance is now documentable under National Register criteria for architecture and commerce.
How do you source appropriate materials for historical restoration?
For Plano's late 20th-century corporate campuses, material matching focuses on curtain wall sealants, masonry veneer units, EIFS systems, and glazing compounds rather than the lime mortars of earlier-period buildings. We work with manufacturers who maintain color-matched silicone sealant lines for the most common Legacy District exterior systems — including the buff and gray masonry palettes common to the original Perot-era buildings. For the 1985-1995 construction era, manufacturer technical data sheets and product samples from the original build-out are sometimes available through the original specifying architects, which we pursue when continuity of appearance matters to the building owner.
Related Services
Historical building restoration often works alongside these complementary services.
Commercial Masonry Restoration
Tuckpointing, crack repair, and masonry cleaning for commercial buildings. The foundation of most historical restoration scopes where original brick or stone must be preserved.
Learn more about our masonry services →Commercial Facade Restoration
Full envelope assessment and facade restoration for commercial buildings. Addresses the complete exterior system — masonry, sealants, windows, and coatings — in a single coordinated scope.
See our facade restoration capabilities →Exterior Building Repair
Concrete repair, spall remediation, and structural surface restoration. Often the first step in a historical restoration project before preservation and finishing work begins.
Explore exterior repair services →Restore Plano's Legacy District Buildings
Whether you manage a first-generation Legacy campus from the 1980s, an early 1990s corporate headquarters entering its first systematic envelope restoration cycle, or a building positioned adjacent to AT&T's 2028 campus opening — we'll assess the condition and provide a detailed scope of work.