Luther University College’s transformation on display

As more than 30 architectural gems welcome visitors as part of the annual Doors Open Waterloo Region event Saturday, guests will find one venue familiar yet new.

Martin Luther University College, formerly Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, reopened recently after a 14-month, $9-million overhaul.

By the time of its centennial in 2011, it had become clear that the school — which founded Wilfrid Laurier University and was instrumental in the creation of the University of Waterloo — needed to renew its building at the corner of Albert Street and Bricker Avenue.

Built in 1963, Luther’s structure was laced with asbestos and its old boilers were huffing and puffing. During the reconstruction period, work crews gutted the building, reconfigured some floor layouts, installed energyefficient heating and cooling systems and built a new entrance.

Doors Open visitors will be able to view new ablution facilities

for Muslim students from across Laurier’s campus. Architecture buffs can crane their necks at the clear windows and floating roof atop Keffer Memorial Chapel — the centre of worship life at Luther — that’s at once grand yet intimate. And those who just want to soak it all in can take a seat in the bright new gathering space connecting Luther’s placid courtyard and Bricker Avenue.

While the interior is completely new, flourishes of the school’s tradition remain.

Stained glass that once graced the chapel in Willison Hall, the school’s home from the mid 1920s until 1963, contrast the lacey, frosted window treatments that provide privacy for faculty offices and the new boardroom. An array of modern yellow glass panels is a nod to the original chapel glazing. And select spaces are hung with photos from the school’s long history.

Luther’s doors will be open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Terry Montgomery, principal architect on the renewal project, is scheduled to give an illustrated talk at 1:30 p.m.

Limited parking is available in Laurier lots 1, 13 and 14. Enter off Bricker Avenue.

MIRKO PETRICEVIC PHOTOS Stained glass that once graced the chapel in Willison Hall, the school’s home from the mid-1920s until 1963, contrast the lacey, frosted window treatments that provide privacy for faculty offices and the new boardroom.

Most of the renovations took place within the building’s footprint. But new administrative offices, boardroom and entrance were added to the façade facing Bricker Avenue.

Martin Luther University College’s renovation included the installation of clear windows in Keffer Memorial Chapel, decking in the courtyard, and sliding doors to the deck.