Pull up to the front of Trinity University’s William Knox Holt Center, and you’ll be transported to 1920s San Antonio—an era of fascination with Spanish Revival architecture and displaying hard-won wealth. Step inside the campus events space, and you’ll find modern refinement and a refresh of the historic home’s original style elements. It’s a chameleon building, designed to be both a sophisticated gathering hall and tech-equipped conference venue.
The university just wrapped a two-year renovation and historic preservation project on the three-story, 12,000-square-foot former residence of a pecan-shelling magnate. Over the years, the building was passed on to Trinity and has been used largely as a space to host continuing education events. Now it will be used for a wide range of purposes for the Trinity campus community and beyond.
The contribution from an anonymous donor set the Holt Center project in motion, bringing the 100-year-old structure firmly into the modern era, ready to be used not only by Trinity but also by outside groups for rental. The William Knox Holt Foundation gifted the building to the university during a fundraising campaign in the 1980s, and now another donor’s gift is making sure the building stays in Trinity’s community for the next generation.
A new gathering place
“This space has long served the Trinity community, but the renovation creates an opportunity to reimagine how the Holt Center can be used,” says Brittany Thompson, Trinity’s executive director of hospitality and auxiliary services, whose department oversaw the renovation. “We’re excited to build on its history while creating new opportunities for both the campus community and external guests to experience the space.”
Thompson also sees the Holt Center’s historic character as an important part of its future.
“The Holt Center is a unique venue because it offers something you simply can’t recreate in a traditional event space,” Thompson says. “Its history, character, and connection to Trinity make it special. As we explore partnerships with organizations like the historical society, we see tremendous potential to introduce the Holt Center to new audiences while still honoring what makes the property so meaningful.”
The ground floor is centered around a dining room that comfortably accommodates up to 60 people around tables and can be transformed into a small lecture room, complete with audiovisual equipment and acoustical treatments. A catering kitchen supports dinners and receptions, while other areas of the house can accommodate cocktail events.
Elsewhere, a boardroom provides another meeting option, while three upstairs conference rooms can function as breakout spaces. Groups can rent portions of the building rather than the entire center, giving Trinity an upscale but flexible venue for conferences, meetings, dinners, and special events.
The third floor, meanwhile, has been repurposed as office space for Trinity’s Office of Conferences and Special Programs staff and other auxiliary services.
One of the first groups to experience the renovated Holt Center was the book club led by Trinity President Vanessa B. Beasley, Ph.D., which used the space on Sept. 3. Alumni in the San Antonio area are coming to the Holt Center on Oct. 17 to hear from President Beasley about Our Time: The Campaign for Trinity University as part of alumni weekend.
Bringing the outside in
Creating a more functional building meant solving a fundamental challenge: How do you modernize a century-old home without making it stop feeling like one?
Trinity worked with the Monte Vista Historic Association (MVHA) and Studio8 Architects to preserve the historic integrity of the house within the building laws of the neighborhood.
“Spanish revival, along with related Mediterranean and mission-inspired styles, is an important part of Monte Vista’s architectural character,” says Ryan S. Reed, chair of the MVHA architectural review committee. “These styles were very well suited to San Antonio, both culturally and climatically. Stucco walls, tile roofs, shaded porches, and courtyards all felt appropriate to South Texas, while the architecture also drew upon the Spanish and Mexican influences that are such an important part of San Antonio’s identity.”
One particular concern was maintaining the airy character of a porch on the building’s campus-facing side, says Jeff Meischen, Trinity’s senior project manager for campus planning and project development.
The renovation called for enclosing the porch so it could become an air-conditioned indoor space. Instead of building conventional walls, the team enclosed the existing archways with glass. The solution preserved the porch’s light-filled, open character while turning it into an all-season gathering area.
Throughout the house, the renovation followed a similar approach. Original fireplaces remain. Hardwood floors that had been covered were uncovered and refinished. Vaulted ceilings, carpeting, and acoustical wall paneling combine historic residential details with the practical requirements of a modern conference facility.
Even materials that couldn't remain in their original locations found new life. Rather than discarding cracked Saltillo tiles from an outside driveway, the project team broke them up and reused them as a mosaic floor in the newly added courtyard space.
And design geeks will want to check out all of the bathrooms: Each has its own color and wallpaper scheme.
“Trinity deserves a great deal of credit for recognizing that being a good steward of a historic property involves more than simply preserving a façade,” Reed says. “The university approached the building and its relationship to the surrounding neighborhood as a whole. That kind of sensitivity makes a real difference in a historic district, and the finished project speaks for itself.”
Opening the front door for all
Some of the renovation’s biggest changes are less decorative but potentially more consequential.
ADA accessibility had long been a challenge at the Holt Center, Meischen says. Previously, visitors using a ramp could access the building only from the rear. Redesigning the side parking lot made it possible to construct an accessible route directly to the front entrance.
The building’s elevator was also relocated from the rear exterior wall to the center of the house. Besides improving circulation inside, the move freed space outside for a landscaped area.
Together, the changes mean all visitors can now approach and enter the Holt Center through its front door—the same entrance that announces the building as a stately 1920s San Antonio residence.
From family home to Trinity conference center
That residential character isn’t an architectural affectation. The Holt Center really did begin as someone's home.
Julius Seligmann Sr., whose family was prominent in San Antonio's pecan-shelling industry, built the residence in 1926. The property eventually became part of Trinity and, at one point, served as the university’s Alumni House.
In April 1984, the building was dedicated as the William Knox Holt Continuing Education and Conference Center. It was named for William Knox Holt, a prominent businessman and industrialist, following a significant gift from the William Knox Holt Foundation to Trinity’s Second Century Campaign.
University President Ronald Calgaard, Ph.D., dedicated the center alongside Holt Atherton, chairman of the board of Holt Machinery Co. of San Antonio, and William Knox Holt’s nephew, Steve.
Even then, Trinity’s ambitions for the building sounded remarkably similar to those behind its latest transformation. The 1984 renovation was intended to create an elegant but efficient setting for professional development conferences and seminars.
More than four decades later, the Holt Center is beginning another chapter with much the same idea: preserving the elegance of a historic San Antonio residence while making it a place where people can gather, meet, and exchange ideas.