Kress Building, Greensboro

The Kress Building, located on South Elm Street in Greensboro is a striking example of early 20th-century Art Deco architecture and one of the city’s most iconic downtown landmarks. Designed by Edward Sibbert and completed in 1930 during the Great Depression, it was the first of many Kress Company buildings created by Sibbert. True to the vision of the company’s founder-that even five-and-dime goods deserved a beautiful setting-the building features a terracotta façade, intricate inlaid corner ornaments, coats of arms, and elaborate metalwork. A whimsical touch, symbolic of local heritage, can be seen in the tobacco leaves spilling from the horns of rams perched above the building’s entrance-an homage to North Carolina’s tobacco industry.

Originally a department store, the Kress Building was also a site of historical significance during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1960, two months after the Woolworth sit-ins, 45 protestors were arrested here for staging a sit-in at the lunch counter, making it part of Greensboro’s larger civil rights legacy.

Today, the restored building houses a dynamic mix of uses across its 45,310 square feet, including ground-level retail space, flexible office floors, and a luxurious fifth-floor apartment that once served as a mechanical room before being converted into a penthouse in 2001. One of its highlights is the Kress Terrace on the fourth floor-a popular event venue featuring a 2,250-square-foot interior banquet space and an expansive 4,500-square-foot rooftop terrace overlooking downtown.

Now part of a vibrant block that includes restaurants, cafés, and cultural venues, the Kress Building stands as both a preserved piece of Greensboro's past and a versatile space for its present.