Hutto officials hope renovations to the city's iconic gin buildings will preserve a slice of Hutto's history and kick start a downtown development renaissance.

"This is a piece of Hutto's history," Mayor Debbie Holland said at the groundbreaking ceremony held Dec. 30 beneath an awning of the decrepit south gin building.

Both cotton gin buildings and the surrounding co-op site have sat idle for about 10 years. The city bought the land in 2003 with plans to develop the site.

Holland said the revamp of the south gin building, which will be made into an open-air event center, would hopefully stimulate private investment in the master-planned co-op site and lead to the construction of retail shops, restaurants and multifamily housing, among other projects.

The revitalized south gin building will feature perforated steel walls that will allow light to shine through. The city plans to build a new municipal building and City Hall on the site in the future. Building will be overseen by American Constructors, which is the construction manager and builder for the project.

Michael Antenora, founder of Antenora Architects, which designed the project, said the building will be reconstructed and made habitable, yet it will retain its historic character.

Gordon Bingaman, a principal at Antenora Architects, said unique aspects of the buildings would be preserved, such as an old cotton bail press, trusses holding up the ceilings and steel columns and windows.