Items Tagged ‘lofts’
Apartments Planned For Thread Factory
Synopsis:
The old Synthetic Thread factory in west Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, will soon find a new use thanks to developer Abraham Atiyeh. The three-story structure will go through a $3 million dollar conversion that Atiyeh plans to have completed by the end of the year. Once finished, it will include 67 studio apartments to cater to the local graduate student population. The project will retain two of the three buildings on the site but will remove the garage. While the area is not residential, it is undergoing redevelopment with another apartment development recently completed nearby. Synthetic had been in the building since 1952 but vacated after a merger in 2004.
CITY MUSEUM
Synopsis:
History
The building was once home to the International Shoe Company. At 600,000 square feet, it included a shoe factory and warehouse.
(Re)Developer
Purchased in 1993, the site found a new purpose and life thanks to Bob and Gail Cassilly. Bob, a classically trained sculptor and serial entrepreneur, spent four years reworking the site for his new vision.[1]
Outcome
Opened in 1997, the museum is not only an example of adaptive reuse itself but its displays and elements are repurposed architectural and industrial objects. It includes such features as old chimneys, salvaged bridges, construction cranes, miles of tile, and two abandoned planes. “CITY MUSEUM makes you want to know,” says Cassilly. “The point is not to learn every fact, but to say, ‘Wow, that’s wonderful.’ And if it’s wonderful, it’s worth preserving.”[2]
Some of the exhibits include: shoelace museum, World Aquarium, Enchanted Caves and Shoe Shaft, Skateless Park, and MonstroCity. Thanks to the success and vibrancy of the museum, Cassily has used the City Museum as a neighborhood anchor to help develop several nearby commercial and residential buildings as well as include lofts within the shoe factory.[3]
2100 Greenwood Lofts
Synopsis:
History
The complex initially was a rolled steel cutting factory located in Evanston, north of Chicago. It was built of steel and brick.
(Re)Developer
Evanston Condos purchased the complex with the intention to reuse the structure for live/work space. Not only did they intend to reuse the building, but the bricks from any of the walls that had to be removed were reused elsewhere in the complex for new construction.
Outcome
2100 Greenwood Lofts has developed into an architecturally unique loft community of 27 units with 12 to 20 foot ceilings and 1,000 to 2,700 square foot live/work space. There is an open private courtyard that meanders through the complex. By developing the units as live/work spaces, the units offer residents the ability to work from home and reduce their carbon footprint as well as save money[1].
The Granary Lofts
Synopsis:
History
Originally serving as a granary, the building is part of the former Prussian Military Unit barracks complex in Gliwice. The complex was built between 1892 and 1914. After the war, it was used as a drugs warehouse for the nearby Military Hospital.[1]
(Re)Developer
Wektor Inwestycje sp. z o.o. has been converting the entire military barracks complex into a new residential area by reusing old buildings as well as adding new ones. The adapted complex now has lofts, houses, apartments, and retail spaces.[2]
Outcome
Near the city center, The Granary is perfectly located along with low and medium residential buildings and the Grunwaldzki Park. The ground floor of the building is intended for retail and/or office functions. The upper floors include 30 lofts of varying size (850-3,450). The residential portion retains the old granary aspects with exposed brick and wood beams. Two access columns with stairways and elevators were added alongside the building so as not to alter the original building.[3]
Eastworks
Synopsis:
History
Prior to its adaptive reuse, Eastworks was the home of Stanley Home Products. The company manufactured home good items at the location for decades before it was merged and consolidated with other locations. The 500,000 sf factory is part of a series of mills that made up the West Boylston Co. That textile company had moved out of the city in the 1920s, leaving the Eastworks building to become home to Stanhome.[1] The mill is located along the Lower Mill Pond and Manhan Railroad (now the Manhan Rail Trail).
(Re)Developer
In 1997, private developer Will Bundy purchased the Stanhome building and founded Eastworks LLC. Through his efforts, he planned to reuse the building as a mixed-use community.
Outcome
Eastworks is now a mixed-use center for artists, residents, and retail. The redevelopment of the structure has been noted as the element that jump started a rebirth in the cityʼs economy. Developed over a number of phases with work still continuing, the project has met with a lot of enthusiasm and activity. It’s “a practical and dynamic home for community-based organizations making an impact in the Pioneer Valley and beyond, whether through entrepreneurship, artists supporting and engaging each other’s initiatives, or the far-reaching work of non-profit foundations.”[2]
