Projects

Honors Hall, Lycoming College

Williamsport, PA

From Auto Parts Store to Restored 19th Century Landmark Building

This adaptive reuse project transformed a condemned building into a beautiful multi-use cultural resource. In addition to the main recital hall, the building also houses offices for the Honors Program, Campus Ministry and Community Services, a student lounge and a meditation chapel. Working entirely within the existing envelope, the refurbished building  features extensive interior detailing and casework, with environmentally friendly cork flooring.

The 19th century landmark was originally built in 1884 as a meeting house for the growing city of Williamsport and most recently was being used as an auto parts store. Lycoming College originally purchased the property with the intention of making a parking lot. However, a financial gift to the college facilitated a new vision for the solid 19th century brick building.

Multi-Use Resource for the College and Surrounding Community

The dramatic transformation incorporates pieces of the college’s history including terra cotta medallions from a former campus art and music conservatory and a stained glass window rescued from another campus building. Flexible seating was utilized for the recital hall to accommodate a wide range of programming for up to 100 people on the first floor with an additional 20 seats in a balcony viewing area. The recital hall has become a vibrant, acoustically-friendly addition to the campus, well received by the Lycoming College music program and the surrounding community.

Photo Credit: Michael Mutmansky Photography

Willman Business Center, York College of Pennsylvania

York, PA

Scope:

  • Higher Education
  • Renovations
  • Additions

Services:

  • Architecture
  • Interior Design
  • Construction Administration

A Place of Opportunity

York College of Pennsylvania has a very strong business program, but the building in which it was housed needed updating and significant expansion to accommodate all of its faculty and desired programming. Located close to local York businesses and corporations, the program offered its enrolled students many advantages but needed contemporary classrooms, trading labs and support spaces with built-in flexibility to adapt as the curriculum advances. The design result was a five-story addition and renovations to house all business administration faculty in one building and facilitate active, hands-on learning experiences and spontaneous collaboration.

Connection to the Campus

The building needed to display outwardly what was going on inside. A sleek corporate design was selected, but it had to fit in aesthetically with the other brick buildings on campus. Due to the existing building’s location on the campus quad, the expansion was situated so that all angles of approach are welcoming and connected to the center of campus. The end result is a primarily brick façade facing the campus quad and merging with the other buildings, with refined metal and glass surfaces facing outwards, capitalizing on the city views.

A Modern Setting for Modern Students

The inside of the building features an expansive two-story lobby equipped with a NASDAQ ticker. Further inside are nine smart classrooms with seating for 40 students each, a 150-seat auditorium, a commerce lab, and a corporate training center. Other additions include offices, collaborative research areas, and breakout rooms that promote spontaneous learning. The building is capped with Yorkview Hall, a multipurpose space enclosed in glass, capable of seating 300 people for diverse events. Yorkview Hall opens out onto terraces with panoramic views of the city of York.

Award: American School & University 2014 Architectural Portfolio Outstanding Design

Photo Credit: Nathan Cox Photography

Samaritan Summit Village

Watertown, NY

Scope:

  • Senior Living
  • Assisted Living
  • Skilled Nursing

Services:

  • Architecture
  • Interior Design
  • Construction Administration

This non-profit medical provider was awarded a Health Care Efficiency and Affordability Law for New Yorkers, or HEAL, NY grant to build a new 288-bed facility to provide nursing care and assisted living. The building layout for the 168-bed skilled nursing center allows visitors and staff to directly access any neighborhood without walking through other units. Resident social spaces, including living rooms, activity rooms, parlors and dining rooms, are connected and open to the corridor. Resident rooms are designed to accommodate dining and allow for social interactions with other residents, staff and visitors. The commons building includes a multi-purpose room, gift shop, cafe, meditation room, beauty salon, medical clinic and a physical therapy suite.

 

Photo Credit: Larry Lefever Photography