artefact, inc.
Artefact, Inc. is a woman-owned full-service architectural firm based in the historic district of the City of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Artefact has a diverse portfolio of project types, however their focus is in adaptive reuse and historic preservation.
Simon Silk Mill | easton, pennsylvania
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The Simon Silk Mill Complex, originally built in 1883 by the Simon brothers, was a booming complex until the 1960's. Unable to keep up with competition overseas, the Simon Silk Mill complex shut down and the property was left abandoned for nearly half a century. In 2003, the mayor of the City of Easton revealed plans of demolishing most of the buildings to make way for new sports fields and a community center. The mayor's plans fell through and the property was later bought by Easton's Redevelopment Authority in 2006. Their plan was to convert the silk mill buildings into apartments, shops, and resturants. The Simon Silk Mill property was since sold to VM Development Group in 2010, who became the official redevelopers of the Silk Mill Complex.
In 2013, the Easton planning commission approved the first phase of development which was to renovate and restore Building K (as shown in the first two photos) for ground level commercial space and upper level apartments. During my time with Artefact Inc, my assignment was to accompany the lead architect to the site to observe the selective demolition of Building K and to gather needed existing conditions for our documentation. Another task I was responsible for was to program and configure the spaces for the upper apartments in Building K and the building shown in the third photo.
My time with Artefact Inc. was short and I did not have the opportunity to work on the project for the remaining phases. I believe the complex was fully developed by end of 2017.
lehigh valley charter high school for the arts bethlehem, Pennsylvania
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The Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts is located in the historic district of the City of Bethlehem. When I joined the Artefact team, t construction document phase had already begun. My responsibilities for this project were to assist the lead architect with completing the construction documents and coordinating the MEP and structural documents as they became available from the consultants.