Historic Philadelphia Electric Company building is brought back to life as a Philadelphia Charter School
YouthBuild’s new home restores this unique 1930 PECO Energy building, originally constructed for use as an appliance showroom and office. Today it is a fitting space for this vocational-focused North Philadelphia school, engaging older students in the reuse of this historic structure. Lighting plays a key role to meet the tight budget yet still create a vibrant environment. Natural architectural materials combined with dynamic lighting support the goals of innovation, community and sustainability.
The project presented several challenges for the lighting design: historic facade, highly ambitious budget and energy goals, aggressive schedule, tall ceilings and unique classroom types. BEAM worked closely with Atkin Olshin Schade Architects with the lighting concepts to meet the challenges by incorporating cost effective, readily available, linear luminaires used in a variety of ways, contrasted with industrial-styled decorative pendants.
The elegant stone façade contained translucent panels backlighted by fluorescent, highlighting the innovation of the original electric company. They were refurbished and illuminated with uninterrupted linear LED strips, bringing warmth and excitement back to the neighborhood. In addition to providing a much-needed vocational school, Youthbuild contributes to restoring the fabric of North Philadelphia, evident by its award from the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia.
Read more on the transformation from PECO showroom to YouthBuild