As the oldest pottery maker in the United States and a household name for generations, Pfaltzgraff couldn't have picked a better home. Now owned by Lifetime Brands, the company that grew from a one-man shop in the early 1800s to a large manufacturer offering a full range of products and stylbes is the full occupant of the recently renovated Greenway Tech Centre, formerly the Dallmyer building.
The circa-1903, four-story historic tobacco warehouse on South George Street is now a renovated 50,000-square-foot loft-style office space and the first green office building in York County. The building is fully occupied by Lifetime, except for the lobby museum open to the public. It features historic items including cigar artifacts, 1900s maps of local cigar houses, photos framed in the buildings window panes, and more.
In 2005, Westbury, N.Y.-based Lifetime acquired Pfaltzgraff, retaining about 90 percent of its employees and keeping the company headquartered in York, Pa. Lifetime's properties include cookware brands Farberware, Hoffritz and Roshco.
The building was developed by the Crispus Attucks Association, a York nonprofit organization dedicated to the revitalization of the city's southeast neighborhoods. Founded in 1931, the Crispus Attucks Association takes its name from the noted African-American Crispus Attucks, the first person to die in the Revolutionary War.
Wagman Construction was the construction manager for the shell and core of the building. Wagman Construction was also the general contractor for the renovation of the museum in the lobby of the building. Founded in 1902, the firm is a fourth-generation, private family-owned business headquartered in nearby Manchester Township.
Kinsley Construction did the renovation work, including the interior fitting for Lifetime Brands. Nutec Design Associates provided design services.
"Greening" the Greenway building included cleaning pigeon droppings with the use of respirators; tree removal along Cleveland Ave for parking deck; reuse of existing building/brownfield site; and, built with attention to minimize waste, sort through and recycle all materials possible. Only unrecyclable materials went to landfills.
Green Building Features
Green features of the building include a raised access floor system, extensive reuse of materials, FSC-certified wood, cellulose insulation, and a unique stainless steel sunscreen on the northwest-facing facade.
The clips and hangers support a "sunshade" type screen overlay can be hung on the exterior windows. The woven metal fabric, manufactured by GKD Sunscreens, serves as a filter to minimize the effects of the sun on the interior building temperature and reduce energy consumption related to cooling the building. The ceilings, made in Seven Valleys from recycled lumber, have been installed and are being finished with a clear urethane. Fifteen windows were refurbished in their original locations, 78 windows were relocated and refurbished and located in the new lobbies on all four floors. Thirty of the old windows will be recycled to be used on another construction project in Lancaster.
With the underfloor air delivery system, the HVAC delivers conditioned air up from the floor, circulating fresh air in, then taking air out through ceiling for continuous flow.
While the original 11-month construction period on the structure was slated to end in March 2006, last August the Greenway Tech Center was ultimately dedicated by the owner, the tenant, and city and state officials.
