Williamsport, Pa. — The fate of a Williamsport neighborhood and the entire community within seems to be at stake.
That might seem dramatic, but following a Tuesday hearing with an appeals board for the International Fire Code and International Building Code, the Pajama Factory owners and community, even city officials, seem to be waiting on what to do next with baited breath.
Wrangling the story into a nutshell is difficult. The Pajama Factory—a multi-use complex of multiple buildings in the west end of Williamsport—has been slowly evolving over nearly two decades. At first, just a few hallways leading to rented studios for artists and small business owners, the complex has stretched and grown, unfolding bit by bit to house a conglomerate of art studios, retail space, event space, living space, and varied industry.
As co-owner and an architect, Mark Winkelman knows every square inch of the 300,000-square-foot, 150-year-old complex, and speaks passionately about the Pajama Factory. He calls the structure beautiful and believes in its soul, its potential.
With the support of his wife Suzanne, who is co-owner of the Factory, Winkelman said he has invested about $1 million personally, $3 million with loans. He estimates another $8.5 million in rent collected and reinvested into the building over 17 years. "In all it's about $12.5 million," he said. They're able to reinvest into the building, supporteed on Suzanne's salary.
"We aren't rich New Yorkers," Suzanne Winkelman said, "but a hard-working couple who is trying to support this building in whatever way we can."
Included in those renovations are the conversion of buildings 6, 7, and 9 to a wet sprinkler system, and paving the two parking lots, a code requirement in order to expand the occupancy, with a price tag of $500,000, he said.
Beautiful or not, soulful or not, the Williamsport City Bureau of Fire and Codes said it poses too great a fire risk. Following a recent inspection by Fire Inspector Stephen Yonkin, he reported that the facility lacks the necessary fire protection systems and Williamsport Department of Codes determined that, if not addressed, the facility should be vacated.
In simple terms, without meeting current fire codes, the "life safety" of the 150 tenants is of high concern. Inspecting the sprinkler systems, Yonkin wrote in his July 3 report, "I can't verify that these systems work. I can't verify that they don't," and told the appeals board on Tuesday that he was "disturbed" at what he found.
A July 22 Order to Vacate was issued to Winkelman, unless he enlisted the services of a Fire Watch, 24-hour live coverage of the building, in lieu of properly working sprinkler systems with connection to the county-wide 911 system. He did enlist Fire Watch, at the cost of $1,000 a day.
On the grounds that the Fire Watch costs are unsustainable, Winkelman is appealing that requirement, offering instead to temporarily install non-commercial grade smoke detectors and add fire extinguishers in areas that are vacant; to provide monthly updates to the city regarding requests for proposals and pending construction work that will address the sprinkler deficiencies until the work is complete; and to appoint Pajama Factory employees responsible for daily walk throughs and identifying and removing fire hazards.
The board's job now is to decide what's next.
If Winkelman cannot sustain the cost of Fire Watch, can he implement other actions while he continues to bring the building up to code? Will Winkelman financially be able to make the necessary upgrades, applying for all necessary permits, and using certified professionals to do the work? And if not, should the building be vacated?
That summary was hardly a nutshell; the issue is large and complicated.
What the tenants are saying
The overwhelming response to the Pajama Factory "crisis" (for lack of a better term) is fear of losing individual spaces and fear of losing community. There is also a feeling of disappointment and uncertainty.
Lacy Holmes is a tenant and employee of another tenant, Equinox LLC., a manufacturing facility that makes "sewn products," mostly for outdoor recreation. That business has operated since 1986.
Holmes said she relocated to Williamsport based on her visit to the Pajama Factory, which impressed her.
"I like to say that the Pajama Factory led to a renaissance in my life, and now it is a cornerstone to my outlook and livelihood," she said. "Thanks to the thoroughness and responsiveness of ownership and the maintenance team, I feel completely safe in this building. If the factory goes, not only will I have to start all over, but it will snuff out the budding morale and innovation in this area. Letting it grow will continue to attract bright minds, inspire the community, and strengthen the local economy."
Shamar Coates, a full-time single father, recently relocated his tattoo business from his home into the Pajama Factory, where he now also employs two others. "Starting my own tattoo shop helps me tremendously with my bills and taking care of my kids," he said.
Professor of Photography at Lycoming College, Andreas Rentsch, called the Factory "a vital cultural and artistic hub in our community." He has rented space since 2022, noting the community is a place he can afford, and feels comfortable in.
One longtime tenant, Brian Spies referred to the Pajama Factory as a "living building."
"Of all the remarks made, this elegant two-word phrase resonated with my feelings about the Pajama Factory," said Cindy McBeth-Collins, who calls her rented workspace Boon Companion Press. She commutes from Bloomsburg to work in her etching studio.
"I do not feel unsafe here," she said, "but it’s not just about me. At the end of the day, we’re all in this together. We are a diverse community. There can be great strength in that."
Constance Phillips uses her studios for historical research and costuming. "I serve on the Victorian Christmas Committee and have been supporting that nonprofit and the Rowley House museum, in multiple capacities, since 2005, when my husband and I moved to Williamsport," she said. "The Pajama Factory has improved with each and every year and the spaces are affordable to those of us tenants that do not sell products."
Debra Moffit said her studio has been "an excellent means to start conversations with my visitors and educate them about the plein air movement and techniques," calling the Pajama Factory an "incubator" for projects that spark a wider interest in art in the community.
Since opening Lunar Beauty Studio in January, Kyleigh Garbrick said she has welcomed more than 300 clients into her studio, doing bridal and wedding party makeup. The affordable rent has made her business there possible. The community, she found, made it even better. "I was welcomed with open arms into a community where I knew maybe a handful of people. My neighbors lent me their tools, offered to help in other ways, and made me feel that I was where I was supposed to be," she said.
David and Louisa Stone, founders of the Williamsport Bicycle Recycle, one of the nonprofit Factory Works at the complex, have been sharing the benefits of bicycling through hands-on programs and managing a neighborhood bike shop where they refurbish bikes and sell them at reasonable prices. They've been working this mission for 10 years and recently installed a bench at the bus stop nearby so that people would have a place to sit.
The glaring issue of safety does not go unnoticed.
One tenant re-signed her lease days after the order to vacate was issued, unknowingly. "I feel a bit betrayed now, finding out a full two months later that the fate of the building is in jeopardy because of a failure to keep us safe. My decision obviously would have been different had I known," Samantha Barkauskas, a tenant since 2022, said.
"I have previously never felt unsafe in the building because I was assuming everything was properly up to code," Barkauskas added. "Now, we can’t even get an answer from ownership on what kind of time frame we might have if we have to move out. So I’m disappointed, sad, and all around frustrated that so many people who use the space for their livelihood are now possibly unsafe, let alone might have to so abruptly relocate. That is no small task for small businesses."
Photographer Amber McHenry said, "I think the dept. of codes and the fire dept. has our best interests in mind although I do feel as if they are targeting the Pajama Factory. We need to come together as a whole and support Mark (Winkelman) and this process."
Opportunities to support
The weekend of Oct. 4 & 5 is the second annual Vintage Fest held at the Pajama Factory. Tenants are hastily arranging a silent auction to help raise funds and show support for the community so many rely on.
Visitors will have the chance to "bid on beautiful works of art donated by some of the area’s finest artists, to help the Factory through this crisis the best way we know how," said artist and tenant, Holly Patton Shull. Artists wanting to donate can drop their work between 8 a.m.-10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 5 the morning of the Festival, or on Friday, Oct. 4 to Studio 9-337 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., or the Clay Studio 3 p.m.-6 p.m.
The silent auction is a concrete way for Pajama Factory supporters to do something, more than feel worried or angry or desperate. The Vintage Fest is an opportunity for people not familiar with the community to have a glimpse of the Factory at its best.
"We talk about things like economic development and creating jobs and affordable housing," Lycoming County Commissioner Mark Mussina said during the commissioner's public meeting on Thursday. "We talk about the history of our area. We talk about the future of our area, and the Pajama Factory is all of those combined." Mussina urged the parties involved to work together and look to the future.
"Ten years from now, the city wants it thriving. The owners want it thriving. The community wants it thriving. It's better for everyone for it to thrive," he added.
Where will it go from here? "I am confident the city will review the information and come to a mutually beneficial resolution that can be reasonably implemented over a period of time," Debra Moffett said. "It would be a shame to lose this wonderfully historic building and thriving arts community."
Local News
