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The NEWBeamery has been full of finishing touches, though we’ve been running jobs through the Oikos X for the last few months. Timber frames plus fabricate & finish jobs for partners in the mass timber space. Now we’re taking a moment to celebrate some smaller things on the non-production side that make the shop feel like home.  

Timber Frame Entry
It wouldn’t be a New Energy Works space if it didn’t have a timber frame greeting. Back when we moved to McMinnville in the early 2000’s adding a truss to the front door was one of our first to-dos.

Same here, as The NEWBeamery gets an official raising of a timber frame entry and porch. It sets the stage for what’s to come inside and gives a taste to visitors of our roots. Though not visible from the road as a greeting, it certainly adds warmth and suggests respite for the mostly industrial complex.

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“My grandfather bought this piece of property in 1942. He hunted it his whole life and so did my dad. When I was a little kid, my dad took me to the property all the time with my mom and sister,” reminisced the homeowner of their family cabin in the woods. 

The storied history of this long family-owned Allegheny property has deep roots embedded into its rolling hills and rich soil. 

The land had been forested, cleared for homes and agriculture, and then abandoned during the depression. Families started returning in the 1950’s for recreation while various state-run programs began to caretake and reforest the land. Through these programs, the homeowner’s grandparents (the first generation to own the land) planted tens of thousands of trees on the lot—both providing a green future and family fingerprint on the property. 

Their land began as a 68-acre portion containing a small primitive cabin called “The Shack” that was previously used as a farm granary. The building burned down in the 1950’s and was replaced with another rustic cabin without plumbing or electric. The first generation of family constructed that cabin from materials they harvested on the site – trees, old planks, and more.

A handful of years later, a second cabin was built next to the first. This new cabin had three rooms, but still no heat, electric, or plumbing, and was occupied by various family members through the years. This second cabin was expanded on, then left behind, when the family outgrew it.

“The idea was to create a gathering place on the lake for several of the families that have houses or cabins on the larger property,” Bob Wagner of High Peaks Carpenters said. “A place for them all to entertain and be together at once.”

Found on the pastoral shoreline of Lake Champlain and nestled in the shadows of the Adirondack High Peaks, sits a scenic pavilion that brings together two separate parcels of land. Enjoyed by several generations, five of the families collaborated on the lakeside centerpiece. 

“The first objective was to sit the structure, so it didn’t block the view of the lake from the surrounding houses,” says architect Joan Heaton. “Also to knit the two sites together. There is this big retaining wall that forms sort of a plinth for the building to sit on and an earthen ramp that goes from the more manicured space down towards the water and the beach.”

The deceivingly simple barn style building is essentially an open-ended park pavilion featuring a multitude of comfortable spaces and several high-end amenities. “There are changing rooms and two bathrooms, with one of them being accessible for a wheelchair,” Heaton added. “The entry on the upper side is a ramp—reminiscent of a bank barn. And the pavilion has a bedroom upstairs that can be used as an office or overflow for extra visitors.”

The communal building is an axis of ineffable views available from inside and outside. “The sight lines were very intentional, as the North and East open up to views,” Heaton said. “The two sides of the pavilion open up to both light and landscape The screen porch is tucked away so that it’s not blocking views from the interior.”