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Student Work

Course Description

PEMBERTON MILL

Students: Brendan Colford
Studio: ARCH 507 — Matt Catrow and Susan Jones — Winter 2025
Location: British Coloumbia, Canada

Project Description

Pemberton Mill is more than a sawmill — it’s a hub for community resilience, sustainable resource use, and wildfire recovery. Located in the heart of a region severely impacted by forest fires, the site serves as both a processing center for salvaged timber and a home base for seasonal workers, sawmill operators, firefighters, educators, and forest maintenance crews. Its location ensures quick response to fire events while also fostering long-term community and environmental stewardship.

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    Pemberton Mill Circularity Diagram.

The site’s three buildings — the sawmill, solar kiln, and workforce lodge — work in tandem to process fire-damaged wood and provide essential services. The workforce lodge, built from cross-laminated timber salvaged from Vancouver’s First Nations Elementary School, is the centerpiece. The first floor houses a public woodshop, administrative offices, and a breezy dogtrot leading to the river. Elevated above the floodplain, the upper floors offer 13 single rooms, shared facilities, a large communal kitchen, and lounge spaces under a dramatic barrel-vault ceiling. In summer, pivot doors open to a sun-filled courtyard for recreation and gatherings. By merging housing, production, and public space, Pemberton Mill becomes a place where recovery work, sustainable forestry, and community life thrive together.

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Pemberton Mill Site Plan.

 

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Pemberton Mill Front Entrance.

 

Images from PEMBERTON MILL.

Pemberton Mill First FloorPemberton Mill Second FloorPemberton Mill third FloorPemberton Mill Office KitchenPemberton Mill Office SpacePemberton Mill Third floor communal KitchenPemberton Mill typical workforce lodgingsPemberton Mill Section and detailPemberton Mill Assembly Detail