BETHLEHEM, Pa. – ArtsQuest in Bethlehem on Monday talked about its plans to replace the soon-to-be-demolished Banana Factory.

In its place will be a 5-story structure known as the “Creative Factory powered by PPL.” We got an exclusive tour of the old building last week with ArtsQuest CEO Kassie Hilgert. Inside the Banana Factory on W 3rd St. is a labyrinth of hallways and stairwells.

“Always kind of scary to get people to come up these stairs,” said Hilgert as she led our crew through the building.

But while many halls are narrow and inconvenient, it’s personal to Hilgert.

“I know I’m nostalgic walking in here and seeing this wood paneling from my childhood,” said Hilgert.

Generations of artists have called the space home since 1998, after ArtsQuest created it by linking six buildings together. Hilgert said, after all that time, it would have cost about $5 million to get up to code, and even then it wouldn’t have the benefits that come with the new Creative Factory powered by PPL.

“This is our observation area, which has no barriers, so if it’s cold in the glass studio, it’s cold here. The new building will have a separated glass area, so it’s temperature-controlled,” said Hilgert.

In a building full of artists, there’s also only one working sink in a classroom on the whole site, and it got pretty heavily used. In the new building, there’s going to be a working sink in every single classroom. The new $32 million design is made possible in part thanks to the PPL Foundation. They’re excited to see the impact on the community.

“We work here, we live here, we play here, and ArtsQuest is one of those non-profits that we’re able to partner with that really takes that into account and makes this a really great place to live,” said PPL Foundation President Lissette Santana.

And a great place to continue to grow the arts in Bethlehem.

“This campus is going to be the home of some programming you know and love like Musikfest, maybe an expansion of other programming that needs more room to breathe like Christkindlmarkt, and then it will have its own unique programming here,” said Hilgert.

Hilgert tells us the demolition is expected to begin sometime in March, and the new Creative Factory is expected to be finished by late 2026. Hilgert said ArtsQuest is about $8 million short of the full cost of the project, so their fundraising efforts are going to continue through construction.