Owner: Sarah Afflerbach
By Ann Marie Byrd, Feature Writer
GO Architectural Design, located at 1202A Pollock Street, is owned by architect Sarah Afflerbach, and provides architectural designs for residential and commercial spaces. Sarah specializes in custom house designs, renovation and additions for new and historical properties including tax credit projects, and new small commercial spaces and renovations.
Sarah was born in Australia to her Seventh Day Adventist missionary parents, and moved to United States when she was five years old. Her father, a minister with a larger-than-life personality, moved around the family a great deal, and they resided in Michigan, Nevada, Texas, and Maryland.
After high school, Sarah attended St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland, followed by a year abroad in Paris. She then decided to go to graduate school at the University of Illinois and earned her Master’s Degree in Architecture. In 1999, she moved to New Bern, and recalls how different the downtown looked back then: “It felt like I had moved to a third-world country. The downtown was largely vacant, Broad Street still had 4 lanes, and the Cunningham bridge wasn’t even open yet,” says Sarah. “I started working for Earl Applegate in the Elks Building on the 3rd floor, and we made plans to renovate it into a 42 room hotel which never materialized and it had to be sold to Empire Properties and of course, now to the Kessler group. “I really credit the City of New Bern’s good growth and economic development strategies with lifting New Bern into its current vibrancy and I hope that continues” Sarah said. “Before opening my business in 2011, I also worked with MBF Architecture for nine years and got my architectural license. It took a few years to get my business going, but now it is steady and I’ve worked on some very interesting and challenging projects that allow me to be very creative.”
GO Architectural Design has completed numerous recognizable projects in New Bern, both commercial and residential, such as the renovation of the Cypress Hall space, the New Bern Civic Theatre remodel, the Cub House on Pollock St., The Jarvis at 220, the Townhouses at the Broad Street Circle, the residential homes at River Station, and many additions and renovations to homes within the Historic District.
For six years, Sarah also sat on New Bern’s Historic Preservation Commission Board (HPC), and was the chair for two years. Additionally, she has been the Chair for two years of New Bern’s Board of Adjustment.
Sarah enjoys designing both new construction as well as historic renovations and small commercial projects. “A real benefit for home owners and business owners are the tax credits available within the Historic District’s footprint. I try to be conservative with people’s money in the design process,” says Sarah. “We also offer a new house planning guide on our website. Oftentimes, people can start there, then begin searching for ideas on other websites like Pinterest, then I can sit down with them and we can meld it all together. When it comes to remodels, the situation can be quite different. Oftentimes, people struggle to envision the true potential of a space and how it can be transformed. This is where I can make a significant difference because I have a unique perspective that allows me to see possibilities that others might overlook when looking at a building or space. I find great joy in the design process, witnessing how people communicate their ideas for their future space and imagining themselves enjoying it. It’s fulfilling to turn that communication into a tangible, buildable reality.”