The property lies one block north of Congress Street and one block south of the Eastern Promenade. There is an existing surface level parking lot with no buildings or trees on the property. The proposed building is a nine-unit condominium, including one workforce housing unit, and it will extend four stories high. The design is meant to complement the existing building context and create a scale and massing that is similar to multifamily apartment buildings in the neighborhood.
The overall volume of the project was inspired by incorporating two predominate character-defining architectural features of the neighborhood. First is the double triple deckers that have two full-height bay windows with a central covered entry that help break up the wide facade. The second is the stacked porches on both single family and multifamily buildings that create outdoor living spaces on multiple levels. In the new building, the second through fourth floors are recessed, creating a covered deck for six of the units to provide outdoor living spaces along Morning Street. The upper deck is covered by a deep cantilevered roof that is a nod to the deep roof cornices on the buildings in the neighborhood. The building will incorporate sustainable building practices including decreased thermal bridging of wall framing materials; airtight, high R-value construction systems; and triple-pane windows. The roof will incorporate a low slope photovoltaic farm that will provide about 30 percent of the electrical needs of the project. An energy recovery ventilation system will incorporate balanced ventilation to provide a high level of indoor air quality.
Location: Portland
Design Team: Cornerstone Building & Restoration, Acorn Engineering, Structural Integrity Consulting Engineers, Soren deNiord Design Studio
Construction start: October 2019
Construction complete: June 2020
Original article published by Maine Home + Design Magazine
