Portland Front Street Affordable Housing Phase I

Utile is working with the Portland Housing Authority (PHA) on the redevelopment of its Front Street Development, which will provide 113 units of affordable housing in an array of low rise buildings along two blocks near the Back Cove neighborhood of Portland. This project is a multi-building, multi-phased demolition and redevelopment of an existing PHA project housing 50 families. The buildings and open spaces are arranged to better integrate the development into the fabric and flows of the neighborhood.

This project was the result of Utile’s Strategic Vision for PHA’s entire development portfolio, which aims to structure the growth of the Authority’s over 1,000 units of affordable housing. The plan illustrates conceptual design and financial strategies that will allow the PHA to be creative in meeting the need for more affordable housing in southern Maine.

Phase 1 of the Front Street redevelopment provides 60 units of affordable housing, allowing PHA to rehouse the existing residents of both blocks plus additional units. The project is catered to families and includes a signifcant number of three, four, and five-bedroom units organized in duplexes that reference the scale of the surrounding neighborhood. An east-west pedestrian corridor connects the two blocks with a community center and residential support spaces anchoring the center of the site. Front Street Phase 1 is PHIUS+ Core certified through the Passive House Institute US.

Photos by Randy Crandon.