Housing

The Wessex Woods project is an affordable senior housing project at the corner of Brighton Avenue and Wessex Street in Portland, Maine. The building is a four-story, 30,089 square foot residential building containing (40) units of affordable senior housing. All of the units are 1-bedroom units with a generous mix of accessible and adaptable units for easier senior living with all units designed with the specific challenges of senior living in mind. Of the (40) units, (34) are intended to qualify for low-income units for rent while the remaining (6) will be market rate.

The 4-story wood construction boasts higher efficiencies with a tight building envelope with insulation and air sealing that go beyond code requirements to ensure internal comfort and sustainability. The elevator and stair shafts are constructed of Cross Laminated Timber (CLT), one of the earliest applications of this type in Maine, which allowed for construction schedule acceleration and use of renewable materials. The building was also designed with future solar panels in mind with increased allowable roof loads and electrical design to accommodate. The building is along a transit corridor, provides community space for residence and community gardens, and helps fulfill Portland’s goal to provide much needed, quality, affordable housing.