Context
Lewiston, Maine, like many New England mill towns, was built then gutted by the industrial revolution. The closure of the Androscoggin Mill in 1956 initiated a devastating and decades-long economic decline for the city, and by 2000, its population had decreased by 15% and become the single poorest census tract in Maine.
Hope for reviving the community finally sprang in 2001 with the arrival of more than 1,000 Somali refugees. This infusion of people and shared culture reversed the city’s narrative and quickly rewrote it with Lewiston as one of the fastest growing communities in the state. Though the economy began to stabilize, residents new and old were still plagued by lasting relics from decades of neglect, including a dangerous and aging housing inventory for at-risk populations and alarming rates of childhood lead poisoning.
The City is addressing these conditions through the application for and award of a federal Choice Neighborhoods Planning and Action Grant and HUD Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grant. In partnership with Lewiston Housing Authority and Community Concepts, they planned a robust transformation of the Tree Street Neighborhood to celebrate the diversity, vibrancy, and resilience of the people who live and work in the neighborhood. Efforts will be focused on addressing Lewiston’s environmental safety concerns, housing and food security, and economic and social mobility.
Response
Kaplan Thompson Architects and Avesta Housing were hired to redevelop three major sites within city limits through the renovation of existing structures and introduction of multiple mixed-use, mixed income multifamily buildings. Designing affordable, high-performance places for people to live and work will set a new precedent for adaptable, sustainable, and inclusive construction in a town demanding and poised to experience major social, economic, and environmental redevelopment. The resulting density will support a strong pedestrian presence, enrich economic activity at the local scale, and strengthen the community through equitable access to housing and the celebration of diverse cultures.
Community engagement from the Tree Streets Choice Neighborhood Transformation Plan invited City residents to participate in multiple public forums and circulated surveys that gathered feedback on priorities for development, and key issues to resolve in the coming years. Information collected consistently identified an even distribution of citizens’ interest in a multitude of proposed housing types, suggesting that a variety of different accommodations – with varying scales, contexts, and ownership or rental structures – would be needed to satisfy the unique needs of the diverse population. Building typologies identified for infill included mixed-unit, large-scale apartment buildings with ground-level commercial and amenity spaces; neighborhood-scale apartment buildings; and family-focused townhouse and duplex units.
The first phase of the Lewiston Choice Neighborhood project, the Wedgewood development, will add 82 residential units, ranging in size from one to four bedrooms, across 9 buildings on 4 separate parcels in the heart of the city. The DeWitt development, the second phase, will create 104 homes and approximately 14,000sf of commercial space via two five-story buildings in the heart of the city’s downtown.
As the first advancements in the Tree Streets Neighborhood Transformation, the developments embrace the community’s vision for the future of the City and set a precedent for context- and population-responsive design. The projects answer the community’s call for the feel of residential and pedestrian-oriented neighborhoods, visual variance and incorporation of color in new construction, and fresh takes on the traditional architectural features – such as the “Lewiston Turret”- that characterize the City.
The Wedgewood Development prioritizes smaller eight- to twelve-unit buildings that are scaled to fit an existing neighborhood context of traditional triple decking housing. A historically significant building – the Dr. Milton Wedgewood House, circa 1873 – anchors the Wedgewood development, and will be painstakingly rehabilitated from its current condition as an abandoned funeral home into nine high-performance apartments.
