Portland Twenty

Portland Twenty is a small-scale multi-family housing building that generates right-sized neighborhood density within the constraints of a typical urban single-family residential lot. It replaces one house with twenty living spaces, effectively providing a new strategy for addressing the housing crisis seen in many American cities. Located on a corner lot, the project groups its units into clusters that split the building into discrete pieces. Each unit is carefully planned around approaches, entrances, views, and privacy while shared communal space is located on the fourth floor to maximize natural daylight exposure for residents. The exterior stair system acts as an experiential ribbon with elongated landings that hang from the building as an expressive element that creates an active façade throughout the day as residents ascend and descend from their homes. Large window shrouds extend the building envelope and increase texture, scale, and shadow across the building façade.