201-203 STATE STREET APARTMENTS, Portland Maine

Renovation Strategy:  The existing load bearing brick building was in a severely dilapidated state due to its long history as a rooming house in downtown Portland, Maine.  The challenge involved balancing the preservation of the exterior while entirely reorganizing the interior into 6 beautiful living units.  The solutions included a reorganization of the entrance, circulation within the narrow building, and structural and energy improvements to the building envelope. This involved a dramatic 3-story steel truss installed in the rear of the building where renovations had removed the original brick structure.  It also involved significant quantities of epoxy bolts to lock the load bearing masonry into the wood framed floor structure to help stabilize the structure.

Renovations
renovated entrance, historic structure, load bearing brick

materials

A historic restoration and interior renovation to an existing Italianate-style building, circa 1855.  The exterior of the building was preserved as it was originally built, while the interiors have been completely renovated into 6 condominium-style units. UIltimately, the front hood over the entrance was never completed.  After almost 10 years, this portion of the renovation still remaines unfinished.