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Ellen Browning Building: Shared Living With Room for Independence

ByArchUp Reviewer
Ellen Browning Building with stepped planted terraces above street-level glazing
Ellen Browning Building. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.

On Division Street in Portland, Ellen Browning Building treats shared housing as a relationship between several scales: the private home, the common room, the terrace and the neighbourhood. Developed for a group of friends planning to age in place, the completed mixed-use building contains ten residences and a shared fourth-floor level.

Stepped terraces and pale fluted cladding above a Portland sidewalk
The street edge combines residential terraces with ground-level uses. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.

Independence within proximity

Single-level homes occupy the second and third floors. Ground-floor apartments can accommodate guests or future on-site carers, while retail and an art gallery maintain a non-residential presence along the street. The arrangement avoids making the residents’ social world entirely dependent on one common room.

Timber-ceilinged living and dining space divided by a central fireplace
A domestic interior maintains different places to sit, eat and circulate. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.

The terrace as an intermediate space

Fluted, off-white terra cotta cladding gives the stepped frontage a fine texture. In the terrace photograph, planting and a steel trellis filter the edge without closing the view. This is a useful intermediate condition: a place to sit outside that remains part of the home while acknowledging the city beyond.

Planted terrace with a steel frame casting shadows on fluted cladding
Planting, seating and the trellis give the terrace a domestic scale. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.

Shared space has a plan

The fourth-floor plan gathers dining, seating and outdoor areas around vertical circulation. It makes common life a destination with several possible activities, not merely a widened corridor. The sections show how that level sits above the private floors and the parking below.

Fourth-floor plan showing shared rooms and terraces
Level-four plan. Drawing: Hacker Architects.
Cross and longitudinal sections showing stepped terraces and the basement
Building sections. Drawing: Hacker Architects.

Project photographs

Planted balconies and an illuminated ground-floor gallery at dusk
Planted balconies and an illuminated ground-floor gallery at dusk. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Living room seating beside a tiled central fireplace
Living room seating beside a tiled central fireplace. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Indoor exercise pool beside full-height glazing
Indoor exercise pool beside full-height glazing. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Artworks displayed in the ground-floor gallery
Artworks displayed in the ground-floor gallery. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
A planted terrace between the stepped building volumes
A planted terrace between the stepped building volumes. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
The building and neighbouring houses along the street
The building and neighbouring houses along the street. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
A small sitting area opening towards the circulation corridor
A small sitting area opening towards the circulation corridor. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Long dining table beneath a timber ceiling beside the terrace
Long dining table beneath a timber ceiling beside the terrace. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Outdoor dining beneath the metal trellis
Outdoor dining beneath the metal trellis. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Fluted facade cladding and the shadow of the railing
Fluted facade cladding and the shadow of the railing. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Aerial view of the building within its neighbourhood
Aerial view of the building within its neighbourhood. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
The stepped terraces seen from above street level
The stepped terraces seen from above street level. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Balconies with planting and deep window openings
Balconies with planting and deep window openings. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Aerial view of the terraced facade and roof
Aerial view of the terraced facade and roof. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Parallel kitchen counters beneath the timber ceiling
Parallel kitchen counters beneath the timber ceiling. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Kitchen island with dark cabinetry and a lit corridor
Kitchen island with dark cabinetry and a lit corridor. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Living room connected to the terrace through sliding glazing
Living room connected to the terrace through sliding glazing. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Terraced facade along the pedestrian sidewalk
Terraced facade along the pedestrian sidewalk. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Billiard table and counter adjoining the terrace rooms
Billiard table and counter adjoining the terrace rooms. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Exercise equipment beside doors opening onto a terrace
Exercise equipment beside doors opening onto a terrace. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
Outdoor seating and dining beneath the trellis at sunset
Outdoor seating and dining beneath the trellis at sunset. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.
The street-corner facade and illuminated ground floor at dusk
The street-corner facade and illuminated ground floor at dusk. Photograph: Jeremy Bittermann.

Additional plans and elevations

Basement floor plan
Basement floor plan. Drawings: Hacker Architects.
Entry-level floor plan
Entry-level floor plan. Drawings: Hacker Architects.
Level 2 floor plan
Level 2 floor plan. Drawings: Hacker Architects.
Level 3 floor plan
Level 3 floor plan. Drawings: Hacker Architects.
East and north elevations
East and north elevations. Drawings: Hacker Architects.
West and south elevations
West and south elevations. Drawings: Hacker Architects.

✦ ArchUp Editorial Insight

The brief for Ellen Browning Building arose from friends wanting to remain connected as they grew older without surrendering independent homes. Its architectural answer separates private residences from a substantial shared level, then opens the building toward the neighbourhood through terraces and street uses. ArchUp reads the strength of this arrangement as the availability of choice. Community becomes more plausible when a resident can join a meal or retreat to a private room without leaving the same building. The stepped frontage adds another scale between the apartment and the city: an outdoor place that is neither fully public nor entirely detached from street life. The trade-off is organizational as well as architectural. Shared amenities require decisions about upkeep, cost and access, while planted terraces add maintenance at multiple heights. A spatial layout can support relationships, but it cannot guarantee them. Nor does this small development establish a universal affordable housing model. Its useful lesson is more specific: aging in place can be planned around a network of nearby, distinct settings, rather than reduced to the technical adaptation of an individual apartment.

Project credits: Architecture: Hacker Architects; design principal: Corey Martin; project architect: Vijayeta Davda. Interior design: Garrison Hullinger Interior Design. Landscape: Szabo. Structural engineering: DCI. Contractor: Truebeck Construction. Photography: Jeremy Bittermann.

ArchUp Editorial Reviewer delivers critical, balanced, and insightful commentary on architectural articles, enhancing content quality and depth through professional editorial reviews.

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