An elegant new residence

Its scale, brick walls, rhythm of projections and inviting doors set back from the street give it an elegance uncommon even in the upscale infill housing around the city.

But the intersection of Franklin and Portland Avenues isn't Uptown or Lyn-Lake. The four-story residential building completed last November replaced a used-car lot that attracted vagrants, prostitutes and drug dealers.

"It was a really tough neighborhood," said Gina Ciganik of Central Community Housing Trust. The nonprofit housing developer teamed with Hope Community Inc., another nonprofit based in the area, to develop the project.

The Jourdain, on the southwest corner of the intersection, is phase two of the long-term effort known as the Franklin-Portland Gateway. Its goal is to reclaim the intersection's four corners and make it a catalyst for the whole area.

The colorful brick Children's Village Center opened in 2003 on the southeast corner. The three-story building has 36 units of affordable family housing on its upper floors and Hope's offices and an inviting community center on the first floor.

The Jourdain takes reclamation one step further. In addition to the 24 units of affordable housing, it has 17 units renting for market rates.

Those apartments represent some of the first market-rate housing on the mid-section of Franklin Avenue, said Steve Shapiro, Hope Community board chairman.

What attracted the market-rate renters?

"The design," said Marcia Cartwright, Hope's real-estate development specialist. "They were watching it go up."

Eyes on the street

Designed by the Cuningham Group and its offshoot, UrbanWorks Architecture, the building is set back from the sidewalk about 15 feet, with two layers of landscaping creating a sense of privacy. Black steel canopies mark the doors. Windowed projections create a rhythm echoing that of the existing buildings on the street.

The eight two-story townhouses cross over each other so each has a ground-floor entry and a stairway to the second floor on the other side of the building. The design maximizes ventilation and also "eyes on the street" for safety. A high archway cuts through the building to an inner court, breaking down the scale and making the townhouses entered from the back as hospitable as those on the front.

UrbanWorks architect Dave Stahl said Christopher Alexander's "A Pattern Language" inspired these ideas.

He said the design team spent two weeks discussing the book, a classic primer on how design influences community.

The book also helped shape the interior layouts, where wide hallways and large and small balconies create a feeling of generosity. The townhomes are all three-bedrooms, while the apartments vary from studios to three-bedrooms. Whether market-rate or affordable, they feature light woodwork, workable if not large kitchens and living spaces with windowed niches. The 41 units have 27 different floor plans.

Architect John Cuningham said the client challenged them to provide variety.

"There wasn't one size fits all," he said. "People who need affordable housing have families, they live by themselves; they have spouses and they don't, just like the rest of us."We made sure that every unit has its special feature, what our director Alan Arthur calls the wow factor. It might be a balcony, an art niche or a green space -- something that the residents can be proud of," said Ciganik of Central Community Housing Trust.

Do such extra touches and the substantial materials used at the Jourdain cost more?

"Yes, there's an upfront charge," said Cartwright.

"The premium is a no-brainer compared to what the long-term costs are," said Ciganik. "In affordable housing, if you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always had."

The Jourdain breaks the mold.

See pictures of The Jourdain
Learn more about the Franklin-Portland Gateway