Preservation Is:

A series highlighting the many ways that preservation is relevant here and now.

E: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
E: Environmental Action

10.03.25 H: Housing Access
R: RepresentativeDevelopment                   

Access to safe, affordable housing is an ongoing problem across the country. The general approach to solving the problem has been straightforward: construct more housing. New construction is most certainly part of the solution, but it is not the whole solution. Urban areas often lack vacant development lots so to build housing we must sacrifice open space, conservation land, or existing structures. However, most cities have viable, existing structures that are unoccupied or underutilized such as former factories, warehouses, office buildings, churches, schools, and carriage houses. Many of these buildings can be converted to housing. Prioritizing our existing built environment and infrastructure for housing is not only better for the environment, but it also preserves places within our communities that have value, meaning, and history.

Photo Courtesy: Portland Public Library

Portland has many examples of this kind of adaptive reuse, or reuse of a building that was intended for one use for a different use. A great one is The Nightingale, a newly renovated residential building that was originally constructed in the 1940s as Mercy Hospital. Located in Portland’s West End Historic District, the complex offers 165 apartments, self-storage, a co-working lounge, roof deck, and a retail plaza. Using Federal Historic Preservation Tax Credits, a place that held memory and significance for generations of Portland residents was given a new life as homes and businesses.

Often incentives such as tax credits and programs facilitating review processes for building conversions can boost the success of adaptive reuse to create housing. Since COVID, when people began working from home and many downtown offices nationwide remain vacant to this day. Boston is solving two problems with one solution: downtown Boston needed to regain its vibrancy and foot traffic and the housing crisis demanded units near jobs and public transit. The City launched its Office to Residential Conversion Program to study and identify viable office buildings that could meet the necessary codes for housing conversion. Then, through a partnership with the City that provides tax benefits, fast-tracking through the approval process, and other incentives, property owners can convert unused office buildings into housing units. Now, housing is coming online without demolishing the buildings that have been part of Boston’s fabric and story for generations.

Creative, collaborative solutions to our housing challenges result in better projects and stronger communities. Portland should prioritize adaptive reuse of existing buildings for housing, providing incentives to owners and developers who choose reuse instead of demolition. Portland will retain its unique character, buildings will be activated, and more people will be able to live in this beautiful, historic city.

 Preservation Is:

A series highlighting the many ways that preservation is relevant here and now.

E: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
E: Environmental Action

11.27.25 H: Housing Access
R: Representative Development                   

 

From adaptive reuse projects helping to revitalize communities across the country, we know there is great value in preserving, reusing, and reimagining existing buildings for a wide variety of uses. Read more about how Preservation Starts HERE (Housing Access; Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion; Representative Development; Environmental Action).

As housing continues to be an urgent need, we are happy to share what we learned about a project that will adapt a series of existing buildings into affordable senior housing in the heart of Portland’s Arts District. Kevin Bunker, founder and principal of Developers Collaborative (one of our 2023 Preservation Award winners!) gave GPL staff a tour in October of his current project on Preble Street. This series of smaller structures predated the 1924 construction of the Chapman Building and Arcade, now the Time and Temperature Building at 477 Congress Street, and were annexed to it. They housed commercial spaces, including a retail arcade that was Portland’s first interior “mall”, and a theater.

As Kevin escorted us through the interior labyrinth of deteriorated offices and retail spaces, abandoned and frozen in time, he outlined his vision for beautiful, safe senior housing units. This is not an easy project, but Kevin feels passionate about housing and about community, and finding creative solutions to make a difference one project at a time.

 

Because the annexes contribute to the Congress Street Historic District, certified by the National Park Service, the project is eligible for historic rehabilitation tax credits. Like many other beneficial projects, including the Fidelity Trust building actively being adapted to a new hotel across the street, it would not be possible without these tax credits. Often, developers rely on a variety of funding mechanisms to make a project viable. Historic tax credits are a critical tool and require continued advocacy to fund and expand at the state and federal levels. It is fantastic to see this level of thoughtful investment, vision, and problem-solving and we are grateful to Kevin and his team for the candid conversation and effort to make this project a reality. Revitalization at any scale benefits our community and Kevin’s efforts prove that incorporating housing into existing and historic buildings is not only possible but makes our neighborhoods more vibrant and interesting places to live, work, and visit.