Jefferson Park Apartments
Architect: Abacus Architects + Planners
Owner: Jefferson Park Apartments, LLC
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Category: Multifamily Housing (category three)
Cambridge Housing Authority residents are supported by a physical environment that provides privacy, a sense of community, connections to nature and places to play and gather.
Jefferson Park replaces public housing built in 1951. A local street is extended across Rindge Avenue into the heart of the community, knitting Jefferson Park into the neighborhood fabric. Four landscaped courtyards line this central spine, with walkways, landscaping, terraces and yards creating a carefully articulated gradation of space from public to private. The glass-wrapped community spaces lining the avenue offer places for meetings and classes.
Two story townhouses over one story flats are the primary building block. Flats have landscaped patios; stairs lead up to townhouse terraces and entries, giving every apartment its own doors and identity. To maintain a high density and quality of life two elevator buildings with patios and balconies anchor opposite corners of the site.
The massing, articulated with recessed terraces, stairs, pergolas, screens and south facing roofs uses a cross-cultural architectural language of solids and voids, horizontals and verticals, natural materials and bright colors.
