Context/Significance
Talbot Avenue in Dorchester is struggling to come back to life as a vital urban thoroughfare after decades of neglect and disinvestment. A local CDC is leading the way with developments like Levedo, which is ideally located for this purpose, as it is just a block away from a newly revitalized commuter rail line.
Description
DHK designed this building to offer inner city residents a quality of life rarely found in affordable housing. The triangular shaped site offered an opportunity to give every unit a street presence and to create a pleasant interior courtyard for residents. Levedo is a 24-unit affordable rental housing building with an 800 square foot commercial rental space and at-grade parking on the first floor. The development consists of five 3-bedroom townhouses, three studios, three 1-bedroom and thirteen 2-bedroom apartments. The construction is wood frame with some steel framing for the garage area. Sustainability was an important goal ad the building was designed to achieve LEED Silver certification.
Special features
This is not a standardized, cookie-cutter block of repetitive units, but rather a complex, hybrid building that weaves together a variety of units of different sizes and types into a sophisticated and inviting place to call home.