Dana Street

Westbrook, Maine, once known more for the iconic paper and pulp mill at its core than the mighty Presumpscot River which bisects its quaint downtown, has made transformative changes with the introduction of a new riverwalk, parks, and forward-thinking planning initiatives. AKLA worked collaboratively with a visionary client and design team comprised of LEVER Architecture and Simons Architects. The site design evokes the spirit of the Presumpscot River as a thread of continuity through decades of industrialization and post-industrial urbanism. The scale of the building reflects the scale and pattern of the historic mill buildings. AKLA’s placemaking approach was driven by the goal of making the site as pedestrian-focused as possible. By creating versatile shared space and drawing upon both the rivers industrial heritage and mass timber architecture our team developed a pattern language for the courtyards that will act as eddies for pedestrians and residents. The new courtyards will be a major asset to Westbrook’s public space inventory.