flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Textile factory turned multifamily has train tracks running through it

Multifamily Housing

Textile factory turned multifamily has train tracks running through it

The Counting House Lofts is a 200-year-old building that still has its train tracks, exterior train bay doors, and a watch house tower.


By Mike Chamernik, Associate Editor | October 16, 2015
The Architectural Team redesigned old textile factory for multifamily use

Counting House Lofts still has its history on display. Images courtesy The Architectural Team.

The Counting House Lofts in Lowell, Mass., opened in May. Not only does it have 52 residential units, all of which are occupied, but it also has a set of train tracks running through it.

The tracks aren’t for an active train, of course. The 200-year-old building used to be a factory storehouse, and the tracks were used to load and ship textile goods. The National Park Service demanded that the tracks be preserved, so The Architectural Team worked them into the layout scheme.

The firm adapted the old warehouse into a multifamily building. It retrofit the place for energy efficiency, making sure it complied with the Energy Star Multifamily High Rise program. Along with the tracks, the exterior train bay doors, an exposed column and beam grid, and a watch house tower were also left in tact.

One bedroom units start at 758 sf while two bedroom apartments begin at 897 sf.

 

'

Related Stories

Multifamily Housing | Jul 8, 2021

As homelessness becomes more visible, building shelters presents opportunities to AEC firms

C.W. Driver Companies and XL Construction have just completed transitional housing projects in California.

Multifamily Housing | Jul 7, 2021

Make sure to get your multifamily amenities mix right

​One of the hardest decisions multifamily developers and their design teams have to make is what mix of amenities they’re going to put into each project. A lot of squiggly factors go into that decision: the type of community, the geographic market, local recreation preferences, climate/weather conditions, physical parameters, and of course the budget. The permutations are mind-boggling.

Multifamily Housing | Jun 30, 2021

A post-pandemic ‘new normal’ for apartment buildings

Grimm + Parker’s vision foresees buildings with rentable offices and refrigerated package storage.

Resiliency | Jun 24, 2021

Oceanographer John Englander talks resiliency and buildings [new on HorizonTV]

New on HorizonTV, oceanographer John Englander discusses his latest book, which warns that, regardless of resilience efforts, sea levels will rise by meters in the coming decades. Adaptation, he says, is the key to future building design and construction.

Multifamily Housing | Jun 23, 2021

COVID-19’s impact on multifamily amenities

Multifamily project teams had to scramble to accommodate the overwhelming demand for work-from-home spaces for adults and study spaces for children. 

Multifamily Housing | Jun 22, 2021

New apartment community breaks ground in Bethesda

KTGY is designing the project.

Multifamily Housing | Jun 14, 2021

Baccarat Residences Brickell set to rise in Miami

Arquitectonica is designing the project.

Multifamily Housing | Jun 9, 2021

MVE + Partners completes One Museum Square

The luxury apartment community is located in the heart of Los Angeles.

Multifamily Housing | Jun 3, 2021

Student Housing Trends 2021-2022

In this exclusive video interview for HorizonTV, Fred Pierce, CEO of Pierce Education Properties, developer and manager of off-campus student residences, chats with Rob Cassidy, Editor, MULTIFAMILY Design + Construction about student housing during the pandemic and what to expect for on-campus and off-campus housing in Fall 2021 and into 2022.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021