186 MAIN STREET

This exemplary unbuilt design demonstrates architectural integrity and offers significant potential for the City of Auburn.

This conceptual design, while currently unexecuted, retains the potential for future realization. In 2018, the City of Auburn, Maine, issued a request for proposals for the development of the municipally-owned property at 186 Main Street. CCB, Inc., a reputable contracting firm, sought to submit a design aligning with the city's envisioned use for the site. To this end, the design team was commissioned to develop a forward-thinking architectural concept that thoughtfully integrated the natural and historical context of the location while offering a compelling vision for distinctive housing complemented by a dynamic urban experience. The design emphasizes pedestrian and bicycle connectivity to employment centers and a range of amenities, including dining establishments, municipal offices, retail spaces, healthcare facilities, social venues, and accessible natural environments for passive recreation and exercise.

Our team proposed a mixed-use development program comprising a new brewery with a tasting room at the river level, a street-level restaurant, and three commercial office suites on the second floor. A rentable commercial meeting room was also incorporated on the second floor, along with eight market-rate residential apartments distributed across the third and fourth levels. These units were designed to include balconies offering views of either the adjacent river or the vibrant Main Street corridor. The lower level would accommodate the brewery, storage facilities for commercial and residential tenants, and a loading dock.

The proposed building incorporates provisions for on-site renewable energy generation through roof-mounted photovoltaic panels. This system has the potential to achieve Net Zero energy consumption for the commercial and residential levels (floors two through four).

Hans Breaux of Project CO+OP provided project design and management in collaboration with Chris Briley of BRIBURN.