Salem Multi-Family - Salem, MA

Planning + Feasibility

JHR Development, LLC

Form + Place worked closely with JHR Development to provide a master plan vision for the section of downtown Salem that encompasses the historic 1861 Superior Courthouse, County Commissioners building and an adjacent waterfront lot next to the MBTA Commuter Rail Station. The strategy for repositioning the courthouse complex focused on preserving, and providing public access to, key historic features of the buildings by proposing a downtown campus for Salem State University. In addition, office space and a variety of multi-family residential typologies were integrated. Form + Place’s approach to this gateway site layered in an urban design strategy that linked downtown Salem and the courthouses to the North River, a new waterfront multi-family building and the MBTA Station through the repositioning of an abandoned underground train tunnel into a pedestrian / bike connector. With the goal of creating a 24/7 downtown vibe, the proposal to revitalize the public realm featured an expanded courthouse green, an amphitheater that connected an upper and lower plaza while mediating the grade change from Bridge Street to the water, and a publicly accessible kayak launch. JHR Development was one of two finalists in the competition, which was managed by the Salem Redevelopment Authority.