This multifamily development project on Martha’s Vineyard includes both master planning and architectural services, with unit plans currently in an early schematic design phase.

A local developer is working to create a 55+ community with at least 60 market-rate, for-sale units on 17 acres. To achieve a higher unit density on the site, the developer employs the Massachusetts Chapter 40B Law, which allows for a greater housing density on the site if a portion of the units are dedicated as affordable, encouraging the construction of affordable units in communities where less than ten percent of the housing stock is affordable.

To improve construction and cost efficiencies, the developer sought to use modular construction, therefore bringing RES4 onto the project team to provide expertise in modular construction, design, logistics, and coordination. The project team, which includes the developer, a local real estate agent, and a prominent local contractor, developed the program brief, driven by market demands, to include 66 two-bed units, each about 1,000 SF.

A key focus is to create a sense of neighborhood that feels friendly and walkable. An early precedent referenced by the developer was the Oak Bluffs Campground, which includes tiny gingerbread-style cottages in a tight village-like scale, with each house featuring a small front porch enhancing a sense of neighborhood.

In response, the master plan includes three basic townhome types, each with a range of first and second floor porch variations to create variety in the massing and facades for a dynamic streetscape that feels more organically developed. At street corners, porches often wraparound the home to address both fronts. The existing topography on the site includes a ridge running through the middle, allowing for walkout basements for some units, providing further variation in unit types. Woven between each home’s private rear garden are walking paths, inspired by a mews scale. Decks and porches to the garden side also are varied. Some are uncovered; while others have roofs or pergolas. The intention being to avoid a clear ‘backside’ to any building, so from all directions each townhouse engages with the street or garden content.

The street layout was driven in part by local regulations, as the septic field could only be located in the rear corner of the site based on watershed districts. Additionally, careful considerations were also made to maximize on-street parking – in keeping with the village scale – and to avoid dead-ends for fluid in and out traffic. The area cleared for the septic field is designated as a neighborhood green for recreation with potential for walking paths, a dog run, and a pickleball court.

With energy efficiency in mind, the intention is to not bring any fossil fuels on-site; instead using high efficiency heat pumps for heating and cooling and making the development solar- and EV-ready.

Next steps will include working closely with the civil engineers to further develop the site plan, along with collaborating with the factory to develop the variations of the three basic types to maximize efficiency of construction.