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V O L . X X X I I N O. I I I F E B R UA R Y 9 , 2 0 2 6 14 C O M M E R C I A L D E V E L O P M E N T F O C U S e concrete decks will be brought in by truck and cast into place. When completed, the building will be heated and cooled by geo- thermal wells and air- and water- source heat pumps. It's designed to target net-zero operations, which run on electric systems. e geothermal wells were drilled by Tewksbury, Mass.-based Ogden Wells, one of close to 50 subcontractors involved in the project. Ogden drilled 83 individual six-inch-wide wells, 800 feet into the ground. "You go through groundwater way down deep into rock," Rouille explains. It's the largest ground source heat exchange system in Maine. A mass timber wing Consigli is building a three-story mass timber section onto the Alfond Center, which will feature a 12,000-square-foot green rooftop terrace, one of several design choices aimed at deflecting excessive solar heat absorption into the building. Mass timber is an advanced building material that is considered more carbon neutral than steel in its production and generates fewer emissions during and after construc- tion. Sustainability is a priority for the entire project and a hallmark for the Massachusetts-based design team, CambridgeSeven. Mass timber components are being used in buildings all over the world but have only recently been adopted for use in Maine. Consigli has been an early adopter, using it in a number of its proj- ects in the state and beyond. A project team of hundreds Including the firm's in-house trades team, there are currently 200 crew members working on site. "Once we start the interior work, there will be up to 300 on site," says Consigli. e former baked bean factory — which is 58,000 square feet and dates to 1913 — will be repurposed to provide workspaces for startups and businesses supporting innovation and entrepreneurship. Rouille says the Consigli team started work on that building in 2023, clearing out the interior. "We'll be doing a full historic restoration project on the building, including a new roof, new windows," he says. "Everything regarding exte- rior design has to go through the Portland Historic Preservation Board. at's in the design and development phase now, being handled by Bruner/ Cott Architects out of Boston." A third building on the site, nearly complete, is a seven-story, 630-car park- ing garage, constructed with concrete panels fabricated at Dailey Precast of Shaftsbury, Vt. e 240,000-square-foot building will be wrapped with metal panels and fabric scrim, which is largely an aesthetic choice but will also provide shading and increase ventilation. "We're now doing all the interiors of the garage," Rouille says. "Mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and we'll be install- ing eight 'curtainwalls' for the stair cor- ridors, made from glass and aluminum." A curtainwall is a prefabricated panel attached to the exterior of a structure which dramatically reduces construction time over traditional window installation. "It's usually used when you have a lot of glass and you need taller spans," says Rouille. "e curtain walls for the garage will be 90 feet high, all the way up to the roof." e panels for the garage come from Ipswich Bay Glass, in Rowley, Mass. e curtainwalls that will wrap the entirety of the Alfond Center are being prefabricated by Permasteelisa Group in Vittorio Veneto, Italy, and Wurzburg, Germany. Specialists from one of the company's Connecticut offices will handle the install. "It's a highly custom product," Rouille says. "ere isn't any place in the U.S. that really does it at this scale." Installed with the portions of the curtainwall will be 275 tons of granite slabs from Freshwater Stone in Orland. "It's really just aesthetic," Rouille says. "A cool local element incorpo- rated into the building." For the life you choose. 1.888.725.2207 norwaysavings.bank/lets-talk M E M B E R F D I C Business banking that starts with you. At Norway Savings Bank, business banking is more than lending and deposits. It transcends the transaction, becoming truly engaged in your business and success. Whether it's in the form of a loan or line of credit, programs that help you manage payment processing and cybersecurity, or just being there to listen and help answer questions—if it's important to you, it's important to us. Luke Hiebert, Owner Sport Thoma Bethel, Maine » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E We like complex, complicated projects; they're hard but fun. — Christina Consigli Consigli Construction

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