Mahonia Crossing fosters intergenerational living with housing for families and seniors in Salem, Oregon.
The large 313-unit development spans 18 buildings, including a dedicated 46-unit senior building and a mass timber community hub known as the Amafa Center. The other residential units are home to a diverse mix of families, seniors, agricultural workers, and households that were displaced by the 2021 Oregon wildfires.
Project Details
Location: Salem, Oregon
Developer: Community Development Partners
Architect and Interior Designer: Scott Edwards Architecture
Builder: Gerding Builders
Completed: October 2024
Number of Units: 313
Unit Mix: One- to three-bedrooms
Rents: $521 to $1,668
Mahonia Crossing’s architecture draws from three distinct residential typologies—gable, row house, and low-rise urban forms—offering variety, visual interest, and neighborhood compatibility.
“We strive to find unique and innovative ways to develop high-quality affordable housing communities,” says Sarah Schubert, director of development in the Northwest for Community Development Partners (CDP).
Mahonia Crossing is a “Community for All Ages,” a model CDP developed to intentionally create intergenerational neighborhoods where people of all ages can live and thrive together. The organization does this through both design and programs.
Casey Braunger
Located on more than 11 acres, Mahonia Crossing features a range of indoor and outdoor amenities, including play areas, community gardens, and gathering spaces for residents to form bonds. For seniors, this is especially important to prevent social isolation, notes Schubert.
The heart of the community is the stand-alone Amafa Center, where services and programming are offered to reflect the project’s commitment to holistic resident well-being. The use of mass timber for the center is just one of the ways the project is innovative.
The project is also innovative in its financing as one of Oregon’s first developments to use recycled bonds—tax-exempt bonds that were previously used to finance a project and are being reused for affordable housing.
“We are really proud of the community that has been created at Mahonia Crossing,” Schubert says. “It is a testament to the hard work of the many partners that came together for this project.”