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O’Neill/Walsh Community Builders, a partnership serving as the general contractor for Northwest Housing Alternatives‘ headquarters project, has its hands full.

鈥淲e’ve got three different construction types across five different buildings, which makes it a lot of fun and really easy to coordinate,鈥� superintendent Drew Anderson said with a laugh. 鈥淭hey do that to make it easier on us.鈥�

Northwest Housing Alternatives, a nonprofit, builds and manages affordable housing and homeless services throughout Oregon. Its in downtown Milwaukie, fronting Lake Road, includes one office building, three residential buildings and an emergency shelter.

Funding is coming from a variety of sources, including Clackamas County, $8.4 million worth of federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits, private contributions and a $2.78 million NOAH (Network for Oregon Affordable Housing) mortgage.

鈥淎 note on the housing buildings is that they are all (being built to) Earth Advantage鈥� (silver standards), Anderson said. 鈥淪o not only do we have a mix of funding on this project, but we have a mix of construction types.鈥�

Northwest Housing Alternatives’ standard practice is to adhere to Earth Advantage standards for its new projects. This one was designed by . The three residential buildings will provide 28 total units 鈥� almost entirely two- and three-bedroom apartments.

The development and management office is actually being built to achieve net zero certification. To do this, a 38-kilowatt solar array will be installed on the roof of the split-level building, with insulation 鈥渓ike you wouldn’t believe,鈥� Anderson said. Even the foundation will be insulated.

鈥淎ll the slabs that we’ve poured here have two layers of two-inch, staggered, rigid foam insulation underneath the concrete,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he construction techniques are very similar to passive house because we’re building a highly efficient building.鈥�

To achieve certification, the building will undergo a 12-month audit to demonstrate that it ultimately produces more energy than it consumes.

Then a two-story, eight-unit emergency family shelter will be built with more traditional techniques to provide the same services as the longstanding Annie Ross House, which was one of 11 structures on the 1.75-acre site that were demolished to make way for the new campus. The new shelter will take on the Annie Ross name and provide 60 percent more space than the old facility.

Currently, construction of each building is in a different phase.

Last week, in Building A of the residential trio, crews stocked and installed drywall. In Building C, MEP rough-in took place while roofers completed sheeting. In Building B, crews of carpenters from subcontractor Wood Mechanix busily installed roof trusses and the first pieces of sheeting.

The three residential structures were the first to have their foundations poured. The new office building was next in line and currently is gaining exterior wood-framed walls.

The emergency shelter is the final piece of the puzzle, in a center space surrounded by the other four buildings. Crews have finished pouring the concrete matte-slab foundation and installing utilities.

鈥淚t’s all old-school, with minimal production,鈥� Anderson said. 鈥淚t’s lay it out, shoot them all together, stand the walls and keep going. I’d really prefer to have a crane, but they told me it wasn’t in the budget.鈥�