Shortstack Mississippi

A Middle Housing Project in Portland, OR

Shortstack Mississippi is a flagship “missing middle”, multi-family housing project in Portland, Oregon, demonstrating an efficient mass timber approach to the pressing need for increased housing production in the region and beyond. Founded by Anna Mackay and Jessy Ledesma, Shortstack Housing is a women-led developer dedicated to building with transparency and sustainably-sourced wood.

Follow the wood's journey from forest to manufacturer to building below.

Where it started:

West Kootenais, B.C.

The wood for this project was sourced from Kalesnikoff, a mill and mass timber fabricator in interior British Columbia. Kalesnikoff manages their own forestlands, purchases wood from other landowners, and implements timber sales for the BC government through BC Timber Sales. The wood for the Shortstack project came from a range of sources throughout the West Kootenay’s of British Columbia, where the primary goals of forest management are wildfire risk reduction, pest management (especially for Douglas-fir Beetle) and economic benefit. The Akokli Creek Project focused on removing Douglas-fir trees that were heavily infesting with Douglas-fir Beetle and exemplifies Kalesnikoff’s approach to forest management. Without log segregation, it is impossible to confirm which buildings these trees are part of, but the timing of this harvest makes it a likely contributor to Shortstack Mississippi.

What was created:

Kalesnikoff Mass Timber

Kalesnikoff is vertically integrated, meaning they manage their own forestlands, own their own mill and utilize their own lumber in their Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) and Glulam Beams. While they are located in Canada, it’s important to remember to use a bio-regional lens for issues such as wildfires and the smoke they produce, disease outbreaks, and pests, which do not stop at any border. Due to their openness and generosity - and because they are vertically integrated - Kalesnikoff provides a unique opportunity for timber traceability and transparency. They willingly provided the wood sourcing transparency for the Shortstack project with no direct financial benefit or project requirements. This sort of transparency changes the way projects engage with wood markets, and is critical for helping to foster a meaningful relationship between our forests and the communities they supply.

The final product:

Shortstack Mississippi

Shortstack Mississippi is the flagship apartment building developed under a replicable model designed to efficiently deliver housing for the “missing middle.:” It is located in the vibrant Mississippi neighborhood of North Portland and is within easy reach of public amenities such as transportation, education, greenspace and daycare. For Shortstack, the missing middle refers to both an income level of resident and a building scale. The folks who elect to live in Shortstack Mississippi represent middle-earning Portlanders – those who may not qualify for most regulated affordable housing opportunities but can’t necessarily afford market rate apartment rents. The building is a four-story walk-up built utilizing a hybrid CLT construction method. This means the floor and roof plates are 5-ply CLT and the walls are panelized stick framed. Utilizing mass timber at this scale is relatively unique, but the benefits are many. The use of CLT shortens the construction timeline (faster housing production!) and results in beautiful apartments that stand apart from the average regulated affordable housing product. Perhaps most importantly, the use of mass timber in these projects lends itself to rapid iteration through a kit-of-parts approach. The team is already erecting their second Shortstack and have plans to continue with their humble contribution to the mitigation of the housing crisis.