🔒Roux Institute is rising along Portland’s waterfront

Northeastern University’s Roux Institute campus, under development on the former site of B&M Baked Beans in Portland’s East Deering neighborhood, is progressing with construction updates on all three buildings. Mainebiz checked in with the team at Consigli Construction’s Portland office, which is managing the entire $320 million construction project. Christina Consigli, project executive, said current work on the seven-story Alfond Center, designed by Massachusetts-based CambridgeSeven architects, includes construction of the roof, along with installation of mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. Fully electric heating and cooling systems will incorporate geothermal wells and air-source heat pumps to target net-zero operations. “The exterior façade, which features a custom, fully unitized prefabricated curtainwall system, is also being installed,” Consigli said, “to achieve a high-performance building envelope.” The 245,000-square-foot center, which will be the academic hub for the campus, will include a three-story mass timber section with a roof terrace — also under construction.

Interior demolition and exterior masonry restoration work on the 58,000-square-foot former B&M Baked Beans building — renamed the Lunder Innovation Labs — began in May 2026 and is ongoing. This is the one building on the property that remains from B&M’s manufacturing days. It’s being renovated to provide workspaces for startups and businesses supporting innovation and entrepreneurship. Major rehabilitations include slab replacements, facade repairs, and new windows, elevator and stair core. Consigli Construction's craftspeople are managing the exterior masonry restoration. Interior construction and rehabilitation work on the building is expected to begin in the fall. The design team for this project is Boston-based Bruner/Cott Architects. The 217,000-square-foot, 608-space parking garage, also designed by the team at CambridgeSeven, is currently having exterior cladding installed. A 7,500-square-foot child care center is being built too, adjacent to the garage. Landscaping at the 13.5-acre campus will begin later this summer, and on-site concrete work will continue into the fall. All three buildings are targeted for construction completion in late 2027, for the campus opening in time for the institute’s spring semester 2028.