Ella Apartments

Ella Apartments is a 135-unit affordable housing project divided into two principal buildings connected by a large outdoor space and sunlit interior commons area. Located on the same site and also named after a beloved Madison Restaurant with a 40 year legacy, Ella apartments pays homage to its predecessor both in name and with an enormous 4 story mural facing Madison’s busiest street. The building’s two pieces each have distinct design features - the half facing East Washington avenue is brick with regular windows to reflect the busier, more commercial character of the avenue, while the second building is designed with materials more common to residential neighborhoods with more prominent landscaping and walk up stoops to connect it to the Eken park neighborhood that it faces. The two parts are connected with a variety of common spaces for the tenants, including a large open yard, interior meeting spaces and a roof deck with pergolas and an outdoor cooking area.

Designed in Partnership with Potter Lawson Architects

Mural designed and painted by Bill Rebholz