January 30: Lewiston, Auburn’s ‘booming’ housing market takes center stage at annual real estate conference
RHA President Brit Vitalius was interviewed in a recent article by the Sun Journal on Lewiston and Auburn’s residential market growth. Brit Vitalius notes that if Lewiston and Auburn can balance creating new housing and meeting current housing demands, the area “may fare better than communities like Portland, where they don’t want the rents to go up, but they keep restricting development.”
Read the full article here.
January 31: Yarmouth moves forward on ordinance to require new affordable housing in town
On March 8th, the Yarmouth Planning Board will decide on a new affordable housing ordinance put forth by the Affordable Housing Committee. The ordinance “would require developers of larger housing developments and apartment complexes to make at least 10% of those units affordable for those earning 80% or less of the area median income.” Yarmouth’s Director of Planning and Development, Erin Zwirko, notes “Yarmouth does not (now) mandate affordable units within development projects, so there will be a little bit of getting used to should the ordinance be adopted.”
Read the full article here.
January 31: Biddeford City Council hears affordable housing report
The Biddeford Affordable Housing Task Force made its final report to the city council this week and is recommending the city “work to create or preserve 900 affordable housing units by 2028," create a benchmark that “12.5 percent of all housing units be affordable by 2028," create a housing trust, and work towards addressing housing needs for those “who make 80 percent of the median annual income” in Biddeford. According to Councilor Marty Grohman, the Task Force studied rent control but opted not to propose it because “this is a tool that tends to be counterproductive over time … reduces the quality of the housing stock and leads to condoization (converting apartments to condominiums).”
Read the full article here.
January 31: Several proposed bills in Maine legislature aim at helping renters
Maine legislators have more than a dozen proposed bills aimed at "protecting renters and working to create more affordable housing" this session. Representative Christopher Kessler of South Portland and Cape Elizabeth has five bills put forth. Kessler’s bill LR 86 would “abolish application fees for renters.” Senator Anne Carney of Cumberland has put forth bill LR 47, looking to require “proof that a landlord is evicting a tenant for legal reasons if a tenant challenges them.”
Read the full article here.
February 2: Planned Scarborough housing project for disabled gets federal funding boost
3i Housing of Maine and Preservation of Affordable Housing are partnering for a new project at The Downs in Scarborough that would create more than 50 affordable units for individuals with disabilities. The project has been awarded over $500,000 in federal funding. The building plans to be high-tech, and Paul Linet, president and founder of 3i Housing of Maine, says the funding will help to “implement and analyze the impact of new assistive smart home technologies for low-income people with disabilities.”
Read the full article here.
