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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 93 FA C T BO O K / D O I N G B U S I N E S S I N M A I N E en there's the red-hot market for residential real estate. More and more people want to live in southern Maine, creating pressure on all types of development. But without the indus- trial space to support business growth, where will the newcomers work? " is is a perfect storm," says Lamontagne. Compared to other mar- kets, he believes the industrial space shortage in southern Maine is "pretty unique" in its complexity and severity. " e shortage is very impactful and very real here," Lamontagne says. "If you don't have the physical space, as a business, you're stuck." Businesses shut out from Portland may want to consider hitting the road in order to fi nd new industrial space. "Just drive north or south," says Lamontagne. He recommends the cor- ridor from Kennebunk to Lewiston as potential hunting grounds. " ere are opportunities here and there, as long as you're hugging the interstate." The next hot spot? Among the opportunities he sees is a 500-acre parcel of land surrounding the Scarborough Downs harness-racing track, on U.S. Route 1 in Scarborough. e town's Planning Board in April approved a master plan for mixed-use development of the property. While housing is the initial focus, the plan envisions the development of 50 acres along the property's northern edge for potential industrial use. "Scarborough Downs could be the next hot spot," Lamontagne says. "It opens up a whole new swath." Another promising location is Brunswick Landing, on the former U.S. Navy base in Brunswick. e business campus there off ers 1.6 mil- lion square feet of commercial space, much of it industrial, as well as Tech Place, a manufacturing incubator that is 75% occupied. Farther north, the Bangor area boasts 7.4 million square feet of indus- trial space. Still, vacant space made up only 4.5% of the total in 2017, accord- ing to Bev Uhlenhake of Epstein Commercial Real Estate. ree years earlier, the vacancy rate was 10%. Homegrown success e industrial real estate market is also tightening in the Lewiston- Auburn area. But businesses seem to be getting by. e expansion of local companies and spillover demand from greater Portland have absorbed most of the available inventory over the past year, according to Lincoln Jeff ers, Lewiston's economic and community development director. e area, with a dozen or so business parks, had an estimated vacancy rate of 3% of its industrial space in 2017. Companies fi lling that space included Freeport-based L.L. Bean Inc., which in August 2017 moved a boot factory and warehouse from Lewiston's Westminster Street to a Lexington Street property of 110,000 square feet, twice the size of the for- mer plant. And Dielectric, a maker of broadcast antennas, expanded in December from its base in Raymond to a 33,000-square-foot manufactur- ing facility in Lewiston's Gendron Business Park. Despite the growth, Lewiston is "still accessible, still aff ordable, and still within reach," says Jeff ers. e challenge for the area is to "keep local companies local" as they grow and look for new digs, he adds. One company staying put is Modula, a manufacturer of automated storage systems for factories and warehouses. Modula opened its own 102,000- square-foot factory in 2015 at Lewiston's Turnpike Industrial Park. e next year, it leased 18,000 square feet of additional space nearby, and then replaced it with a larger leased facility in September 2017. Now the company is looking to add at least another 100,000 square feet to its footprint in Lewiston. "We need to double our produc- tion fl oor," says Rhonda Corson, Modula human resources manager and a spokesperson for the company. She expects the number of local full-time employees to increase from about 80 to 125. " e market for our products is still basically untapped, and we can't keep up with demand." In June, it wasn't yet clear whether the new space will be built or bought, according to Corson. But two things were certain. Modula would unveil plans for the expansion "well within six months," she said. And that expansion would be somewhere in Lewiston. Modula's location off ers easy access to the Maine Turnpike, to aff ord- able housing stock and to central and northern parts of the state. " ere's no talk of going anywhere else," Corson said. " e company is comfortable here." W H, a Mainebiz correspondent, can be reached at @. Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or Just drive north or south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are south. There are opportunities here and there, as long as you're hugging the interstate. — Justin Lamontagne NAI The Dunham Group Progressi essive ve ve v • Creati tive ve ve v • Forwa wa wa w rd Thinking • g • Reso esourc rc rc r e ce ce c fu ful Progressive • Creative • Forward Thinking • Resourceful BREWERMAINE.GOV/BIZ Contact D'arcy Main-Boyington Economic Development Director dmain-boyington@brewermaine.gov | 207-989-7500 P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY Lincoln Jeffers, Lewiston economic developer, near Modula Inc. in Lewiston

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