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V O L . X X I X N O. I I I F E B R UA R Y 6 , 2 0 2 3 26 C O M M E R C I A L D E V E L O P M E N T A call to action on housing B y R e n e e C o r d e s G reg Payne, a senior advisor on housing in the Governor's Office of Policy Innovation and the Future and former development director Avesta Housing, built on what then- Maine House Speaker Ryan Fecteau touched on last year. Payne noted that there's still a large gap between the supply of housing units in Maine and demand, and that prices for rented and owned homes "are really, really high." But he also pointed to progress in some areas, including state legislation, to address emergency housing and home- lessness; checks that are currently being processed for federal emergency rental assistance; and investment by the state to develop permanent affordable housing. "e administration will remain focused on increasing supply," he said. Payne also said the administration would like to see more towns, orga- nizations and companies get involved in efforts to boost the state's housing supply, and that MaineHousing has created a technical assistance program via the Genesis Community Loan Fund to assist in that regard. Elsewhere on the legislative front, Payne said a zoning reform law set to take effect this summer will give all Maine homeowners the right to add an accessory dwelling unit to their property and allow four units to be developed on residentially zoned land rather than just one. "e administration is absolutely committed to making sure that LD 2003 is operationalized and put into effect," he said. Wrapping up with a call to action, Payne said, "Let us recommit to working together and acknowledge that a decent home is essential, and we will build it." Southern Maine industrial forecast: 'Demand is there' B y L a u r i e S c h r e i b e r S outhern Maine's industrial market is healthy, competitive and strong, said Justin Lamontagne of the Dunham Group. But there's limited supply, with ROCHESTER PORTLAND AUBURN BRUNSWICK BOOTHBAY HARBOR DAMARISCOTTA BELGRADE FARMINGTON SKOWHEGAN FAIRFIELD GREENVILLE CALAIS BANGOR BUCKSPORT BELFAST CAMDEN ROCKLAND ELLSWORTH BLUE HILL BAR HARBOR CHERRYFIELD MACHIAS 22 LOCATIONS ACROSS MAINE & NEW HAMPSHIRE AUBURN • BANGOR • BAR HARBOR • BELFAST • BELGRADE • BLUE HILL • BOOTHBAY HARBOR • BRUNSWICK • BUCKSPORT • CALAIS • CAMDEN • CHERRYFIELD DAMARISCOTTA • ELLSWORTH • FAIRFIELD • FARMINGTON • GREENVILLE • MACHIAS • PORTLAND • ROCHESTER (NH) • ROCKLAND • SKOWHEGAN 1 - 8 0 0 - H A M M O N D W W W . H A M M O N D L U M B E R . C O M WHAT YOU NEED. WHEN YOU NEED IT. WHERE YOU NEED IT. YOUR BUILDING PROJECT PARTNER. YOUR BUILDING PROJECT PARTNER. PORTLAND STORE ADDITION COMING SOON » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E S C R E E N S H O T Greg Payne, a senior advisor on housing for the Mills administration, was keynote speaker at the MEREDA conference. F O C U S

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