Mainebiz

V O L . X X I X N O. I I I F E B R UA R Y 6 , 2 0 2 3 20 C O M M E R C I A L D E V E L O P M E N T F rom downtown retail to office-building conversions into other uses, commercial development is sizzling across Maine. For a lowdown on what's trending in 2023, Mainebiz asked experts including mayors, economic development directors and those working in real estate for the trends they're most excited about this year. Here's what they told us. Auburn continues growth of new housing and manufacturing space Jason Levesque, Auburn mayor "Manufacturing space and housing will be much needed throughout 2023 and beyond. e success of manufacturing employers in Auburn such as Tambrands' recent expansion announcements, warehouse construction for consumer goods companies and a corresponding increase in high-paying jobs are going to push the need for housing and manufac- turing/warehouse space." 'Urban infill' "Urban infill will be one of the trends for Auburn in 2023. Several major urban infill mixed-use residential/restaurant projects will start or be announced this year. ese projects will provide excellent access to recreation facilities, accessibility and walkability in Auburn. e need for retail space in downtown continues, so that the city will feature pop-up retail cottages in Festival Plaza throughout the summer of 2023 as a temporary proof of concept, which will lead to more traditional downtown retail construction. "Smaller urban infill projects are in the works, such as second dwelling units in the urban core where single-family homes already exist are becoming more com- mon with Form-Based Code's flexibility for traditional setbacks and development patterns — people are responding with investment that will produce diverse, high-quality market-rate housing." Lewiston putting a Choice Neighborhood grant to use Carl Sheline, Lewiston mayor "We'll be breaking ground on the first of our Choice Neighborhood grant devel- opments this year. is project, which will ultimately include two other sites in downtown Lewiston, will drive a lot of development over the next few years. We're expecting the total investment to be approximately $100 million. "Raise-Op's two cooperative housing apartment buildings will be finished over the summer. Not only were these planned and designed with input from future residents, but these developments will also be the first passive-house certi- fied buildings in Lewiston." Transforming a church into a brew pub "I'm also excited about Democracy Brewing, who will be renovating the former St. Joseph's Church into a brew pub and the new Bon Vivant restaurant, which will open soon." Westbrook's 'Rock' of development growth Michael Foley, Westbrook mayor "e city of Westbrook has a lot of exciting commercial development activity with projects such as Vertical P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque predicts that pop-up retail cottages in Festival Plaza this summer will spark more traditional downtown retail construction. F O C U S P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F T H E C I T Y O F W E S T B RO O K P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F T H E C I T Y O F L E W I S T O N the on WORD STREET Downtown rebound, office conversions top Maine development trends B y R e n e e C o r d e s

• Cover