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V O L . X X X I N O. I I I F E B R UA R Y 1 0 , 2 0 2 5 18 C O M M E R C I A L D E V E L O P M E N T F O C U S Modular construction Developers Kara Wilbur and Sam Hight are deploying modular con- struction and using MaineHousing rural affordable financing programs to develop affordable housing. Buildings are made off-site at KBS Builders Inc., a modular home manufac- turing company in the Oxford County town of Paris. Wilbur's company, Rumford-based Dooryard, handles delivery and installation. Features common across the proj- ects include TimberHP wood-fiber insulation manufactured in Madison, hardwood finishes, designs that fit the community such as front porches and backyards, and electric systems. Wilbur, a Portland resident, is a planner and urban designer, by training. She founded Dooryard in 2021 as a catalog home company offering lines of single-family home packages and multi-family apart- ment buildings using modular con- struction methods. "We're trying to create a catalogue of building types that fit in nicely with Maine communities, and build them repeatedly as part of the strategy to save on costs," says Wilbur. ยป C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F S A M H I G H T ; R E N D E R I N G / C O U R T E S Y 1 6 M I L L S RO A D N E W C A S T L E L L C Kara Wilbur and Sam Hight at Newcastle job site, two 8-unit buildings of affordable housing.