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V O L . X X X I N O. X I I § 2 J U N E 2 , 2 0 2 5 18 affordable. Projects have included new builds and repurposing of older prop- erties in Rockland, Portland, Rumford, Augusta, Lewiston, Auburn, Bridgton and Belfast, to name just a few. e city of Sanford has multiple projects under construction at several price levels, including units being built in some of the city's repurposed mills. At Brooks Edge Farm develop- ment in Westbrook, 118 condomin- ium units have been started. Like many condo projects, developers are pre-selling in phases, to finance con- struction costs. Also in Westbrook, Avesta Housing has broken ground on a 61-unit affordable housing devel- opment for residents age 55-plus. Gorham is poised to see new con- struction of 391 homes — 295 multi- family units and 96 single-family homes — in the Robie Street subdi- vision, which has just broken ground. Kevin Jensen, the town's economic development director, sees the diverse mix of options in the Robie project as key for growth. "When we think about young pro- fessionals and empty-nesters, those are customers for our small business retail- ers, restaurants and professional ser- vices. ey could also be employees or business owners in Gorham," he says. In Portland, fees have stalled some large builds ousands of apartments have been built in the past few years in Portland, some of which are market-rate, oth- ers are lower-income. But large builds have been encumbered by the city's Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance which requires that projects with 10 or more units (approved after December 2015) must make 25% available to lower- income households or pay an in-lieu fee of nearly $183,000 per unit. Broker and de veloper Tom Landry says the ordinance has been counterproductive. "is is another well-intended civic action leading to unintended conse- quences, less housing for all types and less affordable housing. Remove this, make further edits to ReCode, and the free market will be unleashed to address this imbalance between sup- ply and demand," Landry says. Portland's ompson's Point has in the works 255 market-rate apart- ments which are not restricted by inclusionary zoning, as that project was approved as part of the complex's master plan in 2012, and inclusionary zoning was not adopted until 2015. More construction workers could make a difference While the state had been losing skilled carpenters and electricians to aging and to the expanding energy industry, MaineHousing reports seeing con- struction employment grow by 7.3% from 2023 to 2024 and projects con- struction capacity is growing. One of the recommendations from the January 2025 study, "A Roadmap for the Future of Housing Produc- tion in Maine," is to provide "long- term, dedicated funding for appren- ticeship and pre-apprenticeship pro- grams in the trades." Consigli Construction Co., with a Portland office, has been innovat- ing training and outreach programs to grow the workforce, including efforts to bring more women into the industry. to use in your next project, visit www.timberhp.com WOOD FIBER INSULATION MANUFACTURED IN MAINE (207) 282-7697 | ncormier@pmconstruction.com | www.pmconstruction.com WE BUILD RELATIONSHIPS S I T E P L A N / C O U R T E S Y S E B A G O T E C H N I C S, T OW N O F G O R H A M » C O N T I N U E D F RO M PA G E 1 6 Within walking distance of downtown Gorham, the 131-acre Robie subdivision has just broken ground on plans to build 391 homes; a mix of single- and multi-family.