Mainebiz

V O L . X X X I I N O. V I M A R C H 2 3 , 2 0 2 6 16 ainebiz: How would you describe your mission with the company? Kara Wilbur: e mission of Dooryard is to build places in the spirit of what people love about Maine, where new buildings have a connection to the past and to each other. By acting as better stewards, we can reduce development costs, while also creating long-term value, both in the form of less finan- cial burden on municipal resources and higher per acre taxable value. is approach requires greater focus on the details and actively coordinating with architects and engineers. We're build- ing what is commonly called missing- middle housing: duplexes, small apart- ment buildings and cottage-scale housing that largely stopped being built in Maine towns after zoning changes in the mid-20th century. We work proactively with communities to help change cumbersome zoning. Large setback requirements, overly wide streets, large minimum lot sizes and other suburban standards don't allow for a neighborhood pattern that allows new development to feel stitched into our existing communities. MB: How involved are you with the design of the buildings you sell and install? KW: I have a big part in the design, because I'm filtering all the preferences I've heard from the public over the last 20 years and balancing those prefer- ences against today's construction costs and modular sizing requirements. Our goal is to create buildings that will be cost effective, attractive and efficient to build. What that generally produces is a classic early Maine farmhouse-style. e buildings are simple and well-propor- tioned, like something you might see in a coastal fishing village, tucked into an historic neighborhood or out on a farm. ese are buildings that are affordable, but still give people a sense of pride. MB: How many housing units have you developed in Maine since you started Dooryard? KW: A big focus for us is bringing new housing to smaller Maine towns that have seen little development. Many of these communities want housing, but traditional development models don't "pencil" there. By combining modular construction with smaller-scale neigh- borhood design and new financing provided by the state through the Rural Affordable Rental Program, we've been able to make projects work in places where housing hasn't been built in gen- erations. In the past three years, we've built 52 units in Madison, Newcastle and Rumford. We have an additional 50 units coming this year in Yarmouth, Brunswick and Madison. Building homes that feel like Maine Kara Wilbur is expanding housing options across the state B Y T I N A F I S C H E R DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRY LEADER OF THE YEAR Kara Wilbur Founder and president of Dooryard Kara Wilbur started as a planner and then moved into real estate development to help build the kinds of places she was hearing over and over that people wanted, but that few developers were building. Wilbur has been part of efforts to build affordable, multifamily housing in places that haven't had new housing in years, like Madison and Rumford, and in places where additional housing is needed, like Newcastle, Brunswick and Yarmouth. M Our goal is to create buildings that will be cost effective, attractive and efficient to build. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F K A R A W I L B U R

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