Mainebiz

V O L . X X I I N O. X I I M AY 3 0 , 2 0 1 6 6 MEREDA Index dips after strong showing in previous reports Maine's real estate sector continues to outpace last year's performance, but slowed in recent months. e Maine Real Estate & Development Association, which held its spring meeting in Portland on May 17, told several hundred participants that the MEREDA Index stood at 91, dropping from a peak 2015 rating of 110. e index has risen 5.2% in the past year, but only 1% in the past six months, MEREDA reported. Residential growth, including sales of existing homes and new mortgage originations, helped set the pace. e previous index was bolstered by the sale of three commercial proper- ties. ose sales bumped the index to levels unseen since 2006-07. e index climbed as high as 110 in the past year, after two years when the index dropped as low as 80. "While the MEREDA Index appears to have dropped from the previous two releases, that relates to the effect of the three large transactions — One and Two Portland Square and 100 Middle St., all in Portland — primarily felt in the commercial component of the index and, more specifically, square footage sold. However, the actual dip in commercial, exclusive of these very large sales, was small. e residential component was a primary positive driver; sales of existing homes and new mortgage originations both saw strong increasing trends," Michael O'Reilly, MEREDA's president, said in a prepared statement. Data is col- lected from the Maine Association of Realtors, CBRE|e Boulos Co., the Maine Department of Labor, the Mortgage Bankers Association, the U.S. Census and Moody's Analytics. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E The National Endowment for the Arts awarded a total of $990,900 in grant funding to entities in Maine that foster artistic creativity and innova- tion in their communities. Recipients included: Maine Arts Commission in Augusta, $748,900; LA Arts, $50,000; Portland Ovations, William A. Farnsworth Library & Art Museum Inc. in Rockland and Waterfall Arts in Belfast, $30,000; Colby College in Waterville and the city of Portland, $25,000; Cultural Resources Inc. in Rockport, $12,000; the city of Portland's Young Writers and Leaders Program, the American Folk Festival on the Bangor Waterfront, Penobscot Theatre Co. in Bangor and the Seal Bay Festival in Vinalhaven, $10,000. Gov. Paul R. LePage and the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development announced that the city of Eastport and the towns of Fryeburg and Wiscasset were desig- nated as certified business-friendly. U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King said that the Greater Portland Council of Governments received $100,000 and the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor $64,650 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to further efforts in energy conservation and develop renewable energy systems. The Federal Emergency Management Agency's Assistance to Firefighters Grant program awarded a $333,334 vehicle acquisition grant to the Gardiner Fire Department, a $120,000 operations and safety grant to the Limestone Fire Department and a $118,547 regional request grant to the Scarborough Fire Department. Green light for Falmouth sports bar Construction of a 4,600-square-foot Rivalries sports bar in Falmouth has started, following prolonged debate. According to e Forecaster, oppo- sition came from the decision to build on a lot known as Tidewater Village 4, on Hat Trick Drive, not far from Walmart. Critics said the lot was intended to be used to develop commercial office space, not a restaurant and bar with late hours. Traffic, noise and odor were all cited as concerns. Owner Lance Meader, who also has a Rivalries in Portland, said he hopes the site can open by September or October. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N Southern Maine Community College completed its campus at Brunswick B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E S O U T H E R N 'Build your own' hangar lots available at Brunswick Executive Airport B r u n s w i c k — Brunswick Landing is using social media to entice corporate and general aviation owners to park their aircraft at Brunswick Executive Airport. Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority used Twitter to get the word out, urging aircraft owners to consider "build-your-own hangar lots." Space allows for hangars of up to 3,600 square feet. The airport has two 8,000-foot runways and is home to seven aviation or aerospace firms — ONE Aviation, Tempus Jets, MVP Aero, FlightLevel Aviation (FBO), Maine Coastal Flight, Greisen Aerospace, and Hoyle Tanner and Associates. There's still plenty of room for expansion, said MRRA Executive Director Steve Levesque, a pilot himself. "We've been advertising those lots for a while now, locally and at airshows," Levesque told Mainebiz. "It's a new approach for us [to use Twitter]. We've decided we're going to join the modern age and give social media a try. You've got to try everything." Levesque said MRRA is marketing the hangar lots as leased land that would be available for 30 cents per square foot. A mockup drawing shows four 40-by- 40-foot, three 50-by-50-foot and two 60-by-60-foot hangars on lots ranging from 3,600 square feet to 6,400 square feet. Leases are priced at $1,080 for the smallest lot, $1,470 for a mid-sized lot and $1,920 for the largest lot. Companies or individuals would build their own hangars following design standards set by MRRA, with hangar construction costs typically ranging from $150,000 to $350,000 depending on the size and materials used, Levesque said. "It's a common thing for airports to do," Levesque said. "We have lots of apron space and tarmac space available here. That got us thinking: Why not put private hangars on some of that space?" Levesque said MRRA continues to market Brunswick Executive Airport as a great location for large aviation companies to set up shop — given that it has 650,000 square feet of hangar and maintenance space, a new instrument land- ing system, no encroachment issues and access to unencumbered airspace. The airport can handle aircraft as large as a Boeing 737, he said. In terms of general use, Levesque said FlightLevel Aviation, the airport's fixed base operator that provides an array of services to planes flying in and out of BXM, recently reported that fuel sales are growing at a 10% annual rate. "That's a good indicator usage of the airport is growing," he said. — J a m e s M c C a r t h y P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y M I D C O A S T R E G I O N A L R E D E V E L O P M E N T A U T H O R I T Y Pricing and possible locations of build-your-own hangar lots available at Brunswick Executive Airport. 20 feet between buildings 10 feet front and back Lot A–D 60'×60' 3,600 SF $1080 @ $0.30 Lot E–G 70'×70' 4,900 SF $1470 @ $0.30 Lot H–I 80'×80' 6,400 SF $1920 @ $0.30

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