Gov. Janet Mills has named a longtime housing advocate to advise her administration on housing policy as it ramps up efforts to address a growing critical need for affordable housing in Maine. Greg Payne, who has been development officer at Avesta Housing in Portland and director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition for nearly 15
Firehouse Village, which will host a Rosemont Bakery and Harbor Fish Market, as well as an Avesta Housing development, officially broke ground this week in Scarborough and aims to have some tenants’ doors open this fall. The 2.7-acre project, located off U.S. Route 1 between Westwood Avenue and Fairfield Road, is the redevelopment of the
CONWAY, N.H. — The Conway Planning Board gave conditional approval on June 11, 2020 to the nonprofit Avesta Housing Development Corp. of Portland, Maine to put up 156 workforce and senior rental housing units off Technology Lane. Avesta owns and manages more than 90 properties in Maine and New Hampshire. Technology Lane will be extended
A new 15-member commission will meet for the first time this week to begin studying how local land-use and zoning laws may prevent affordable housing development in Maine communities. The Commission to Increase Housing Opportunities in Maine by Studying Zoning and Land Use Restrictions was created with the passage of a bill sponsored by House Speaker Ryan
Rebecca Hatfield joined Avesta in 2015 as an assets and acquisitions officer. She was promoted to director of real estate development in 2017 and in 2019 took on her current role as senior vice president of real estate. In this position, she oversees Avesta’s real estate development and property management divisions with more than 100
At each of our properties, Avesta Housing strives to create an environment that serves the needs of its residents and the neighborhood in which they live. This includes providing activities and amenities that promote physical activity, team bonding and community good will. Two of our communities, Hyacinth Place and Steeple Square in Westbrook, Maine, have
As the real estate market in Maine continues to break sales records, the availability of affordable housing is becoming extremely scarce. This is especially evident in downtown Portland, where skyrocketing home prices and rent threaten to displace the city’s working class. Deering Place Apartments, Avesta Housing’s latest development in Portland, is providing hope for these
Now that leaders in Augusta and Washington have responded, we must design programs that help the people who need it the most. Over the past several decades, the lack of affordable rental housing throughout Maine and the United States has taken on such a level of intractability and pervasiveness that it has come perilously close
PORTLAND, Maine — Housing advocates say low-wage earners looking for an affordable place to live are often becoming “desperate.” The federal moratorium on evictions, intended to protect struggling renters during the COVID-19 pandemic, is set to expire at the end of July. Dana Totman, Director of Avesta Housing which creates and runs affordable housing units,
PORTLAND, Maine — Two Maine nonprofits are joining forces to help make sure young adults with intellectual disabilities don’t fall victim to the affordable housing crunch. Siobhan Gile settled in to her new studio apartment at 61 Deering St. on Friday. Gile said having her own place allows her to hop on the bus to
