<div>STONINGTON/DEER ISLE -- As many coastal towns across Maine continue to grapple with a housing crisis, Deer Isle municipalities are joining forces to address a damaging lack of affordable housing for the hardworking Mainers who keep the towns running. Across the coastal communities of Deer Isle and Stonington, the housing market is pushing the local workforce off the island. "We've got to solve this housing issue and we've got to do it quickly now, we can't take another ten years to do it because things are changing around us too rapidly," said Linda Nelson, Economic and Community Development Director for the town of Stonington. Research conducted by the communities joint Interlocal Housing Task Force discovered the island remains short of over 100 units of affordable workforce housing. "There's also just not a lot of availability and the properties that do become available tend to not align with the price range that matches the income here on the island," said Holly Werner, Maine Service Fellow for Deer Isle and Stonington. The task force has developed an extensive plan, that they hope the newly contracted housing manager Dan DeBord will help bring to life. "I see it more as a coordination effort as taking advantage of the good work that exists already," said Housing Manager for Deer Isle and Stonington, Dan DeBord. Much of that work is being done by two nonprofits. Homeport, which is converting a former island nursing home into housing and Island Workforce Housing -- which has built 22 units of workforce housing. "Our long term goals are to reinvigorate downtown Stonington during the winter by having more people living in the vicinity and to reinvigorate Deer Isle village to the degree it wants to be," said Sam Harrington, Board Chariman of Island Workforce Housing. Community leaders say there is still much work that needs to be done. "It's a very busy time in Stonington, but even when it's not a busy time, we want to remain a year-round community, we want our fishermen to be living down by their boats down by the water, and so we've got a lot of work to do," said Nelson. </div>

Block Source: foxbangor.com

Misinformation

Clickbait

Old or repetitive news

Explicit content

Location not relevant

STONINGTON/DEER ISLE -- As many coastal towns across Maine continue to grapple with a housing crisis, Deer Isle municipalities are joining forces to address a damaging lack of affordable housing for the hardworking Mainers who keep the towns running. Across the coastal communities of Deer Isle and Stonington, the housing...

Communities on Deer Isle tackling workforce housing shortages

NewsBreak

STONINGTON/DEER ISLE -- As many coastal towns across Maine continue to grapple with a housing crisis, Deer Isle municipalities are joining forces to addres

Communities on Deer Isle tackling workforce housing shortages

Comments