At her first campaign event focused on affordable housing, Democratic candidate Hannah Pingree said making it accessible to more Mainers needs to be a top issue for whoever becomes the state’s next governor.
Joined by municipal and state housing leaders at the Bangor Public Library Tuesday, the former head of Gov. Janet Mills’ Office of Policy Innovation and the Future (GOPIF) and speaker of the Maine House of Representatives highlighted the progress Maine has already made, but said “there is a lot more work to be done.”
“I think it’s important that the next governor make this the top issue,” Pingree said. The event was held at the close of the MaineHousing Affordable Housing conference and launched Pingree’s statewide housing tour. Pingree will be holding events over the next few months to bring together various stakeholders — from renters to developers — to work on solutions to the state’s housing challenges.
Earlier that day, Mills gave the opening remarks at the conference, during which she highlighted Pingree’s work. As head of GOPIF, Pingree authorized nearly $315 million to support the construction of new affordable homes across the state, which Mills said was “nearly five times more than the total amount spent on housing from 2000 to 2018.”
Pingree said while working for the Mills administration, which she joined in 2019, she realized that “housing was this fundamental challenge that was starting to impact Maine, and it was impacting every part of our economy, every part of every community across the state.”
“We’ve made some progress. We’ve done some good work on housing, but we need to double the space or triple the space to meet the demand,” she added.
Despite increasing construction, Maine still needs 84,000 new affordable housing units while 5,000 children remain unhoused, Pingree said.
The housing tour presents the first major campaign events for Pingree, who is among a crowded field of candidates for the Democratic nomination to replace Mills, who terms out next year. Though the governor has yet not officially endorsed anyone in the June 6 primary race, which includes Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and former Senate President Troy Jackson, among others, Pingree is seen as Mills’ chosen successor.
During the event, Pingree asked panelists to share what they view as the most pressing housing challenges, possible municipal solutions as well as what the next governor should do to address homelessness and the lack of housing.
Rep. Traci Gere (D-Kennebunkport), who chairs the Housing and Economic Development Committee, and Rep. Amy Roeder (D-Bangor) highlighted the increasing homelessness in many Maine communities.
Bangor officials pointed to local initiatives that will help alleviate homelessness in the city, including the newly opened Theresa’s Place, a refurbished building project by the nonprofit Penquis that added 41 subsidized studio and one-bedroom apartments for low income residents.
Pingree said the goal of the tour is to listen and learn about what people believe the next governor should do to address Maine’s housing shortage.
The next stops include Biddeford on Sept. 16, Portland on Sept. 26, Auburn on Sept. 29, Berwick on Oct. 2, Dover-Foxcroft on Oct. 6, Ellsworth on Oct. 10, and Rockland on Oct. 14, with additional stops to be announced.
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