My thanks to Daniel Brennan, MaineHousing director, for the May 23 opinion piece “Embrace affordable housing for those who make Maine better,” and to John Wasileski, developer/owner of Oceanview at Falmouth, for his May 24 opinion piece, “The time for workforce housing in Falmouth is now.” Both address the workforce housing crisis beyond giving lip service to need and support.

Brennan challenges the not-in-my-neighborhood mindset with examples of critical services providers (often friends and neighbors or people we see daily) who earn as low as 30% of Cumberland County’s median income.

Wasileski’s call for action is directed at Falmouth’s Town Council. He points to the town’s long history of flagging the need for workforce housing but not acting on it. He urges the council to vote for the workforce housing project before it now. Likewise, South Portland’s council now has the opportunity to make good on the city’s past and present purported support for workforce housing.

A partnership with South Portland Housing Authority will create about 170 mixed-income homes for both rental and homeownership. The authority’s proposal includes a new City Hall with department offices, a new police station and 64 family workforce apartments in the former Mahoney Middle School (both the auditorium and gym open to the public).

When Wasileski emphasizes the adverse economic and environmental ripple effects of a municipality’s failure to provide affordable workforce housing, he speaks to all town and city councils.

Diane Gotelli
South Portland