CUMBERLAND, Maine — A member of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Maine board has resigned after public criticism of an affordable housing development planned in Cumberland.
Voters in the town decided against the 107-unit complex during a referendum this week. The proposal in the wealthy suburb of about 8,500 was rejected by a tally of 2,545 to 1,163.
"We felt there was a lot of uncertainty with who would be living there and thought the income level was a bit low for the people we want to attract to town," Caitlin Day, the board member at the Westbrook-based nonprofit, told the Portland Press Herald at the polls Tuesday.
Cumberland's median household income is about $145,000; the affordable housing development would have been available to those making less than 60% of the region's median income and 36 of the units would have been reserved for seniors.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Maine, a Westbrook-based nonprofit that connects children — many from low-income households — with mentors, announced Day's resignation in a statement Thursday.
"While we respect the right to free speech, the Board was unable to reconcile Caitlin’s recent statement with our mission which supports youth from all social-economic backgrounds through one-to-one mentoring relationships," the statement said. "Caitlin Day has been a generous and committed volunteer during her time on our board of directors. We are grateful to Caitlin for her service.
"Moving forward, the Board remains committed to our mission to remove obstacles for young people by connecting them with a mentor — a caring adult who can be in their corner — and will continue working diligently to uphold the principles and advance the goals our stakeholders expect of this organization."
Mark Segrist, the chair of Cumberland's Town Council, told NEWS CENTER Maine he heard other voters rejected the development due to concerns about tax impacts and adding more students to the "overcrowded" school system.
Tyler Norod, development director for the Westbrook Development Corp, the organization behind the affordable housing project, said it will search elsewhere to build.
"We're going to continue to look for other opportunities in communities that have a need or want us to be there," he said.