BIDDEFORD, Maine — State lawmakers are eyeing three vacant courthouses with the hopes of turning them into housing, as the state's goal to increase housing and rentals approaches in fewer than 10 years.
Introduced this week by Gov. Janet Mills, a bill titled "Resolve, Authorizing the Commissioner of Administrative and Financial Services to Convey by Sale the Interests of the State in 3 Properties Located in Biddeford, Sanford and York" would transfer three former courthouses to state or local housing authorities to be turned into residential housing, if passed.
"This is one of those situations where we have a win, win, win," Rep. Traci Gere of Kennebunkport, who presented the bill to the Joint Select Committee on Housing, said. "It's seldom that [housing authorities] get a property that is so appropriate for housing right now in their communities."
After the towns of York and Sanford and the city of Biddeford's district courthouses combined under one roof last year—forming the York County Judicial Center—many municipalities have been since left stumped as to what to do with the vacant properties.
Biddeford Housing Authority Executive Director Guy Gagnon said he's already seen the positives of taking advantage of old properties. Right now, the housing authority is working to renovate an old church into a new center for local teens.
"[There are] plenty of examples just in the state of churches being torn down, and that was not going to be in our case," Gagnon said.
He said the idea of turning the courthouse into housing has been kicked around for a bit and added that he plans to ensure the project includes affordable housing, if the bill passes.
"I mean, everything is good in the building. The shell, the mechanical systems, even the finishes inside," Gagnon said.
If the bill passes and subsequent projects are successful, it will help address the state's approaching goal to create 84,000 homes to keep up with demand in Maine.
"It represents the crisis that we're in. People realize that every town that you live in, everybody keeps on saying it: The rents are too high. So, we have to come up with new ways to solve the problem," Gagnon said.