BIDDEFORD — The Mayor’s Affordable Housing Task Force is recommending that the city work to create or preserve 900 affordable housing units by 2028; and create a new benchmark that 12.5 percent of all housing units be affordable by 2028. It recommends the city create an affordable housing trust fund, and target affordable housing  initiatives to work toward addressing the needs of those who make 80 percent of the median annual income.

There are other recommendations — that the city council adopt a comprehensive policy this spring that includes complete services for those without places to live, and to adopt inclusionary zoning, whereby any new housing project within the city would be required to reserve a certain percentage of units to help meet affordable housing goals.

The task force was formed by Mayor Alan Casavant a year ago and made its final report to the city council in January. One of the facts the nine-member task force learned during their investigation into the state of housing in Biddeford is that those who have lived in the city the longest are the most impacted as rents increase,  but their incomes do not, and their incomes are not as robust as those who move to the city.

Technically, said Task Force Chair and City Councilor Doris Ortiz, Biddeford is considered affordable.

According to the task force report, the median income of those who rented in the community rose 51.8 percent in just three years — from $31,048 in 2017 compared to $47,140 in 2020. And even though the median rent rose significantly during the same period, using HUD’s Rental Index, the city became more affordable.

“People who grew up here are not able to stay here, these recommendations are to help that,” said Ortiz.

One way to help boost affordable housing is to set up a fund, with expenditures to support housing goals charged to the account, the report noted.

City Manager Jim Bennett noted that Devine Capital LLC, the developer of a project at Andrews Road and Route 111, has pledged $500,000 to help support affordable housing in Biddeford; that income from a new affordable housing tax increment financing program recently authorized by the Maine Legislature could be placed into the fund, along with any donations. The city could use the fund to create new housing units, he said, or for transitional housing for those unhoused, and the like.

Task Force member and Councilor Marty Grohman said inclusionary zoning, where communities can require a certain number of units be affordable, “is all about the math.”

“If you reach the right tipping point, a developer sees the value, (and) it can result in a very big boost,” he said, but if the requirements are too stringent, a developer could build elsewhere.

The task force has some other recommendations like reducing road frontage requirements, relaxing parking requirements, and more, Grohman said. Kittery and Auburn, he noted, have both pre-approved certain housing designs for auxiliary dwelling units which do not have to go to a planning board for approval, and can save four months on a project.

“Anything that streamlines the process the council can be thinking about,” he said.

The task force studied rent control but decided it was not a tool that made sense for Biddeford, said Grohman. “This is a tool that tends to be counterproductive over time … reduces the quality of the housing stock and leads to condoization (converting apartments to condominiums),” said Grohman.

Councilor Bill Emhiser noted inclusionary zoning is a “very delicate balance, a slippery slope, one that … the devil’s in the details.”

Emhiser said he favors a regional approach for those who are unhoused.

He suggested the city begin its efforts with the affordable housing trust fund.

Councilor Bob Mills said he wants more information about inclusionary housing.

“The thing that scares me the most, is the folks who have been here all their lives, retired and now can’t afford their rent by no fault of their own because of market conditions that brought investors who rehabbed and raised the rent by twofold, and are making money,” said Councilor Marc Lessard. “The benefit is the buildings (are in) better condition, but the problem is the people been here 50 years can no longer find an apartment to live in.”

That sector might be less than 5 percent of the population, Lessard said, but needs to be prioritized as do “next homes,” which in turn, frees up starter homes.

Biddeford could take a page from nearby Saco and adopt the use of “back Lots” for housing, he said.

Councilor Liam LaFountain said he would be a proponent of inclusionary zoning.

“The median income in our community can’t afford any more than $1,500 in rent,” said LaFountain. When rents are being built at $1,800 a month, “we’re saying we don’t want you here or we don’t want more of you here.”

“I think balance is very important,” said Casavant. He said the city needs to attract people who want higher end homes and also needs to consider that the city has a rural farm zone and “erosion of that is also problematic.”

“You’ve always got to worry about unintended consequences,” said Casavant.

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