Maine is deep in a severe housing crisis, one that is preventing young families from putting down roots and workers from being even remotely near their jobs. Yet the relentless NIMBY voices now rise against Yard South in South Portland, which promises 1,200 housing units on land currently used for boat parking. The chorus would be laughable if the issue were not so pressing: “A shadow will sometimes fall on Bug Light!” “Traffic!” “This housing isn’t affordable!” “Traffic!” “I hate change!”
It must be nice to have one’s primary concerns be municipal traffic levels and the angle of shadows. For most Mainers, their thoughts are occupied by the meteoric rise in housing costs and the unending struggle to find a home in the place they love.
We arrived in this crisis by doing what the NIMBYs want for Yard South: stopping the building of housing. We will only solve this crisis – and allow families and the working class to flourish – by building homes. So, Yard South must go forward. The boats will be parked elsewhere, and the occasional shadows won’t harm us.
Ned Melanson
Portland
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