Like many residents, I initially had reservations about the proposed affordable housing project on Drowne Road. Concerns about taxes, schools and traffic were swirling in my mind. However, I took the initiative to address these concerns head-on. Community meeting recordings and articles in the Town Crier provided reassuring answers. Visiting the site on Drowne Road […]
cumberland maine
Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Letter: Keep working on tax containment, but approve Drowne Road project
Please support affordable housing on March 5 and vote “yes” on Question 1 on the Cumberland town ballot. Some have voiced objections to the project, fearing higher taxes and more traffic, among other complaints. But almost no one has disputed the need for affordable housing. Shouldn’t housing be the priority? Yes, let’s keep trying to […]
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Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Letter: We need housing our families, workers can afford
Walking and driving around Cumberland, I am disturbed by those orange “no” signs – they make us appear to be people that most of us are not. Sure, we feel fortunate to live in a town with great walking trails, open space and farmland, Casco Bay shorelines, top schools, a good post office, excellent stores […]
Posted inMaine, News
Affordable housing fight builds to a head in Cumberland
An affluent town will decide next month on the fate of a 107-unit development that supporters say is sorely needed. Detractors say it will have an outsized impact on taxes.
Posted inForecaster Opinion, Northern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Forum: Too many unanswered questions about Drowne Road project
I served on the town of Cumberland’s Affordable Housing Task Force and support new approaches encouraging the development of affordable housing in town. Unfortunately, I can’t support the proposed 107-unit Drowne Road affordable housing project in its current form. This project has been rushed through by the Town Council without real scrutiny or negotiation, too […]
Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Northern Meetings: Feb. 15-22
Chebeague Island Thu. 2/15 6 p.m. Coastal Waters Town Hall Wed. 2/21 6 p.m. Select Board Town Hall Cumberland Fri. 2/16 10 a.m. Council Executive Session Town Hall Tue. 2/20 7 p.m. Planning Board Town Hall Falmouth Thu. 2/15 4 p.m. Long-Range Planning Town Hall Thu. 2/15 5:30 p.m. Finance Committee Town Hall Thu. 2/22 […]
Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Letter: Support those squeezed out of housing market
Hardly a day passes without a story in the local papers about the shortage of workers to fill jobs and the lack of affordable housing. Unfortunately, the two go hand in hand, and given our state’s aging population coupled with low housing stock, it’s clear that the problem will only worsen over time. Residents of […]
Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Letter: Don’t let Cumberland turn into an enclave for the wealthy
We urge all Cumberland residents to vote “yes” on or before March 5 for the affordable housing project on Drowne Road. We have lived in Cumberland for over 47 years. As much as we love living here, we are troubled by the fact that housing prices have risen to the point that the town has […]
Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Letter: Drowne’s descendant urges rejection of project
Elizabeth Ingraham Drowne was my great great grandmother. In 1892, Elizabeth gifted her 100-acre farm to the inhabitants of the town of Cumberland. The will stipulated that the property be used solely for educational purposes and that cause alone. Via the referendum, this Town Council proposes to take the Drowne Farm, now the Cumberland town […]
Posted inNorthern Forecaster, The Forecaster
Letter: Imagine a more affordable Cumberland and vote yes
I am writing in support of the Drowne Road affordable housing development and plan to vote “yes” on Tuesday, March 5. There is a lot of talk about the cost of this project as it relates to dollars and cents. There is a cost, however, to not increasing affordable housing options in Cumberland. There is […]