COMING SPRING 2026!

Rendering of our 54-unit senior housing community to be located at 25 Casco Street in Portland, adjacent to the Equality Community Center.

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Maine’s first affordable SENIOR housing community with supportive services for LGBTQ+ OLDER ADULTS

Housing costs have skyrocketed over the last several years and many individuals and families can no longer afford to live in Portland. The unforgiving rental market has forced many people, especially older adults, to move out of the city, or worse, experience housing insecurity and homelessness. Affordable, centralized housing has been a longstanding need for seniors in Maine and current conditions have amplified that need astronomically.

In response to this growing crisis, we are planning to build an affordable senior housing complex (ages 55+) adjacent to the Equality Community Center. This project will provide inclusive housing for all, regardless of orientation, along with special support services and programming for LGBTQ+ older adults. Located in the heart of downtown Portland, our building will provide residents with convenient access to social services, healthcare, transportation, entertainment, and recreation.

The building’s proximity to the ECC will give residents a permanent, safe place to live and support services they need to age in place. Our project joins a growing national trend in which senior affordable housing communities are being built in conjunction with LGBTQ+ community centers in cities across the country, including Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, San Diego, Chicago and Philadelphia.

join the interest list!

Note: The interest list is NOT a waiting list. It will be used to provide updates regarding the application process.

The Details

54 units of affordable senior housing (ages 55+)
-12 efficiency units (501-525 sqft)
-34 one-bedroom units (567-715 sqft)
-8 two-bedroom units (798-837 sqft)
19 of these units will be accessible (7 are required and we are pledging an additional 12 units).
At least 60% of the units will be rented to households earning 50% AMI or less and the remaining units will be rented to households earning 60% AMI or less.
MaineHousing will provide eleven project based vouchers (20% of all units) for 11 units that will be pledged to serve people with disabilities and/or those living with HIV/AIDS. We will be partnering with Frannie Peabody Center and Independence Association to fill these units.
Building features will include a retail cafe/coffee shop with outdoor patio, a community room, bike room and laundry room. The Arts District Parking Garage is located adjacent to the building.

PLANNING, FINANCING AND CONSTRUCTION

The ECC Housing Committee is chaired by board member, Ed Gardner. Committee members include Matt Dubois, Betsy Smith, Dale McCormack, Carolyn Thomas, and Chris O’Connor.
Kevin Bunker, founding principal of Developers Collaborative and recipient of Portland’s prestigious Economic Development Achievement Award in 2019, is our developer, with Laura Reading as our project lead. Ryan Senatore Architecture is serving the architect for the project.
Equality Community Housing is one of four projects selected by MaineHousing to receive financing in 2024. Maine Affordable Housing Tax Credits, federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), a commercial bank loan and a 75% TIF awarded by the city of Portland will be used to fund the project. (Read more about MaineHousing award.)
Penobscot General Contractors (PGC) has been contracted for construction through a competitive bid process, with ground breaking currently anticipated in early Fall 2024!

HOW TO APPLY

Applications are not yet available but interested community members are encouraged to sign up for our Housing Interest List.
Note: this is NOT a waiting list and being on the list merely ensures that you will receive pertinent communications about the application process.
Portland Housing Authority will serve as our building management company and as soon the application process has been established, we will communicate the information to our Interest List first.
The Equality Community Center will be the owner of the building and all tenants will be expected to abide by a community standards agreement that reflects the mission and values of the organization, calling for a safe, welcoming and inclusive living environment for all residents.

Getting to Breaking Ground

The ECC needs to raise the final $350K of our $4 million capital campaign, Building & Supporting Community, to ensure that we have the needed contingency funds before breaking ground. Want to help reach our goal? Click here to donate now!