AFFORDABLE HOUSING

GILMAN PLACE

Gilman Place, located in Waterville, has structurally preserved and bestowed new life into a vacant neighborhood treasure, while repurposing it as affordable workforce housing for area families. Development of the former Gilman School was made possible in part by state and federal historic tax credits, and the building is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Historic preservation is a particularly important component of a smart growth development philosophy in Maine: not only do we believe that "the greenest building is the one that doesn't have to be built," but Maine is blessed with a stock of these unique and impossible to replicate structures, many of which can be reconceived for decades more of useful life.

Gilman Place, winner of the 2011 Maine Preservation Honor Award, houses 35 affordable apartments in walking distance from the city's award winning downtown. Gilman Place is an example not only of smart growth development simultaneously addressed two concerns many Waterville residents shared: how to preserve and reuse the former Gilman School as well as the need for more quality apartments in Waterville. Through partnerships with neighbors, local city officials, and state agencies, Gilman Place offers individuals making less than $20,000 per year or a family of four making less than $36,000 per year the ability to live in a convenient neighborhood in one of central Maine's historic industrial cities.

FAST FACTS

Location:
Gilman Street, Waterville

Completion Date:
May 2011

Project Scope:
35 affordable apartments and a commercial gymnasium

Lead Developers:
Richard Berman, Kevin Bunker, and Jim Hatch

Total Cost:
$10 million