Testimony of Joe Oliva, Outreach and Communications Director of GrowSmart Maine in support of LD 2057, An Act to Support Rehabilitation and Development of Affordable Manufactured Housing Communities
January 13, 2026
Senator Curry, Representative Gere, and Honorable Members of the Joint Standing Committee on Housing and Economic Development,
My name is Joe Oliva and I am the Outreach and Communications Director for GrowSmart Maine. We are a statewide non-partisan non-profit organization helping communities navigate change in alignment with smart growth. We advocate for comprehensive policies and funding for smart growth practices and outcomes.
Communities come in many forms, and GrowSmart supports the active creation and betterment of places that people feel safe, they belong and in which they can thrive – in short, places that people call home. LD 2057 is a positive step towards enabling the rehabilitation and development of manufactured housing communities through removing barriers between loan support from the Maine Housing Authority and privately or co-operatively owned properties.
According to Maine Housing’s January report on the state’s housing outlook, already high construction costs for developing affordable housing are only rising. If the state is to meet its goals for affordable housing creation, investing in preexisting communities that already host low- to moderate-income residents is a critical piece of the puzzle – especially if these manufactured housing communities feature a path to ownership. Finding ways to make it possible for continued upkeep, improvements, and development in these places is a tool that the state must find a way to keep in its toolbox.
From the land use perspective, manufactured housing communities are generally an efficient use of land for housing. In addition to creating settings in which community can flourish, development within these properties typically does not have negative implications for farmland or open space.