By Sasha Ray
A 48-unit affordable housing development at 115 Congress St. in Belfast is nearing completion after three years in development.
Developers soon expect to have a temporary certificate of occupancy for the condo-style units, which have now been constructed. However, some landscaping work still appears to be happening at the site.
Backers of the project hope that it will help to ease the housing crisis that’s affecting much of Maine, including in the midcoast, and pricing people out of increasingly expensive communities such as Belfast.
The project, which has been led by Developers Collaborative, includes 36 units that will have subsidies for renters who make 60 percent of the median income level, and another 12 subsidized units for those who make 80 percent of that level.
At current monthly rental rates for Waldo County set by MaineHousing, that means renters who meet the 60 percent income threshold — which varies based on the size of their family — could pay $927 for a 1-bedroom apartment, $1,113 for a 2-bedroom or $1,285 for a 3-bedroom. The prices would increase for those at the 80-percent level.
The housing complex sits on land that was formerly the city’s public works garage. The project was initially approved by the city late in 2021, with just 36 of the units being proposed as subsidized at that time. But the plan was updated last year to add subsidies for the remaining 12 units.
On Wednesday night, the planning board also visited the site and approved small changes related to its windows and to the location of a nearby bus stop. The original project plan called for totally replacing the bus stop on Congress Street, but the developers will now delay that work until a separate city project to improve Congress Street is complete. Until that happens, a sign will temporarily be posted along the street indicating that it’s where the bus stops.
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