Life With Less Driving
Maine is one of the most car dependent states in the country. The costs of a car dependant society are piling up with massive, unforeseen consequences for our health, environment, budgets and society. Are conversations about alternative forms of transportation relevant to Maine, the most rural state in the country? Given our aging population, rising fuel and energy prices, and our ecotourism-based economy, should Maine consider other ways to structure our transportation system? Sarah Goodyear, podcast co-host for ‘The War on Cars’ and co-author of Life After Cars, will start the conversation.
Sarah Goodyear | Journalist, Author, and Podcast Host | New York, New York
Maine is one of the most car dependent states in the country. The costs of a car dependent society are piling up with massive, unforeseen consequences for our health, environment, budgets and society. Are conversations about alternative forms of transportation relevant to Maine, the most rural state in the country? Given our aging population, rising fuel and energy prices, and our ecotourism-based economy, should Maine consider other ways to structure our transportation system? Sarah Goodyear, podcast co-host for ‘The War on Cars’ and co-author of Life After Cars, will start the conversation.
Creating Affordable Housing Across the Rural to Urban Transect
As the affordable housing crisis intensifies, communities nationwide struggle to create solutions that honor local context and foster connections, and that provide better alternatives to placeless, isolating subdivisions and apartment complexes. With over 140 affordable communities designed across the rural-to-urban transect, Jeremy Lake will share how affordable housing can both integrate seamlessly into communities and create high value, high-density places. Drawing from a number of diverse built projects, Jeremy will reveal how thoughtful design choices - from building typology to community amenity placement - can produce affordable neighborhoods. While these neighborhoods share fundamental design principles, each demonstrates how fine-tuned adjustments can respond to unique local context, offering practical strategies drawn from extensive experience.
Jeremy Lake | Union Studio | Providence, Rhode Island
As the affordable housing crisis intensifies, communities nationwide struggle to create solutions that honor local context and foster connections, and that provide better alternatives to placeless, isolating subdivisions and apartment complexes. With over 140 affordable communities designed across the rural-to-urban transect, Jeremy Lake will share how affordable housing can both integrate seamlessly into communities and create high value, high-density places. Drawing from a number of diverse built projects, Jeremy will reveal how thoughtful design choices - from building typology to community amenity placement - can produce affordable neighborhoods. While these neighborhoods share fundamental design principles, each demonstrates how fine-tuned adjustments can respond to unique local context, offering practical strategies drawn from extensive experience.
Re-Regulating for Quality Housing Abundance
Eric shared an expansive compendium of strategies for increasing the supply of housing. His presentation covered how to identify, break down, and solve problems that are holding back communities from being socially vibrant and economically productive. Those problems take many forms, including underutilized buildings, poor urban design, outdated, restrictive zoning codes, or a lack of variety as it relates to residential and commercial buildtypes. He speed walked through best practices that cover zoning and subdivision ordinances, building codes, and financial systems to support flourishing communities. He touched on policies at both the local and state level, recognizing that it often takes both to achieve better outcomes, as well as implementation strategies like pilot projects and pre-approved plans as tools to facilitate better outcomes.
Eric Kronberg | Architect + Urban Designer | Atlanta, Georgia
Eric shared an expansive compendium of strategies for increasing the supply of housing. His presentation covered how to identify, break down, and solve problems that are holding back communities from being socially vibrant and economically productive. Those problems take many forms, including underutilized buildings, poor urban design, outdated, restrictive zoning codes, or a lack of variety as it relates to residential and commercial buildtypes. He speed walked through best practices that cover zoning and subdivision ordinances, building codes, and financial systems to support flourishing communities. He touched on policies at both the local and state level, recognizing that it often takes both to achieve better outcomes, as well as implementation strategies like pilot projects and pre-approved plans as tools to facilitate better outcomes.
Presentation Slides - Part 2: Finance Challenges and The Urban Fabric
Presentation Slides - Part 3: Housing Legalization Strategies
Parking Might Be Killing Your Town
This session explores how the pursuit of the perfect parking space has forced us to sacrifice affordable housing, attractive architecture, walkable neighborhoods, and lively town centers in favor of congestion, sprawl, and waste.
Henry Grabar | Journalist, Author, and Researcher
This session explores how the pursuit of the perfect parking space has forced us to sacrifice affordable housing, attractive architecture, walkable neighborhoods, and lively town centers in favor of congestion, sprawl, and waste.
The Value of Building in Existing Neighborhoods
Allison seeks out design opportunities that can be lovable, sustainable, and walkable places so that we can save our productive and sensitive ecosystems from sprawl. Allison will also explore biases that are embedded in local property assessments and why so many communities are seeing property tax hikes to homeowners.
Allison Thurmond Quinlan | Flintlock LAB
Allison seeks out design opportunities that can be lovable, sustainable, and walkable places so that we can save our productive and sensitive ecosystems from sprawl. Allison will also explore biases that are embedded in local property assessments and why so many communities are seeing property tax hikes to homeowners.
Highlights From Policy Action 2025
Build Maine and GrowSmart Maine innovated a new process for engaging a broad statewide conversation, best described as public policy crowdsourcing. Learn about work that started in 2019, involving hundreds of people across the state, and the big policy moves from the 2025 session to improve built outcomes while reducing demand for development on rural lands.
Nancy Smith, GrowSmart Maine; Josh Caldwell, Natural Resources Council of Maine; Tara Kelly, Maine Preservation; Myles Smith, Mainers for Smarter Transportation
Build Maine and GrowSmart Maine innovated a new process for engaging a broad statewide conversation, best described as public policy crowdsourcing. Learn about work that started in 2019, involving hundreds of people across the state, and the big policy moves from the 2025 session to improve built outcomes while reducing demand for development on rural lands.
Unlocking Housing and the Financial Case for Putting it in the Right Place
Housing cannot be both a basic human need and right as well as a financial instrument on which the entire economy is built. Chris Allen will unpack what communities can do to combat the downsides of market based housing and how to create truly affordable options. He will also explore the financial argument for locating housing near service centers rather than on rural lands far from jobs centers.
Chris Allen | Strong Towns
Housing cannot be both a basic human need and right as well as a financial instrument on which the entire economy is built. Chris Allen will unpack what communities can do to combat the downsides of market based housing and how to create truly affordable options. He will also explore the financial argument for locating housing near service centers rather than on rural lands far from jobs centers.
Unlocking Housing - Lunch and Learn Discussion
This interactive session lead by Nancy Smith, with GrowSmart Maine, follows Chris Allen's presentation about Unlocking Housing. Smith invites the audience to explore policy ideas that promote housing in locations that work for Maine communities.
Nancy Smith | GrowSmart Maine
This interactive session lead by Nancy Smith, with GrowSmart Maine, follows Chris Allen's presentation about Unlocking Housing. Smith invites the audience to explore policy ideas that promote housing in locations that work for Maine communities.