Build Maine Conference 2025:
June 4, 2025 / 8:00am - 3:30pm

The Newspaper Building, 185 Water Street, Skowhegan, Maine 04976

Register: https://www.build-maine.com/program

This course is 4 LU|HSWs

Description:

Henry Grabar and Allison Thurmond Quinlan Start Time: 9:00 AM End Time: 10:45 AM Course Description Henry Grabar will explain 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 will discuss how communities worldwide are shifting toward smarter parking policies that support economic vitality, sustainability, and a more pedestrian-friendly walking experience. He will also demonstrate how solving the parking problem can make your community more livable, accessible, and prosperous. Allison Thurmond Quinlan will explore ways to find macro-level infrastructure and design solutions that can blend seamlessly from one neighborhood to the next while still honoring each community’s unique characteristics and identity. She will also examine biases that are embedded in local property assessments and why so many communities are seeing property tax hikes to homeowners.

Unlocking Housing Start Time: 12:00 PM End Time: 1:30 PM Course Description In this session, Chris Allen will present the argument that housing cannot be a basic human need while also acting as a financial instrument on which the entire economy is built. Chris will highlight the steps communities can take to combat the downsides of market-based housing and he will demonstrate how they can create truly affordable options. He will also explore the financial argument for locating housing near service hubs rather than on rural lands far from job centers. Chris’s presentation will be followed by an interactive session led by Nancy Smith to explore policy ideas that promote housing in locations that work best for Maine communities.

Monte Anderson and Jim Heid Start Time: 1:30 PM End Time: 3:15 PM Course Description Join Monte Anderson to learn about how small-scale development and local ownership can help revitalize neighborhoods, reverse the erosion of the middle class, and drive reinvestment into our communities. Monte will also share his work in transforming obsolete properties into vibrant gathering places for neighboring residents. His work has proven that people across the country want something better than the next big apartment complex or strip mall. Join Jim Heid to gain real-world knowledge, inspiration, and insights into the power of incremental, and more organic community-building approaches. Jim will share insights from his 2021 book, Building Small, an inspiring toolkit that champions fine-grained, evolutionary development to support more resilient local economies, foster more authentic places, heal and grow dis-invested neighborhoods, and provide a democratic form of community-building that spans age, economic means, and the rural to urban transect.

FMI contact Abraham Dailey at: abraham.dailey@gmail.com