Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission

Registration is now open for the Southern Maine Climate Action Workshop! Join us and the University of New England for a full day event bringing together municipalities and organizations from across the region in support of meaningful climate action, from planning to implementation. 🗓️  Wednesday, November 12th, 2025, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM (Morning refreshments and lunch provided) 📍  University of New England - Harold Alfond Forum, Room 283 ✅  Register here: https://lnkd.in/grJZxcHY

Join us Tuesday October 28th, 2:00-3:30pm as SMPDC planners walk through the municipal impacts of four new state laws related to planning and land use. Municipal law attorney Phil Saucier will provide his perspective and answer your questions.   ✅ Register here: https://lnkd.in/g63NkT5s 📝 Visit our legislative tracking webpage: https://www.smpdc.org/leg

We are pleased to share SMPDC's Sustainability & Resilience Division Work Plan for Fiscal Year 2026! This Work Plan highlights the Division's priorities for the coming year, its ongoing projects, and its guiding principles. View here: https://lnkd.in/gT5gHGh3

Join us for our upcoming webinar! 🏠 Plans to Porches: Let’s Learn About Housing Tools 🗓️ Tuesday, October 14th , 4:00-5:30 PM ✅ Register Here: https://lnkd.in/gycyqH8h SMPDC has produced a short, comprehensive toolkit covering four regulatory tools that seek to support housing production in the region. Join us to hear our planners break down the toolkit, and show you real life examples of communities using these tools today.

We are excited to announce the second year of the Southern Maine Climate Action Workshop in collaboration with the University of New England! 🌎 Southern Maine Climate Action Workshop 2025: Charting the Course for Resilience 🗓️ Wednesday, November 12th, 9 – 4 PM 📍 University of New England, Biddeford Campus Stay tuned for registration and agenda information. Learn more about last year’s workshop here: https://lnkd.in/gmXUgQwq

We are excited to share a new GIS-based Decision Support Tool developed by the Nature Based Strategies for a Climate Ready Southern Maine project team! 🌎 Check out the interactive Decision Support Tool: https://lnkd.in/gHg-WDjM 📝 Learn more about Climate Ready Coast: https://lnkd.in/gFA4E5tw This tool was developed to support implementation of the Climate Ready Coast - Southern Maine Regional Coastal Resilience Plan, completed in 2023. It provides site-specific, bio-physical, and socio-political information to support decision making about where nature-based strategies may be suitable and feasible in southern Maine. This tool was developed as part of a collaborative effort with Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, Nearview, and York County Soil and Water Conservation District. 

Join Maine Downtown Center’s upcoming virtual trainings for an introduction to the Maine PlaceCode, an easy-to-use library of zoning tools to help communities proactively plan for their future. 📍 July 23, 10am-12pm: Intro class for Municipal Planning Board, Elected Officials, and Staff 🗺️ July 30, 10am-12pm: Code Writers Training for Practitioners ✏️ August 6, 10am-12pm: Advanced Code Writing Using the PlaceCode Library  These zoom trainings will cover how the PlaceCode was developed as an alternative to traditional zoning, and how you can use it to update zoning to respond to your community’s local conditions and goals. Register for the first session: https://lnkd.in/g3Nnbm8Y Visit the Maine PlaceCode Library: https://lnkd.in/gAaFHssc

We are excited to share our housing suitability and buildout analysis, Future Development & Housing Suitability in Southern Maine! This multi-year effort estimates housing development potential and identifies where new housing can be best supported by existing infrastructure and services. We hope this tool will enable communities to make informed decisions about housing growth and development patterns. 📒 View the final report: https://lnkd.in/gZT9HDYi 🌎 Check out the interactive map: https://lnkd.in/gt9MgAEt

Join us next week for a virtual panel discussion about housing with local experts! 🗓️ When: Thursday, May 15th, 5:00-7:00pm 🏠 Who Should Attend: Planning staff, Town/City Managers, Economic Development staff, Planning boards, Elected officials, Comprehensive Plan committees ✅ Register here: https://lnkd.in/gPqpbsys Professionals from Avesta Housing, South Portland Housing Authority, Workforce Housing Coalition of the Greater Seacoast, and Great Falls Construction will delve into innovative development projects, successfully used regulatory tools, barriers to production, and municipal-developer partnerships. You'll gain insight on tangible ways to provide workforce, market-rate, naturally affordable, and subsidized affordable housing. You'll also hear from SMPDC staff on our housing work, including a new toolkit, occurring through the Joint Land Use Study with the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Town of Kittery, Maine and other stakeholders. Leave with new ideas, new inspiration, and new connections!

Small business owners, municipal leaders, and residents: Join us this Wednesday morning to learn about Central Maine Power Company's efforts to modernize Maine’s power grid. SMPDC will also be providing an update on our ongoing Energy Resilience Plan project. Register here: https://lnkd.in/giBq_2aG