We need your input! The Kittery Area Comprehensive Transportation System (KACTS) MPO has kicked off Southern Maine in Motion, a 20-year plan for transportation in the KACTS region. This includes the towns of Berwick, Eliot, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, Kittery, Ogunquit, South Berwick, Wells, and York.

If you live, work, or spend time in this region, we want to hear from you! The survey takes 5 to 10 minutes to complete and will be open through October 14th.

SMPDC has been awarded $400,000 in grant funds from the Economic Development Administration to develop an Energy Resilience Plan for southern Maine. The Energy Resilience Plan is a response to needs identified through the Climate Action Planning (CAP) Cohort project. Frequent power outages from weather-related disasters are a significant hazard in Maine, incurring large costs to the region’s businesses and public works departments. At the same time, increasing electrification and renewable energy are creating a greater demand on our electric grid. The plan, informed by a stakeholder group and community engagement, will lay out specific actions that the region, local governments, and businesses can take to strengthen our region’s electric grid. 

Click the buttons below to learn more about SMPDC's sustainability and resilience and economic development work!

SMPDC has received a grant from the Department of Defense Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) to continue its partnership with the Town of Kittery and the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on a fourth phase of the Joint Land Use Study (JLUS) project. The project partners are excited for the continued federal support to build on the work accomplished in previous project phases and carry out additional implementation activities. This project phase, which kicks off October 7th, includes a parking structure feasibility study, emergency preparedness plan, infrastructure vulnerability assessment, transportation demand management plan, funding roadmap report, and housing policy recommendations.  

Closing America’s Wastewater Access Gap is an initiative from the Environmental Protection Agency to provide no-cost technical assistance to communities, including homeowners and utilities, with failing septic systems or without adequate or existing wastewater infrastructure. Examples of technical assistance include assessing wastewater issues and needs; engineering support for solutions; identifying funding options and completing paperwork requirements; and assisting with establishing a wastewater management ordinance. There is no application process – request technical assistance by completing the request form.

SMPDC’s Sustainability Division is assisting the towns of Alfred, Hollis, Parsonsfield, and South Berwick in enrolling in the State of Maine's Community Resilience Partnership. Once the four towns are enrolled, they will be eligible to apply for Community Action Grants. These grants fund a variety of projects that assist communities in reducing emissions and becoming more resilient to climate impacts, including solar installation, LED lighting upgrades, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure improvements, and more.

As part of their enrollment process, the four towns are holding community workshops to hear from residents on potential town grant projects. Alfred held their September 10th workshop in concert with that evening’s Select Board meeting, and Parsonsfield’s workshop was a Fall Climate Fair community event on September 28th. South Berwick’s and Hollis’ workshops are coming up later this month. Stay tuned for more news on the enrollments and Community Action Grants! 

Interested in enrolling your town in the Partnership and becoming eligible for funding? Reach out to Karina Graeter at kgraeter@smpdc.org.

SMPDC’s new Southern Maine Business Services Directory is live! The directory is designed to assist business owners and entrepreneurs in finding organizations that offer services like business counseling, accounting, technology assistance, legal services, and more.