VOTE NO ON QUESTION ONE Coalition Announces Leading Affordable Housing Experts And Advocates Unite In Formal Opposition To Portland Question 1

PORTLAND, Maine, Nov. 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --A diverse group of affordable housing professionals and non-profit organizations announced opposition today to Portland's Question 1 Referendum. City and State housing experts and advocates agree the proposed Rent Control ordinance will do more harm than good to current and future affordable housing options in Portland.

The leadership of AVESTA, Community Housing of Maine ("CHOM"), Northern New England Investment Fund ("NNEHIF"), Shalom House, and MaineHousing all express concerns about the likely negative consequences of the proposal.

"One might think that Question 1 is going to help with housing affordability. Question 1 is not the way to do it. It's really just not a well-written document. Therefore, we oppose Question 1," says Dana Totman, President and CEO, Avesta Housing, Maine's largest non-profit affordable housing provider.

Cullen Ryan, Executive Director of Community Housing of Maine, the largest housing provider for homeless populations in Maine, states, "The rent stabilization ballot initiative does not take a holistic view in addressing the affordability crisis. We fear the ordinance would have unintended consequences that could worsen the situation for many people currently facing housing insecurity or homelessness."

Bill Shanahan, President of Northern New England Housing Investment Fund, says, "At first glance rent control might seem to offer a solution, but it rarely if ever works the way it was planned and can have adverse effects on the people it was intended to help. The housing stock in Portland is fragile and limiting an owner's ability to effectively manage a property won't help that housing stock in the long run."

MaineHousing, which provides subsidies and tax credits for low-income housing projects in Portland, and throughout the state, expressed similar caution. "We are concerned that this will have an adverse impact on affordable housing in Portland," notes Peter Merrill, Deputy Director, MaineHousing.

For more information or to join the coalition, please visit www.saynotorentcontrol.com.

SOURCE VOTE NO ON QUESTION ONE Coalition