PORTLAND, Maine — CVS Health (NYSE: CVS) has made an $8.4 million investment with Community Housing of Maine (CHOM), the Portland Housing Authority and Boston Financial that will lead to the construction of 52 affordable housing units for older adults in Portland.
The new four-story building, called Winter Landing, is part of the historic redevelopment of the former Northern Light Mercy Hospital’s State Street building and parking lots in the West End neighborhood of Portland. When complete, the 3.5-acre campus will have commercial retail space and over 250 mixed-rate apartments including these 52 affordable units for seniors.
The walkable location and on-site amenities will allow for Winter Landing residents to comfortably age in place in an area where might otherwise not be able to afford to live, according to CVS Health.
Fifteen of the units will have a preference for older adults who are known as “long-term stayers” in Portland’s homeless shelters — people who have remained homeless for more than 180 days in a calendar year. Providing permanent supportive housing for long-term stayers is part of the City of Portland’s plan to effectively end long-term homelessness.
The development of Winter Landing comes at a much-needed time for the community. Per the U.S. Census Bureau, Maine has one of the highest percentages of seniors (21.1 percent) in the U.S. and according to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, 33 percent of low-income renters in Maine are senior households at or below the poverty guidelines or 30 percent of the area median income. Recent reports indicate the largest housing shortage in the state of Maine is in Portland, and its residents are often dual-eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid health plans.