Nancy English

Environment / Energy The City can take actions that reduce fossil fuel use and increase the use of renewable energy. Much has been initiated by the City Council Sustainability & Transportation Committee, and by the Sustainability Office. Far more needs to be done —especially to get us out of our cars and into buses! We can also plant trees and bring back a thick tree canopy to cool the streets and buildings and help us all breathe! Infrastructure / Transportation Sewer separation from stormwater requires millions of dollars in construction contracts to upgrade pipes under the streets that overflow the capacity of wastewater treatment plants. Someday the City will no longer send raw sewer water into the ocean in big storms. The work under Baxter Boulevard took years. The water lines are replaced too…Unitil is replacing gas lines. Central Maine Power needs to replace conduits in Deering Oaks Park that power the street lights. Traffic must detour to arrive in a city in better shape! Government Reform The Council can make policy changes by developing amendments to the City Code. It has already approved greater density in residential zones — but many more updates lie ahead in work under review, for example, in the Land Use Code. We can study these changes and seek out insights into unintended consequences in advance, so that we are not suffering from unexpected problems down the road. Housing We need so many more livable places to live. Lower income buyers can have a home and build some equity with low-equity cooperative housing. Maintaining covenants allows the units to be sold at lower prices in the future, beginning to build a pool of truly affordable housing units for the future.