Kennebunkport Heritage Housing Trust will expand its reach to include the neighboring towns of Kennebunk and Arundel. The trust will now be known by its new name, Neighborhood Housing Trust.

The trust was formed about six years ago as a response to a growing concern that Kennebunkport was on the verge of becoming a seasonal-only town. The Kennebunkport Board of Selectmen commissioned a housing needs assessment, that confirmed that housing affordability had become a critical issue.

Desiring a vibrant, year-round community with strong schools, local employees, and intergenerational neighborhoods, a Kennebunkport housing committee recommended the creation of a housing trust.

“The increasing cost of homes was pricing out our workforce, young families, and long-term residents,” Neighborhood Housing Trust board member Pat Briggs said.

Since its formation, the trust has worked to offer a diverse mix of affordable housing options for seniors, young professionals, workforce members, veterans, and families.

Its first housing development, the Heritage Woods subdivision in Kennebunkport, brought “new life” to the community, Briggs said.

A second project, known as the Landon Woods neighborhood, will provide housing for households earning up to 80% of the area median income and households earning up to 120% of the area median income.

The current AMI for Kennebunkport is $113,456, meaning a household earning up 80% of the median income would be earning anywhere from $54,850 to $90,850 per year. A household earning up to 120% of the median income would be earning anywhere from $82,275 per year to $136,275 per year.

“We are proud of the progress made and excited at the potential of this new development,” Briggs said.

But the key to providing affordable housing is being able to use town-owned parcels of land, Briggs said, and those parcels are becoming increasingly more rare in Kennebunkport.

“Land in our town is becoming increasingly scarce and expensive, making it difficult to sustain our efforts here alone,” Briggs said.

By broadening the reach to Kennebunk and Arundel, Neighborhood Housing Trust hopes to be able to continue to provide affordable homes for local people.

Land cost and other infrastructure costs may be cheaper in Kennebunk and Arundel, board member David Bancroft said.

“The three towns are kind of one in some ways,” Bancroft said. “This would allow the Neighborhood Housing Trust to expand beyond it and still serve people in Kennebunkport.”

Affordable housing has been a hot-button topic in Kennebunkport, Kennebunk, and surrounding towns like Biddeford.

Several years ago, Biddeford formed an affordable housing task force, and this year, the city has been in conversations about several different affordable housing project opportunities.

In March, Kennebunk voters approved a contract zone approval that would allow Avesta Housing to build an affordable housing development on Alewive Park Road, and in June, the Kennebunk Select Board approved a bid to allow a Massachusetts-based firm to develop a housing plan.

“Kennebunk is a highly desirable community; what’s happening is it’s not a very affordable community,” Kennebunk Director of Community Development Chris Osterreider said at the time.

By expanding its reach to Kennebunk and Arundel, Neighborhood Housing Trust hopes to be a part of the solution to the housing crisis in the area.