SKOWHEGAN — A Portland-based affordable housing developer drawn to Skowhegan’s economic revitalization is proposing 10 new units of housing on the south side of town.

The Skowhegan Planning Board heard an initial presentation Tuesday night from the nonprofit Community Housing of Maine for the project at 48 and 52 Waterville Road, also known as U.S. Route 201.

The group intends to demolish the two vacant multifamily homes and build one three-story structure with 10 rental units.

The building would include one- and two-bedroom apartments, a laundry room, communal space, a mechanical room, tenant storage and a property manager’s office, according to the nonprofit’s application on file with the town. The site would include 11 parking spots.

The organization acquired the parcel in June 2025, real estate records show.

“We feel it’s really a great redevelopment and will help kind of bring some life back into this site,” project manager Nate Holt of Acorn Engineering in Kingfield told the board. “And it will also provide some much-needed housing, not only for the area, but also for the state as a whole.”

Bree LaCasse, CHOM’s development director, told the planning board that construction is expected to begin this fall, and the units would be available to rent approximately two years from now.

The nonprofit, which has 87 properties in Maine and six in the Waterville area, was drawn to the Waterville Road site because of its proximity to Skowhegan’s downtown.

“We’ve been watching the revitalization efforts and some of the really innovative redevelopment projects, with the whitewater park and the riverfront boardwalk,” LaCasse said, referencing the long-planned Skowhegan River Park, for which construction is expected to begin this year.

She said the development will provide “quality, affordable housing.” The organization, according to its website, houses 1,300 people, including more than 400 who were homeless, 100 who survived domestic violence, 55 veterans and 100 with special needs.

Rents at the organization’s other properties vary, but generally are set based on 60% of the area median income or lower, LaCasse said. The Skowhegan project, funded largely by a federal grant, would likely offer similar rates and is restricted as affordable housing.

“Consistent with our other work, the goal is to create affordable, community-based housing that supports long-term wellbeing for our residents,” said Kyra Walker, the nonprofit’s interim executive director, via email Wednesday.

CHOM filings with the town indicates the project is backed by $15 million in Congressionally Directed Spending, administered through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. That grant is divided over several projects, Walker said. LaCasse said some additional funds from the Maine State Housing Authority were used to finance the real estate acquisition.

The board appeared to agree that the project will be good for Skowhegan and clean up an area of town that has many properties in various states of disrepair.

Under the town’s site plan review procedure, CHOM must next submit a more formal site plan application. Then, a committee of town department heads will review the plans and make recommendations to the planning board. The board must hold a public hearing before making its decision. That could all happen as soon as next month.