MACHIAS – Three Washington County towns – Eastport, Machias and Harrington – will get the brunt of the benefits from a planning group brought together last year to assess the county’s housing needs and possibilities.

Three meetings into the project, the Washington County Housing Assessment Committee has identified a work plan that should bring along some new housing possibilities for the county, and for the three towns in particular.

Michael Bush of the Eastern Maine Development Corp. is leading a group of county residents who are outlining goals specific to new and existing housing, and rental and special needs housing.

“This all started with discussions with various communities about affordable housing and concerns,” Bush said Thursday after the group’s latest meeting on Wednesday. “Washington County is feeling the price pressures of housing pushing up the coast. The increase in real estate prices is affecting that.

“Many of the towns have similar issues, but in Machias for example, there are housing pressures because of the university students and staff.”

The group’s work – intended to result in reports and ways to move forward – is taking place because Machias received a $15,000 Community Development Block Grant to fund such a study. Additional contributions from Eastern Maine Development Corp., the Sunrise County Economic Council and the Maine Community Foundation have brought the project budget to $22,000.

Members of the committee that first met last October include three bankers – Stephen Leackfeldt of Bar Harbor Banking and Trust; Mike Murphy of Calais Federal Savings and Loan; and Scott Whitney of Machias Savings Bank.

Other community professionals on the committee include: Christine Therrien, town manager of Machias; Barbara Drisko, a Columbia selectman; Velton Peabody, a former Beals selectman; Judy East of the Washington County Council of Governments; Chris Spruce of the Sunrise County Economic Council; Lora Whelan of Eastport for Pride; Betty Palmer, a pastor for four area Methodist churches; and Isaac Wagner of the Washington Hancock Community Agency.

Nine goals have emerged from the group’s discussions so far:

. Improve the quality and conditions of mobile homes.

. Improve access to home-ownership opportunities by creating tools to build equity.

. Improve the supply, quality and professionalism of qualified contractors to assist with home-repair projects.

. Retain and preserve existing housing stock through an aggressive program of housing repair and renovation for low- and moderate-income households.

. Create opportunities for housing in those communities with the infrastructure to support new housing development.

. Create subdivisions and other planned unit developments that provide infrastructure and land at affordable prices.

. Address water quality issues that limit housing development.

. Sustain and develop home-buyer education and training programs to improve opportunities for proper choices and management of household affairs.

. Increase the supply of subsidized rental units to assist those with low incomes and little other chance to find descent affordable housing.

The committee began its work last fall by analyzing numbers and information that detailed housing markets within the county. The initial study applied to coastal Washington County as defined by the federal government as the Jonesport-Milbridge Labor Market Area and the Machias-Eastport Labor Market Area – groupings that encompass 28 communities.

While the committee acknowledged differences among communities, its approach is a regional perspective on the housing markets of the area as a whole.

Information sources include the U.S. Census, Maine State Housing Authority, Maine Real Estate Information Systems, and the Maine Revenue Authority. Additional “on the ground” information was provided by interviews with a variety of nonprofit, public and private developers.

Taking a deeper look at the communities behind the numbers, the Sunrise Council’s Chris Spruce took on a project to look specifically at Eastport, Machias and Harrington. He shared some preliminary findings with the group on Wednesday.

“All of what we’re doing is a work in progress,” Bush said. “We have some areas we will spend more time focusing on, but we all seem to be on the same page in talking about these housing issues around the county.”

The group next meets on Wednesday, May 18, at the Sunrise County Economic Council offices in Machias, from 2 to 4 p.m. The public is welcome to be part of the discussions.