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State officials say transitional housing program for asylum seekers will likely wind down this year

A group of people board a small white bus on the side of the road.
Ari Snider
A group of asylum seekers, primarily from Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, wait to board a bus on the side of Route 1 in Yarmouth in 2022. That year, amid a high number of immigrants arriving in Maine, the state began leasing a hotel in Saco to serve as a resettlement hub.

State officials say they will likely have to discontinue a transitional housing program for asylum seekers by the end of the year, citing budget constraints and fewer new arrivals.

Since 2022, MaineHousing has leased a hotel in Saco as a resettlement hub for asylum seekers, providing shelter for 737 people during that time.

The agency contracts Catholic Charities Maine to run daily operations, which include job training programs, English classes, and help finding permanent housing.

But with fewer asylum seekers arriving in Maine and the state facing a tight budget picture, the Governor's Office of Policy Innovation and the Future said the $6 million annual cost of the program is no longer warranted.

The total cost of the three-year Saco program is roughly $19 million, most of which went toward covering the hotel lease. MaineHousing also contracted with separate hotel in South Portland to house 241 people there for a year from 2023-2024, at a cost of $4.3 million.

Catholic Charities Maine migration director Charles Mugabe oversees the Saco program, and said he's confident the group will be able to find permanent housing for the 86 households currently living there.

"In partnership with our existing housing navigation partners with the state, we can, we can certainly accomplish that," he said, noting that the vast majority of work-eligible individuals in the program have secured employment.

"We are proud of the accomplishments so far, and we feel very privileged to be in this unique position to provide support for individuals as they begin their new lives in Maine," he said.

The current lease on the hotel runs through September 30. The Saco facility was part of a

Updated: January 22, 2025 at 11:18 AM EST
This article has been updated to include additional information on the cost of the resettlement programs.