{"id":9314,"date":"2024-12-23T12:36:24","date_gmt":"2024-12-23T17:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/?p=9314"},"modified":"2024-12-23T12:39:30","modified_gmt":"2024-12-23T17:39:30","slug":"windham-me-sees-population-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/2024\/12\/23\/windham-me-sees-population-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"Windham, ME Sees Population Growth"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-93c5557955ae3b3f62858605349cff1e\"><strong>by Samantha Gosselin<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-6dea318f73bbdad3380867665fcfd050\"><strong>YourPace Student Contributor<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-ccd4a68a4bb77883b6f08cf28cbaf570\">WINDHAM, Maine \u2014 Windham, a scenic town in southern Maine, has seen a significant<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-d88d5e8099583e98503348ddbc851073\">population surge in recent years, growing by nearly 20% over the past decade. With its rural charm and proximity to Portland, the town has become increasingly attractive to new residents seeking affordable housing and a quieter lifestyle, while still being close to urban amenities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-01428e5a5bdf39259a15e65191cc5d6c\">As of 2024, Windham\u2019s population exceeds 20,000, up from around 17,000 in 2010. The town\u2019s appeal, with its lakes, outdoor activities, and strong schools, has drawn many young families, retirees, and remote workers. &#8220;It\u2019s a peaceful place, but you\u2019re not far from Portland,\u201d said Sarah Mitchell, who moved to Windham from Portland three years ago. \u201cIt\u2019s perfect for raising a family.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-eb7bbb912c9cfd7ccfb1f4636e24ba2a\">The rapid growth has spurred new housing developments, particularly along Route 302.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-df0204bede8a35c6549cf77f64af6e4e\">However, the influx has also placed pressure on local infrastructure. Town officials are working on expanding roads, schools, and public services to keep pace with the rising population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-43ab07dd6cba84ee7a8606252aab66d6\">\u201cWe\u2019re focusing on long-term planning to ensure our services can meet the demand,\u201d said Town Manager Barry Tibbetts. Meanwhile, some longtime residents worry the town\u2019s small-town feel may be lost in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-6106934ef360297a3018ec0558c9c5ea\">Despite these challenges, Windham\u2019s transformation is largely seen as a positive. Local businesses are thriving, and the town is becoming more diverse. As it continues to grow, the town&#8217;s development will be key to maintaining its unique character.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Samantha Gosselin YourPace Student Contributor WINDHAM, Maine \u2014 Windham, a scenic town in southern Maine, has seen a significant population surge in recent years, growing by nearly 20% over the past decade. With its rural charm and proximity to Portland, the town has become increasingly attractive to new residents seeking affordable housing and a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":9315,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7376],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/83"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9314"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9314\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9318,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9314\/revisions\/9318"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9315"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.umpi.edu\/utimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}