A Conversation with Jim Howard and Andrew Silsby

A Conversation with Jim Howard and Andrew Silsby

After 28 years and owning one of Maine’s largest commercial real estate portfolios, Jim Howard remains a name you might not know. On the latest MEREDA Matters, host Justin Laverriere and co-host Andrew Silsby, President and CEO of Kennebec Savings Bank, sit down with the founder of Priority Group to unpack the quiet playbook behind 62 property companies across Maine and New Hampshire. They trace Howard’s path from running Home Vision Video in the 1990s to building 31 Rusty Lantern Markets with John Koch and investing $90 million in the 15-year redevelopment of Brunswick Landing, where his work helped create 825 jobs and made Priority the largest private property owner on the former Naval Air Station. The conversation digs into why Howard stopped putting projects out to bid a decade ago and what kind of long-game discipline keeps the same contractors and bankers working with him for decades. Whether you’re a developer working on a first commercial deal or a banker curious about how lenders earn long-term clients, this conversation is a master class worth your time.

AI and the Future of Real Estate, A Conversation with Steve Weikal and Caleb Johnson

What does AI actually mean for the people who build, design, and invest in the places we live and work — and what's hype versus reality? In this episode, we sit down with Steve Weikal, industry chair of MIT's Real Estate Transformation Lab and managing partner of the MET Fund, alongside Maine-based architect and Woodhull founding partner Caleb Johnson, for a wide-ranging conversation that's equal parts big-picture thinking and boots-on-the-ground practicality. From the surprising staying power of century-old mill buildings to the looming question of what happens to today's data centers when the tech moves on, the conversation challenges some of the most fashionable assumptions in real estate right now. Steve and Caleb dig into how AI is reshaping the office market and why placemaking matters more than ever in a work-from-anywhere world. Whether you're a developer, architect, investor, or just someone trying to understand where all of this is heading, this conversation will leave you thinking differently about the built world around you.

A WIN for Middle Housing

https://legislature.maine.gov/committee/#Committees/HED

Conversation with Chris Herbert and Elizabeth Frazier

Maine is in the midst of a housing affordability crisis, but the issue is far more complex than rising prices. In this episode of MEREDA Matters, Dr. Chris Herbert of Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies and Elizabeth Frazier, Partner at Pierce Atwood sit down with MEREDA President, Shannon Richards to unpack why the system is strained, where the bottlenecks really sit, and what it will take to build our way to something more sustainable. From the cost pressures baked into construction and land markets to the promise (and limitations) of zoning reform, small-scale infill, ADUs, and new industrialized building technologies, this discussion connects national research to Maine’s on-the-ground reality. The takeaway? There is no single fix, but there is a path forward. If you care about the future of Maine’s communities, workforce, and neighborhoods, this is a conversation worth leaning into.

A Conversation with Kevin Hancock and Corinne Watson

Corinne Watson, Co-Founder of Tiny Homes of Maine, and Kevin Hancock, Managing Owner of Hancock Lumber, sit down with MEREDA Vice President Jenn Small for MEREDA Matters - the podcast that lets you listen in on conversations with the people driving responsible development in Maine. In this episode, Watson and Hancock talk about their partnership and plans for scaling Tiny Homes of Maine. Now located in Dyer Brook, Maine, Watson founded the company with her husband to support their belief that everyone deserves a home. After a fire burned down their facility in 2023, Hancock reached out to Watson to help. Aligned in what they cared about and their vision for scaling up the operation, the two forged a new partnership with their two businesses. Their conversation goes on to explore the process for buying a tiny home, and the two pieces of legislation – LD-1981 and LD-1530 – that Watson facilitated which helped open the floodgates for more tiny homes in Maine. The group also discusses commercial uses of tiny homes, how Tiny Homes of Maine are unique products – made in Maine with Maine materials – and how Watson developed a Lean Manufacturing Process to reduce the cost and production timeline. Listen to the episode to learn more!