🔒Building for the future

When I was a kid, my family used to take a trip every other summer to visit relatives in southern Illinois where my dad was raised. Often this involved a trip to Springfield to view Abraham Lincoln's home — part of a National Historic Site and testament to Illinois' claim as the Land of Lincoln.

But we traveled a lot when I was a kid. So we also saw Lincoln's boyhood home in Indiana, and another in Kentucky. It seems just as “Washington slept here” plaques populate inns across America, everyone wants to lay a little claim to the 16th president.

I'm not mentioning these memories because President's Day is upon us. Rather, it's to recall the humble dwellings of Lincoln's youth — they were all log cabins. By the time he got to Springfield, he was able to buy a small cottage.

Now, almost 200 years later, Maine's log home makers are creating houses that bear no resemblance to Lincoln's humble homesteads. Vaulted, cathedral ceilings, beautifully appointed kitchens, planked interior walls without a hint of caulking — these are the typical log homes of today. And Maine's log home makers are responding to that growing demand by producing log homes for tonier markets.

It's a welcome reversal from a few years ago when the recession and accompanying drop in housing starts closed several log home makers. But those that survived are gearing up for better times, as Contributing Writer Douglas Rooks points out in his story, “Interlocking pieces.” It's part of this issue's focus on real estate, construction and design.

We also offer you a snapshot of projected activity for 2014 within Maine's real estate sector. Based on presentations from the annual forecasting conference by the Maine Real Estate and Development Association, we extracted some of the most interesting trends.

And we also check in with Greg Bryant, managing partner of Bedford Cost Segregation, who will be presenting on cost segregation at a MEREDA workshop Feb. 12 in Bangor. Greg writes about recent IRS changes that open up new options for commercial property owners to save money on their taxes. Check out his advice on page 25.

Widening our focus just a bit — all the way to the beaches of the state of Guerrero in Mexico — we learn of a Gorham-based research group that is identifying contaminants in that resort region. Biodiversity Research Institute has a growing roster of international clients who are tapping the institute for help identifying environmental threats to natural habitats and ecosystems. Contributing Writer Tina Fischer talks to BRI's science advancement director in, “Studied effects.”

Going to events in Lewiston-Auburn is a lot like going home for me. Given that I spent 22 years covering news in that region, it was a treat to attend the Androscoggin County Chamber of Commerce annual meeting where consultant Art Boulay was honored for his service to the chamber and to returning veterans for whom he provides free, specialized services. Art, who is widely known for his irreverent wit, was uncharacteristically serious when accepting the Ray Geiger Award. Senior Writer Jim McCarthy followed up with quick Q&A, in which Art's sense of humor is restored.

And finally, Senior Writer Lori Valigra taps into some new initiatives designed to present Maine's older population — ahem — as an asset rather than a liability. In addition to new efforts from the university system and the Maine Council on Aging, she writes about “encore entrepreneurs,” retirees who decided they weren't quite finished with the corporate world and recently launched their own companies. Her story, “Reprise,” is our cover story.