Ronald L. Phillips, President

P.O. Box 268
36 Water Street
Wiscasset, ME 04578

Phone: (207) 882-7552
Fax: (207) 882-7308

cei@ceimaine.org ww.ceimaine.org

Counties Served: Androscoggin, Aroostook, Cumberland, Franklin, Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Oxford, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Sagadahoc, Somerset, Waldo, Washington, York

Incorporated: 1977  

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Ron Phillips founded Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI) in 1977 to address the employment and quality of life issues of Maine's low-income residents. In the early days, CEI was devoted to developing natural resource sectors such as clamming, fishing, farming, and forestry - with the belief that residents could gain control of these resources and raise their standard of living. Soon, CEI began financing and providing technical assistance to manufacturing and small businesses as well. The organization then expanded its focus to include affordable housing development, research, advocacy, and public policy development.

Today, CEI is both a practitioner and a research organization. In addition to supporting local businesses and developing and managing affordable housing, it advocates for the development of policy initiatives that balance economic, equity, and environmental goals. It works in partnership with over 20 community, regional, and national banks as both a borrower and co-lender. In addition to being a community development corporation, it was certified in 1996 as a Community Development Financial Institution, one of the first in the nation.