MEXICO – A century-old house in downtown Mexico is well on its way to becoming a part of history.
Former owners Frank and Shirley Swett sold the house, attached barn and lot to make way for a three-unit mini-mall expected to be up and running sometime in November.
SW Young Construction of Rumford has been selling off the doors, beams, windows and other parts of the home and barn for the past three weeks. On Friday, Steward Young Sr. began ripping the barn apart with his excavator.
“By Monday, the house and barn should be down,” said Steward Young Jr.
Excavation at the rear of the lot has already begun to make way for the new retail building. Huge boulders line the border between the house lot and the adjacent Congregational Church.
Kevin Gagnon, a co-developer of the mini-mall, told the Mexico Planning Board earlier this summer that a 3,200-square-foot Viewer’s Choice video store will be one of the tenants. That store will move from a smaller space in the Mexico Plaza. An 1,800-square-foot Subway sandwich will also be part of the mini-mall. That will be new for the town. The third tenant has yet to be announced.
SW Young also is busy excavating another site a short distance east of the planned mini-mall. Ground was broken for an Advance Auto business last week at a lot adjacent to Labonville. Steward Young Jr. said tentative plans call for that business opening in early 2004.
eadams@sunjournal.com
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