WILTON — The Board of Selectpersons agreed Tuesday to hold a public hearing to gather comments about the former Forster Manufacturing mill and future cleanup of the partially demolished site on Depot Street.
Town Manager Rhonda Irish has started working on applications for Environmental Protection Agency brownfields grants to help with the cleanup. Brownfields grants provide federal assistance in the cleanup of contaminated sites.
Public comments must be included in the applications, she said.
A public hearing will take place at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 1, at the Town Office prior to the board’s regular meeting.
The applications for three grants, a total of $600,000, must be submitted by Dec. 18. The amount will not cover everything to clear the site and remediation of harmful materials such as asbestos, she said.
Results from a study done earlier this summer have not been received, but they are expected in time to include them in the application, she said.
Previous concerns about asbestos in the roof has prompted the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to request more testing of the roof, she said. The testing may be done this week and results are expected in time for the grant applications.
During the hearing, recommendations for the cleanup and remediation will be explained to residents. These also will be included in the application, she said.
While Irish wants all residents to attend, she especially hopes people who live near the former mill area on Depot Street will come because they will be affected by the cleanup process.
Parents of schoolchildren who walk to nearby elementary schools may also have comments to share, she said.
“It is a complicated and complex grant application process,” she said.
Irish also checked with the town’s insurance company on whether the fencing around the site is adequate, she told the board. The insurers want a little more coverage of windows and a small gap in the fence to be filled.
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