WILTON — The town has received a $150,000 grant and $150,000 loan through the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments for continued asbestos removal at and demolition of the former Forster Mill, Town Manager Rhonda Irish told the Board of Selectpersons on Tuesday.
The former mill has been used to manufacture automotive upholstery, wood products and plastic cutlery over its more than 100 years. The property was acquired by the town in 2015.
EnviroVantage of Epping, New Hampshire, completed initial asbestos removal and demolition last year.
The grant and loan totaling $300,000 are from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, according to Irish.
Members of Ransom Consulting Engineers, the environmental consultants for the project, and the board will hold a workshop at the Town Office at 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 5.
EnviroVantage will provide estimates for the board to review, she added.
Chairperson Tiffany Maiuri said the workshop will allow the board to ask about future work at the mill.
“They will be able to answer what exactly demolition means and what we can do with the historical artifacts the town may want to keep,” she said.
Irish said voter approval would be needed to accept grant funding. A public meeting and special town meeting will be scheduled following the Feb. 5 workshop.
Pending select board and voter approval, EnviroVantage could begin work in late March.
“All of it will come together as we get costs,” Irish said. “We are at a point where we can continue moving forward on this.”
In other matters, Irish said Tuesday about 40 people attended a Community Transition Team meeting to address impending Barclaycard US employee layoffs. The call center will is scheduled to close March 31, leaving 227 people out of work.
Irish said she is collecting contact information for potential employers to be included in a database shared with the company and Maine Department of Labor rapid response team.
“There are a lot of people in our immediate area that are looking for employees,” she said.
dmenear@thefranklinjournal.com
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