Staff Writer
HOULTON — A $2.5 million building project in Market Square received the initial go-ahead from Houlton’s planning and zoning boards last week.
Coastal Enterprises, Inc., a non-profit community development corporation based in Wiscasset, presented plans for Market Square Commons, a 28-unit, three-story senior citizen apartment building scheduled to be situated near the back of the Temple Theater parking lot. Once completed, this building would mark the first new construction Market Square has seen in decades.
After Oct. 16 and Oct. 17 presentations, the project gained unanimous approval from both planning and zoning board members. It also obtained a thumbs up from Town Manager Doug Hazlett who expressed support with a written statement to the boards.
John Egan, a housing developer with CEI, said if all goes as planned, financing could be settled in December, construction would span the summer of 2008 and the building would be ready for occupants in the spring of 2009.
The company considered several sites before settling on the downtown location, said Egan, and it has been careful to make sure the style of the building would complement existing Market Square architecture. Current designs show Market Square Commons with an outside that’s part brick, part HardiePlank (a fiber cement siding that would be brick-colored) and an arched design over the windows.
“We were very concerned about finding a profile that would fit into Market Square,” he said. “It’s new construction, but I think, once it’s constructed, it will look like a building that’s been there for a while.”
The apartments would be designed for low- to moderate-income seniors. Each unit would be between 700 and 800 square feet, and most of would be 1-bedroom. Egan said an elevator is planned, as well as laundry units on each floor. The building would also include lounge or gathering rooms overlooking the Meduxnekeag River.
Jeff Alling, chair of the planning board, said he was pleased with the plans.
“This is going to be a significant piece of architecture,” Alling said at the Oct. 16 meeting. “I like how it fits within the needs [of the area] and it looks like they’ve bent over backward to fit the design in with downtown architecture.”
Betty Childers, also a member of the planning board, said she hoped more information could be presented to the public in the coming months.
“There are a lot of questions out there,” she added.
As the project progresses, Egan said he would be happy to present more final plans at a public meeting.
