Market Square Commons opens

By Elna Seabrooks
Staff Writer
    HOULTON — Just about one year to the day since the official ground-breaking ceremony, Florence Nason got keys to her new apartment at Market Square Commons. Nason became the building’s first official tenant last Friday when she went upstairs to look over the apartment before her furniture arrived at the new 28-unit senior citizen housing complex in the heart of downtown Houlton.
Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Elna Seabrooks
FOUR GENERATIONS — Lynn Wallace, left, discusses furniture placement with her mother Florence Nason, center. Nason was the first to get keys for the new senior housing complex. Also with them is Malachi, 18 months, in the arms of his mother, Amy Witner, who is Nason’s granddaughter.
    Nason, a widow with grown children out on their own, had been living in a house in Linneus that she said was “too big.” Her new apartment has one bedroom and one bathroom with all new appliances. Nason said: “I’m real excited. It’s safer and I’ll be near my friends.” On top of that, she will no longer have to take care of mowing the lawn, plowing the snow or making repairs.
    “The property is well maintained,” said Deborah Guay, property manager of the apartment complex. And the bonus for residents is that “heat and hot water are included in the rent. It’s all new and it sparkles.” Rents range from $425-$565.
    Nason didn’t have to go-it-alone on that first day since family was nearby. Lynn Wallace, Nason’s daughter, Amy Witner, her granddaughter and 18-month-old Malachi, her great-grandson, were on hand for the occasion. “I’ll probably see Amy more now,” commented Nason.
    Wallace said she is very excited for her mother and the move is “great since a lot of her activities are in Houlton. So, she won’t be on the roads or at home by herself.”
    A state grant of $4 million has guaranteed affordable rents for 90 years. Thanks to another grant of stimulus money, funneled through MaineHousing, the developer, Coastal Enterprises, Inc., was able to salvage the project that had been jeopardized by the country’s financial collapse before construction began.
Houlton Pioneer Times Photo/Elna Seabrooks
SIGN HERE PLEASE — Deborah Guay, left, property manager at Market Square Commons, goes through forms with Florence Nason so she can move into her new apartment in downtown Houlton.
    The three-story elevator building has enough parking spaces for a majority of tenants, a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments, a secure entry, laundry facilities on each floor, common meeting rooms and a main gathering area. The energy efficient building has a wood pellet boiler and solar panels for hot water heating.
    Nason wasn’t the only one to get her keys on Friday. By the end of the day, Guay said a married couple had started moving into the building. Guay said she is processing more applications and for information on applying or eligibility requirements, call:  (800) 366-8571, ext. 101.