PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — KMH Music is finally getting much needed repairs to the outer building facade on the city’s Main Street.
The Presque Isle Development Fund trustees recommended that the city council approve the renovations at 412 Main St., after giving the KMH Music project the nod in February.
The updates come from the municipal facade grant program from the city. KMH Music has to match the $25,000 dollar for dollar. The money comes from downtown tax increment finance funds, and the match reimburses the loan fund.
“We couldn’t really afford to do the whole facade project ourselves,” said Chris Morton, one of the owners for KMH Music.
The facade loan program is a no-interest forgivable loan program, with the loan extinguished after 10 years of a small business occupying the space. The loan amount is capped at $25,000 and encourages substantial improvements to the facade in the downtown area of Presque Isle.
“We still allow freedom of expression for the owner to decide how they want to improve their facade,” said Galen Weibley, Director of Economic and Community Development. “We encourage them to try to keep it as historical as possible.”
Bricks and Stones Masonry was hired as the contractor for the project. Work began during the week of Sept. 25.
The program asks KMH Music to restore its storefront facade to as close to its historic appearance as possible, Morton said. The building used to be an auto parts, garage equipment, radio and refrigerator store called The Farrar Brown Co. Inc. in the 1930s.
Pieces of the outer brickwork were flaking off and there were a few leaks in the three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment built in the 1970s above KMH Music. The building itself was built in 1922.
KMH Music used to be Aroostook Music when it opened in 2004. After Aroostook Music was dissolved in 2012, its three former employees — one of whom is Morton — took over the store as KMH Music in the same year.
“If we didn’t [restore] it, the building was going to continue to deteriorate and we want it to last another 100 years,” Morton said.
The Presque Isle Development Fund has residents, councilors and banking representatives on its trustees. The group has $1.8 million in assets and revenues to loan out to small businesses in the city and help with economic development opportunities, Weibley said.
