HOULTON, Maine — A construction firm was busy Thursday and Friday tearing down the remnants of a building that collapsed into itself Thursday afternoon.
The building at 20 Bangor St. was owned by Barry Gillis of Danforth. It has served as the home of a number of businesses over the years, but it had been empty for several years.
Gillis said Friday that he bought the building five or six years ago and that the foundation had been sliding away for years. He believes that the new pavement in a nearby parking lot worsened the condition, as more water was able to slide into it.
Kristina McLaughlin, a Houlton resident, was sitting in her car at the nearby Houlton Higher Education Center waiting for a friend on Thursday afternoon when she said she heard “a little rumble.”
“And then I looked and the building seemed to have fallen in a bit,” she said.
Carla Ellis, a Hodgdon resident who was paying a bill nearby, said that the Houlton Police Department showed up shortly thereafter and “began to put yellow tape around the building to sort of cordon it off.”
Gillis said he hired J.McLaughlin Construction of Houlton to tear the rest of the building down.
Company officials said in a Facebook post that “the second floor [of the building] collapsed and was a danger on the street side.”
Gillis said he did not consider fixing the foundation, as costs to do so were estimated at $20,000.
He said that crews will be returning to the site Monday to clear more debris away, and after that, he said he is “not sure” what he is going to do with the site.
The building was once primarily used for businesses, including a cable TV office, a satellite and appliance sales office, and a pawn shop.
