The York County town of Hollis broke ground this week on a new municipal hall. The building is expected to be completed in about a year.
Select Board members have been planning the new facility for six years and anticipate the total cost of construction will be $7.5 million. The town is not taking on debt to fund construction, using a mixture of sources including tax-increment financing and American Rescue Fund dollars.
Of the total cost, $2 million came from a community facilities grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development.
“Hollis is a great example of the collaboration between our congressional delegation and USDA Rural Development,” said Rhiannon Hampson, Maine’s director of USDA Rural Development.
“Together we are bringing community facilities investments to rural Maine towns, leveraging federal dollars to modernize infrastructure and meet the needs of locals and visitors.”
Great Falls Construction, of Gorham, will manage the build. Custom Concepts Inc., of Scarborough, is the architect.
Hollis is a town of 4,745 people, according to the 2020 U.S. Census. But it has seen rapid growth in the past two years, with more than 100 new homes being built.
Versatile building
Once complete, the structure will house the offices of the town staff, the Select Board and Planning Board, as well as services such as motor vehicle registration and General Assistance access.
There will be a large multipurpose room for public meetings and events. Most of these features will be on the ground floor, with ample room for expansion as needed in the future thanks to a full daylight basement.
With climate change and severe storms in mind, town leaders also plan to use the new facility as an emergency shelter.
“In the last year we had two major storms that put the power out for two to five days a lot of people, and we didn’t have anywhere for people to go to warm up, charge their phones, and so forth,” said Mary Hoffman, who is on the town select board.
The energy-efficient, spacious and accessible new town office will provide a warm shelter during future power outages or other emergencies.
Another beneficiary of the larger building slated to open next year will be the town’s Parks and Recreation Department, which will have more storage space and more options for evening activities.