‘Legacy’ industrial sites across Maine are focus of state redevelopment help
PHOTO / COURTESY, TOWN OF LINCOLN
The town of Lincoln is redeveloping the former Lincoln Pulp & Tissue mill into Lincoln Technology Park, a center for next-generation technology-driven industries.
Forest bioproducts, clean energy and new uses for old infrastructure are the focus points for industrial projects across Maine slated to receive technical assistance from the state.
On Tuesday, the Mills administration announced that six communities will participate in the first round of the Maine Community Energy Redevelopment Program, which has a mission of supporting local revitalization projects at industrial sites, including former mills, power stations and other facilities with excess electrical capacity.
The goal is to create good-paying jobs, drive local economic development and meet state climate and clean energy goals, according to a news release.
‘Legacy’ sites
Projects in Auburn, Bucksport, Lincoln, Millinocket, Wiscasset and Yarmouth were selected for the program by the Governor’s Energy Office and the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development.
“As Maine’s clean energy economy continues to grow, legacy sites with underutilized electrical infrastructure have an opportunity to capitalize on the transition through redevelopment,” said Dan Burgess, director of the Governor’s Energy Office.
The program “will help these communities leverage the infrastructure that currently exists to support ongoing redevelopment, target reduced energy costs and attract new businesses in Maine's growing economic landscape,” said Heather Johnson, commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development.
Cohesive vision
The city of Auburn will receive assistance as it looks to create a cohesive development vision and catalyze business attraction and industrial growth for areas designated as a forest bioproducts advanced manufacturing hub.
The town of Bucksport is conducting economic development planning for underutilized industrial land alongside the Penobscot River near the downtown are. The focus is on areas surrounding an existing thermal power station and to transition to clean energy technologies, in partnership with the power station’s owner, JERA Americas.
The town of Lincoln is developing a business plan to attract additional industrial anchor tenants to the growing Lincoln Technology Park, a 387-acre site that was formerly the Lincoln Paper and Tissue mill. The U.S. Department of Energy recently awarded Maine a $147 million grant to deploy an 85-megawatt long-duration energy storage system at one site within the park.
“The technical assistance we receive through the program will complement ongoing efforts to redevelop the site, including the recent investment of nearly $150 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to support an innovative energy storage facility in the park,” said Ruth Birtz, Lincoln’s economic development administrator.
‘Unique’ capacity
One North is working to redevelop a 1,400-acre site, the third-largest industrial site in Maine, formerly occupied by the Great Northern Paper Co., in Millinocket. The site has unique energy generation capacity that positions it to offer affordable power to industrial users and to catalyze new economic activity in the Katahdin region, according to the release.
The town of Wiscasset is conducting economic development planning for two large waterfront sites: the 33-acre Birch Point Peninsula, best known for the decommissioned Mason Station site, and the 297-acre parcel along Old Ferry Road across the road from the decommissioned Maine Yankee Nuclear Plant.
“We envision a mix of different economic and community development uses for the sites, to be determined through a robust stakeholder and community engagement process,” said Aaron Chrostowsky, Wiscasset’s economic development director.
The town of Yarmouth is assessing the feasibility and potential impact of alternative future uses for Wyman Station, an aging oil-fired power plant on Cousins Island that currently runs a few days a year during periods of high demand.
The program launched earlier this year with a community survey and information-gathering process that allowed communities to nominate priority projects, which led to identification of the list of participating communities.
Through early 2025, each community will receive technical assistance from the state’s consultant, HR&A Advisors, a national economic development and public policy consulting firm.
The program does not provide funding for project implementation. The technical assistance provided is meant to maximize the likelihood of each community securing significant local, state and federal funding for their projects.
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