With the sale of a 30.6-acre parcel in Auburn, it’s expected that development of a 160-unit apartment complex on the site will move forward.
A.R. Building Co., a Pennsylvania firm that has done other work in Maine, acquired the parcel, at 0 Stetson Road, for $1.5 million. The seller was Concord General Mutual Insurance Co.Â
Mike Cobb, a broker with Colliers in Maine, represented the seller in the deal.
The development will have a mix of duplexes and quadplexes and marks the developer’s second housing project in Auburn.
The vacant land, listed for $1.6 million, was marketed as offering 1,975 feet of frontage along Stetson Road and a prime location for mixed-use development including retail, residential, multifamily and assisted living, with proximity to the Auburn Mall, Auburn Shopping Center and Auburn Plaza.Â
A five-year construction moratorium along Stetson Road is set to expire this August, according to a news release.
The timing of the acquisition positions the buyer to move quickly once the restriction is lifted.
Courting development
Seven Fields, Pa.,-based A.R. Building Co.’s other projects in Maine have included a plan to build 202 apartments in Brunswick and an apartment complex at 138 and 142 Mt. Auburn Ave. in Auburn, about three miles south of the Stetson Road project.
This year, the company has a 120-unit complex under construction on a 56-acre lot in Scarborough.
Auburn’s planning board approved the Stetson Road development earlier this year.
The city of Auburn has been courting residential and commercial development for several years. The city has had development of nearly 600 primarily market-rate housing units since 2020. A.R. Building Co.’s development of 102 market-rate apartments at 138 and 142 Mt. Auburn Ave. is expected to wrap up this summer.
The Stetson Road project is expected to become the largest residential development approved to date within the municipality, according to the release.
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