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Redevelopment
Lewiston, Maine
J_n Lewiston, Maine, redevelopment of a former mill site has
transformed a vital section of the city's neglected downtown area into a
multi-use business park where history has been preserved and investment
stimulated. The city has leveraged nearly $40 million for cleanup and
redevelopment of the site, where initial reuse has already created more
than 1,200 jobs and $500,000 in annual property taxes.
The Bates Mill was once the largest employer in Maine, with activity
dating back to the mid-1850s. The enormous textile mill encompassed 11
buildings totaling approximately 1.2 million square feet on a 10-acre
parcel. The site served as both the geographic and cultural center of
downtown Lewiston, as most of its workers lived and shopped within
walking distance of the mill. As the once-booming textile industry
declined in the northeast, investment left the area. The area's poverty
rates eventually rose to nearly 50 percent and unemployment rates to 16
percent. After 30 years of steady decline, the city acquired the
abandoned mill site in 1992.
The Lewiston Mill Redevelopment Corporation is a public-private
partnership that was created to determine the best ways to bring
investment back to the area. The group began by creating a city-wide
strategic plan with the help of a variety of stakeholders, including
economic development officials, developers, and the local chamber of
commerce. The city's vision and goals were finalized in 1997, and have
provided direction for all planning.
A Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot grant awarded by EPA
in 1998 funded detailed assessments of the Bates Mill site, revealing
metals, PCBs, volatile organic compounds, and mixed petroleum
products. A portion of the site was found to have high-enough
contamination levels to warrant a $386,770 cleanup through EPA's
Emergency Response and Removal program. EPA awarded an
additional $300,000 to Lewiston for further assessment at the Bates Mill
site and nearby properties; EPA also awarded Lewiston a $500,000
Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund (BCRLF) Pilot in 2000. The
BCRLF Pilot's first loan, issued in March 2003, was a $150,000 loan to
the Lewiston Mills Redevelopment Corporation that will be used for
further mill cleanup.
EPA's nearly $1.4 million investment in the site has spurred interest from
a variety of other federal, local, and private stakeholders and has resulted
Demolition underway on the Bates Mill site
JUST THE FACTS:
• A Brownfields Assessment Demonstration
Pilot grant awarded by EPAin 1998 funded
detailed assessments of the Bates Mill site,
revealing metals, PCBs, and volatile organic
compounds.
• EPAawaidedanadditional$300,OOOto
Lewiston for further assessment at the
Bates Mill site and nearby properties; EPA
also awardedLewistona$500,000
Brownfields Cleanup Revolving LoanFund
(BCRLF) Pilotin2000.
• The city has leveraged nearly $40 millionfor
cleanup and redevelopment of the site,
where initial reuse has already created more
than 1,200 jobs and $500,000 inannual
property taxes.
Lewiston's Bates Mill
was once the largest employer in Maine,
with activity dating back to the mid-1850s. The
enormous textile mill encompassed 11 buildings
totaling approximately 1.2 million square feet on
a 10-acre parcel. The site served as both the
geographicandculturalcenterofdowntown
Lewiston, as most of its workers lived and
shopped within walking distance. As the once-
booming textile industry declined in the
northeast, investment left the area. After 30
years of steady decline, the city acquired the
abandoned mill site in 1992.
continued
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CONTACTS:
For more information contact
U.S. ERA-REGION 1
(617)918-1424
Visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
httpyAvww.eDa.gov/brownfields/
in additional funding for the project, including: more than $5.6 million from the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development; $1.8 million from the Economic Development
Administration; $200,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture; and $17
million in private investment. Lewiston's local government contributed $13.6
million which includes reallocated money from the sale of three mill
buildings. In total, the City of Lewiston has leveraged nearly $40 million to
clean up and redevelop the historic Bates Mill Site.
The majority of the Bates Mill site is ready for reuse, providing prime
office and light industrial space. The interiors and exteriors of the
buildings preserve the historical setting with large windows, exposed
beams, and brick exteriors. One of the mill buildings was redeveloped
into a parking lot, and another was redeveloped into a small park that
offers an outdoor gathering space in the center of the complex.
A variety of businesses have already occupied space at the new business
park, providing 1,200 jobs for local residents. Tenants include large corporate
offices like BankNorth-Peoples Heritage Bank Operations Center and LiveBridge
telecommunications, service oriented non-profits such as the Abused Women's
Advocacy Project, education centers like the Creative Photographic Arts Center, small offices, retail
spaces, and a restaurant. A strong marketing campaign has been initiated to target financial,
insurance, high-tech, and light manufacturing companies for siting at the business park.
Future plans for the Bates Mill site include expanding arts and entertainment venues along the
adjacent canal, and increasing greenspace by creating pedestrian paths to the nearby
Androscoggin River and local Railroad Park. The Railroad Park site was addressed by a
$75,000 EPA Targeted Brownfields Assessment grant in 1999 that led to its cleanup and
redevelopment into recreational space. As more tenants locate within the complex,
additional amenities will be added such as a food court, dry cleaner, day-care, and
health center. While the largest of the mill buildings (300,000 square feet) remains
vacant, redevelopment into a convention center is planned.
Redevelopment of the Bates Mill site has initiated revitalization throughout the
community. Adjacent Lisbon Street, which once served as Lewiston's main shopping
area but also suffered through economic decline, has begun to follow a similar multi-use
redevelopment plan. The initial stages of cleanup have begun at other local brownfield
sites where there are a variety of planned reuses, including residences, parking, and
greenspace. The City of Lewiston realized that to bring investment to the area it had to
create unique office space and a community setting worth relocating to. Through its
strategic planning process, Lewiston exemplifies how smart planning can alter a city's
image, increase investment and jobs, preserve history, and protect the environment.
A view of the redeveloped
Bates Mill plaza
A view of the redeveloped
Bates Mill complex
Brownfields Success Story
Lewiston, Maine
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105)
EPA 500-F-00-254
March, 2004
www. epa.gov/brownfields/
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