Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 11 A P R I L 1 5 , 2 0 1 9 services including design, con- struction, maintenance, and energy management, with a focus on technology-oriented markets. Terms of the acquisition, which closed on March 29, were not disclosed. Cianbro, which is based in Pittsfield, is Maine's largest con- struction company. Headquartered in North Stonington, Conn., A/Z has offices and ongoing opera- tions in the Northeast and Mid- Atlantic states. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Cianbro, it will retain the A/Z name, and the company's owner, Perry Lorenz, will remain as president. A/Z had $245 mil- lion in direct revenues last year, according to its website. All of A/Z's 500 employees will join the Cianbro team and its Employee Stock Ownership Plan, according to a joint news release by the two companies. N O T E W O R T H Y N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N Husson University entered into an agreement with the Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce to provide employees of its member organiza- tions a 10% tuition discount on MBA programs. The discount applies to MBA degree with a general/corporate focus, as well as those with concen- trations in biotechnology and innova- tion, data analytics, healthcare man- agement, hospitality management, organizational management and risk management. Honesty, integrity and mutual respect are the values that guide us. Stephen Dumont, VP CONTACT (207) 490-5900 www.tpdconstruction.com CO N S T RU C T I O N M A N A G EM EN T s D E S I G N / B U I L D s G EN ER A L CO N T R A C T I N G A pioneering Opportunity Zone is already having an impact in Augusta B y m a i n e b i z s t a f f L ess than a year after Maine designated 32 areas as Opportunity Zones, GenX Capital Partners of Miami has closed on financing for the redevelopment of 333 Water St. in downtown Augusta. Redevelopment of the former Odd Fellows Hall, by Dirigo Capital Partners and Capital Area Properties, may be one of the first projects in the country to take advantage of the Opportunity Zone tax program, Mainebiz has reported. The Opportunity Zone program uses tax breaks to encour- age real estate investment in distressed areas. Former Gov. Paul LePage designated 32 Opportunity Zones in May 2018, choosing from 128 eligible tracts. The program was created under the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to provide incentives for economic development. The development partnership secured a bridge loan from GenX Capital, GenX Managing Director Mark McClure said in a press release. The 31,500-square-foot building was acquired in 2018 for $195,000 by Dirigo Capital Advisors and Capital Area Properties. It will be redeveloped for hous- ing and ground-floor retail. Kevin Mattson, president of Dirigo Capital, said McClure and GenX Capital "were instrumental in allowing us to acquire this asset quickly, as the minute it became available we knew there would be a lot of bidders, and thus they were able to tap one of their investors in Boston who was able to evalu- ate and finance the acquisition literally in under two weeks." The GenX loan provided "the breathing room to move forward with construction and bring this special project to fruition," Mattson said. There's demand for market-rate housing in the Augusta zone, as well as a need for other sustainable development, Mattson said. The plan is for ground-floor retail and as many as 30 market-rate apartments in the 31,000-square-foot building. GenX Capital's main focus the past two years has been underwriting debt and equity financing for projects, typically with a capitalization of $25 million or more. "While we typically look to underwrite deals of $10 million and up, we launched our direct lending platform a couple of months ago for smaller deals just like this, which now allows us the ability to tap into the 'fix and flip' value-add acquisition segment with our own funding," McClure said. "We were excited to be the first firm ever to close an Opportunity Zone deal under this platform. Our director of origination for the state of Maine, Michael McNaboe, was instrumental in helping put this all together and Grand Coast Capital and Matt Divito out of Boston were absolutely amazing in the speed in which they were able to close on the initial acquisition. We are now moving toward construc- tion," he added. B I Z M O N E Y Maine has 32 federal Opportunity Zones, as designated by former Gov. Paul LePage in May 2018. Investors were initially slow to pick up on the tax advantages, but they're starting to take note. Here's a list of where the Opportunity Zones are located. Most are considered low-income tracts. Rumford has two. Details are available on the state DECD website. Androscoggin Auburn, Lewiston Aroostook Washburn, Limestone, Madawaska and a contiguous parcel spanning Caswell, Stockholm, Connor Cumberland Portland's port area, Westbrook, South Portland, Brunswick Hancock Ellsworth Kennebec Augusta, Waterville Oxford Rumford, Rumford, Paris Penobscot Bangor, Brewer Penobscot Old Town, Lincoln, Enfield, Millinocket, E. Millinocket Piscataquis Greenville Sagadahoc Bath Somerset Hartland, Madison Waldo Belfast Washington Calais York Saco Washington Baileyville, Whiting and Dennysville; and a contiguous tract encompassing Pembroke, Baring, Meddybumps S O U R C E : Maine Dept. of Economic and Community Development M A I N E ' S 3 2 O P P O R T U N I T Y Z O N E S

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