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V O L . X X V I I N O. V I M A R C H 2 2 , 2 0 2 1 24 AUSTIN (Team Hancock Since 2018) Job Role: DriverPro | Education: CDL Certified JESSICA (Team Hancock Since 2016) Job Role: Kitchen Designer | Education: BS in Architecture KYLE (Team Hancock Since 1999) Job Role: Account Manager | Education: BS in Criminology CAIN (Team Hancock Since 2017) Job Role: Machine Operator | Education: BS in Game Design BUILD YOUR CAREER WITH TEAM HANCOCK KATIE (Team Hancock Since 2005) Job Role: Delivery + Logistics | Education: High School Grad KEVIN (Team Hancock Since 1986) Job Role: Training + Development Manager Education: SMTC SST Engineering, Retired Navy DAVE (Team Hancock Since 1997) Job Role: Truss Designer | Education: High School Grad DANA (Team Hancock Since 1994) Job Role: Inside Sales | Education: Voc Tech Construction AARON (Team Hancock Since 2013) Job Role: General Manager | Education: BS Wood Processing ERIN (Team Hancock Since 2005) Job Role: Marketing Director | Education: BS in Psychology HancockLumber.com/Employment NAMED A BEST PLACE TO WORK IN MAINE SEVEN YEARS IN A ROW A MUCH-NEEDED HOTEL SET TO OPEN THIS SUMMER IN RUMFORD A 63-room hotel is under construction in Rumford with an early summer opening expected. e general contractor is Lund Inn Construction LLC, led by Tom Lund, who has built more than a dozen hotels. Melan Hotel Group, based in Bedford, N.H., will be the management company for the property. e area has needed a hotel for some time, local officials say. It will be a Best Western Plus Inn & Suites when it opens in June. Rumford is home to an ND Paper Co. mill, Rumford Hospital (which is part of Central Maine Healthcare) and the Black Mountain of Maine ski area. Other attractions include a giant statue of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox. What Rumford hasn't had is a branded hotel, said Stacy Carter, Rumford's town manager. A smaller hotel, the Linnell, was destroyed by fire in 2015. Apart from some small hospitality properties, overflow visitors have often stayed in Bethel or Wilton, each of which are about a half hour's drive, or Auburn. "We want people to have a place to stay when they come here for weddings or other gatherings or for recreation," Carter told Mainebiz. "It's a great addi- tion and we look forward to it," he said of the hotel. e investment, reported to be $5.5 million, has sparked other interest in Rumford's downtown, which locals refer to as the Island — bounded as it is by Androscoggin River and a canal. "We've seen an uptick in commercial interest in the island. It's sparked a renewal downtown, with some smaller businesses coming in and a few build- ings under contract," Carter said. e town has also invested in new water-and-stormwater infrastructure downtown, he said. e hotel's financing included Finance Authority of Maine's 75% commercial loan insurance on a $4.1 million loan by First National Bank to Pennacook Falls Investments. e loan agreement was done in association with the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments. WRIGHT-RYAN FINISHING UP VERDANTE AT LINCOLN PARK Verdante at Lincoln Park is mostly complete. e 30-unit building had only minor delays because of the pandemic. Wright-Ryan Construction managed the risk to work- ers, with no cases of COVID-19 reported on the job site during the entire construc- tion. e first residents were slated to move in in early March. e developer is New Height Group, led by Chip Newell. e building includes semi-automated parking machines. A German- engineered system, manufactured by Wöhr and installed by Harding Steel, will manage the parking. R E N D E R I N G / C O U R T E S Y P E N N A C O O K FA L L S I N V E S T M E N T S A 63-room Best Western Plus Inn & Suites is expected to open in Rumford in June. BY PETER BY PETER VAN ALLEN VAN ALLEN BUILDING BUSINESS Rumford will have its first branded hotel in time for the busiest part of the summer season.

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