Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I I N O. V I I A P R I L 5 , 2 0 2 1 12 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E Guarantee Program awarded $7.8 million loan to ASP2 Rural LLC in Augusta to develop three solar en- ergy facilities, including a 964.6-kilo- watt project by Caribou Solar in Caribou, a 3,937-kilowatt project by Dirt Solar in Skowhegan and a 982.2-kilowatt project by Freeport Solar in Fairfield. The Maine Arts Commission in Augusta awarded $36,000 to in- dividual artists and $91,436 to support arts organizations who are experiencing economic hard- ship from the COVID-19 pandemic through its Resilience Artist grant and Organization Relief Grant. The commission also said it re- ceived a $60,000 Leveraging State Investments in Creative Aging grant from the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, in collaboration with Aroha Philanthropies, to expand its programming for older citizens. Fontaine Family Team — the Real Estate Leader in Auburn announced it was sold to the second generation of daughters Melissa Fontaine-Field, Angie Fontaine-Larochelle and Crystal Fontaine-Bergeron. The Maine Department of Education in Augusta partnered with T-Mobile to expand efforts to provide internet access and devices to Maine stu- dents through the cellular company's "Project 10 Million" initiative. The program provides mobile Wi-Fi hotspot devices to school districts who choose to participate. Maine AG: Contractor bilked clients out of $437K A Knox County contractor who allegedly fled to South Carolina after defrauding nearly 60 custom- ers in five counties for work he never did has been indicted by a grand jury. Malcolm Stewart, 56, formerly of Union, who did busi- ness as Castle Builders, induced 57 customers to pay a total of $437,906 in deposits "for home construc- tion projects that he knew he did not have the capacity to complete," according to Maine Attorney General Aaron M. Frey. e Knox County Grand Jury returned an indictment against Stewart on two counts of Class B theft by decep- tion and a warrant has been issued for his arrest, according to a news release from Frey's office. Bail was set at $50,000 cash. Customers were in Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln and Somerset counties, and the alleged offenses occurred between April 2018 and September 2019, according to the indictment. Frey said that in most of the trans- actions listed in the indictment, Stewart didn't do any work in return for the deposits. In a few of the transactions, he did "a mini- mal amount of substandard work," Frey said. N O T E W O R T H Y M I D C O A S T & D O W N E A S T The Healthcare Purchaser Alliance in Topsham said it has partnered with the Health Transformation Alliance in an effort to bring more value to mem- bers and hasten the move to value- based care in Maine. Plan in the works to save PI hotel e storied Northeastland Hotel in Presque Isle hotel could be sold to a community development organi- zation, Ignite PI, which hopes to renovate the 50-room inn and add a 2,500-square-foot co-working space to the existing business center. Hotel operations would continue with cur- rent staff. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Ignite PI has received a $1.5 million grant from a local philanthropy, the Rodney and Mary Barton Smith Family Foundation, as well as other support to help pay for the purchase. Now the group is looking for additional funding to complete it. 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 Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor accepted a donation of a tracked vehicle from Versant Power to its Diesel, Truck & Heavy Equipment Technology Program. Bring Your Vision Hammond Lumber Company has been helping Maine homeowners and contractors since 1953. Today, our fourth-generation family business is one of the largest lumber and building material suppliers in the Northeast. Whether you need a new kitchen, bathroom, or have another DIY building project in mind, start at Hammond Lumber. You'll work with an experienced professional who can offer design support and make sure each stage is executed seamlessly. With your vision and our knowledge, together we'll build something great. Get started in any of our 21 locations throughout Maine. HammondLumber.com Take your virtual events to the next level! Headlight AV goes above and beyond the traditional limits of AV to help you create powerful and memorable presentations. HeadlightAV.com / 207.775.1671 audiovisual [au•di•o•vis•u•al / adjective] Using both sight and sound, typically in the form of presentations, recording speech, music, and video. M I D C O A S T & D O W N E A S T N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N

• Cover