Mainebiz

V O L . X X I N O. X X I I I O C T O B E R 5 , 2 0 1 5 14 A s executive director of Waterville Main Street, Jennifer Olsen is the fi rst one to acknowledge the city's challenges. More than 1,000 professionals who work in Waterville live out of town and only half the city's residents own their homes. What's more, the town's infra- structure was designed for an era that has long gone by — when the mills were running, when the Kennebec River was used to transport goods and when the Colby College campus was downtown. "We're living with that skeleton that does not make sense anymore," said Olsen. Luckily for Waterville, Olsen sees so much more. Colby College recently purchased three key properties in the heart of downtown and helped commission a major traffi c study to assess the impact of changes to state and federal roads. Developer Paul Boghossian, who in 2008 transformed the former Hathaway Shirt Factory into upscale apartments, retail and offi ces, is now developing Lockwood Mills, one of the state's largest remaining 19 th century indus- trial sites. And some $23 million has been poured into six local institutions for major expansions and overhauls. " ere is a perfect storm going on right now," said Olsen. "What's excit- ing is the will to be diff erent." Enlightening moments A native of Springfi eld, Mass., Olsen spent 10 years in North Yarmouth, before moving to Millinocket in 2003, when her husband was hired by Great Northern Paper. When the company fi led for bankruptcy one year later, "it was a really enlightened moment about what happens to communities when there is a single economic driver and that driver goes away," said Olsen, 50. "It was heartbreaking." She worked to be part of the economic revitalization. She and a partner opened a bookstore and cof- fee shop called irteen Moons, but closed it two years later. She worked for a local public health coalition, sold P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY Collaboration on Main Street Jennifer Olsen is giving hope to Maine downtowns B y J e n n i f e r V a n A l l e n There's a perfect storm going on right now. What's exciting is the will to be different. Jennifer Olsen Executive director Waterville Main Street connectivity point design & installation / ME - NH - MA / 866-782-0200 / connectivitypoint.com Connectivity is everything. Voice. Data. Video. Reliable access to technology is critical to your business. Connectivity Point is a Maine-owned company specializing in network cabling, audio/visual equipment, security solutions, wireless access and telephone systems. We design and install the connectivity for what's coming next. We're like IT guys. With tools. FREE ES TIMATES at connectivitypoint.com NET WORK C ABLING / AUDIO VISUAL / SECURIT Y / WIRELESS / TELEPHONE Jennifer Olsen, executive director of Waterville Main Street, has been involved in the revitalization of the downtown in Waterville.

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