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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 23 A P R I L 3 0 , 2 0 1 8 F O C U S C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N M A I N E Rumford Oxford County, on Androscoggin River POPULATION: 5,589 ON THE WAY TO: New Hampshire White Mountains, Maine's western mountains. Major routes are U.S. Route 2, Route 17. HISTORIC ECONOMIC DRIVER: Paper mill DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION HIGHLIGHT: Application for $1 million Community Development Block Grant; storm water, infrastructure upgrades begin April 30 Simmering pot ready to boil When Rumford Town Manager Linda-Jean Briggs interviewed for the job in early 2017, she told select- men that she could feel the town simmering, and she wanted to be there when it boiled. She says those fi rst big bubbles are beginning to form. Contractor Sargent Corp. will start a $4 million infrastructure upgrade beginning April 30, much of it on the Island, the Victorian downtown core surrounded by the Androscoggin River. e 125-year-old stormwater system will be replaced, along with sidewalks, roadway and water lines. Fiber optic cable and natural gas lines will be added. e town is also switching its 600 street lights to LED bulbs. e work will make downtown more appealing to developers, businesses and potential residents, Briggs says. " ose systems are not sexy," she says. "But they're integral to attracting businesses." e work will be paid for with the help of a $400,000 federal grant, a $2 million bond issue and possibly by a Community Development Block Grant the town has applied for. "We have to spend money to make money," she says. e Catalyst paper mill in the center of town employs 600. e geography, hilly, with Androscoggin River rapids in the middle of town, is stunning. Several downtown buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places last year. But that doesn't make for a booming downtown. Briggs cites an economic analysis done for Millinocket in 2013. "What they said is, 'Folks, you're fooling yourself if you think people are going to come in and plop down a lot of money. If you believe in yourselves, make the investment and the economic development will come in.'" Revitalization plans began a few years before Briggs arrived, when residents formed a group that's now EnvisionRumford. A group of residents is also developing the site of a former lumber yard for a Best Western Plus hotel, a quick walk up Falls Hill Road from the Island. Community Concepts is off ering low-interest loans for downtown business facade improvements. Developers are asking Briggs about downtown. She'd like to see boutique businesses, a coff ee shop, antique shops, apartments and art-related development. She would love to see a craft brewery. It all starts with the infrastructure upgrade. "We're going to have a diffi cult time for the next seven or eight months," she says. "But once we get over the hurdles, we're going to have an absolutely magnifi cent downtown." P H O T O S / M A U R E E N M I L L I K E N C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, Once we get over the hurdles, we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely we're going to have an absolutely magnificent downtown. — Linda-Jean Briggs Rumford town manager In Rumford, Congress Street on 'The Island' will undergo an infrastructure upgrade this year; the town's geography and paper mill help sustain its economy.

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