Safe Streets and business park projects finish up

By Stuart Hedstrom 
Staff Writer

    MILO — Over the last several months residents and passers-through were likely to have noticed the downtown construction as well as work going on up Park Street at the Eastern Piscataquis Business Park to ready the property for occupancy and future developments.

    “The punch list inspection was done yesterday, you will find there is very little of significance to be done,” Town Manager David Maynard said about the Safe Streets project during an Oct. 1 selectmen’s meeting. Under the approximate $368,000 Safe Streets project sections of West Main, Park and Pleasant streets were fixed up, with new pavement and underground drainage, sidewalks and safer intersections among the components of the construction.
    “We are going to come out a week late due to a utility problem with the pole at Elm and Main Street,” Maynard said, but he added the project is coming in about $8,000 under budget with a close-out date scheduled for Oct. 7. The remaining funds will be used for some licensing and inspection, repairing a portion of High Street and fixing a new rut in the fire department parking lot. The selectmen had previously given Maynard permission to do what was needed to close out the project funding.
    Maynard said he had signed the paperwork for an additional $200,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) monies for improvements to the downtown. The work will include lighting and trees on the northern side of the road, from NAPA west to the Heritage Building.
    “At the moment it is anticipated it is likely to be funded,” Maynard said. “The block grant is anticipated to fund the $200,000, but again it is not certain.” He said if the grant comes through the improvements could be done this fall, or in the spring if cold weather arrives early.
    Speaking about the Eastern Piscataquis Business Park, Maynard said, “It was officially finished a week ago Saturday. It came in slightly under budget and ahead of schedule.” He said the left over portion of the project funds, about $1,200, was used to install rip rap along the park road and a few other improvements, including some donated by contractor Lou Silver, Inc. of Veazie.
    “That was the smoothest, cleanest, absolute best project I have seen a contractor do,” Maynard said in praising Lou Silver, Inc.
    The town manager said he will have an announcement to make concerning what he called a “jump start” for the Eastern Piscataquis Business Park by the next meeting on Oct. 15, but due to the negotiations he cannot yet provide any more specific details to the selectmen or the public.