Milo should move into new public safety building next month

MILO — Construction on Milo’s forthcoming public safety building is nearing an end and the town should be moved in by the middle to end of next month.

When complete, the $7.2 million building will house the fire, police and public works departments at the Eastern Piscataquis Business Park, less than a mile from the 100-year-old town hall where the fire and police departments are currently located. 

Milo officials are working with U.S. Sen. Susan Collins’ office, R-Maine, to coordinate a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Collins helped secure a $6,375,000 grant through the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the project. 

The ribbon cutting is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 30, before the building is fully complete, Milo Town Manager Bob Canney said during an Oct. 14 Select Board meeting. Collins’ office will handle arrangements for the midday event.

A community open house is planned for winter or spring. Canney will work with the department heads on scheduling. 

Paving is being done on the site.  

“That will be the final piece to get everything in,” he said.

Once the asphalt is in place, a crane will put in a lift for the public works department.

Crews are able to test the boilers, and from there will try out the radiant and baseboard heating units. Office space heat pumps are up and running. Department heads are devising a punch list.

“Everytime you walk through you see things,” Canney said. “It’s going to be a very bright and efficient building to be in.”

The town has not yet determined how much space will be available at the town hall’s lowest level when the departments move out. The rec office will move upstairs to the former police office, and some space will be reserved for when social service agencies visit Milo. The fire department plans to relocate items into the town hall that are being stored elsewhere. 

In other business, the board accepted an offer for the lots at 64 and 68 Main St. The lots were being sold as one parcel, totaling just over a half acre, for $25,000 with DeWitt-Jones Realty.

The board voted to accept $10,000 for the property with the buyer to also cover the realtor’s fee.

The lots have been for sale since 2023, following the partial collapse of the Masonic building roof which led to the structure being demolished. The list price was at first $50,000 for both, which eventually dropped to $25,000. The town will not recover its $100,000 in legal fees, demolition and taxes, but its goal was to sell so a business owner would start paying property taxes on the land.

Several previous offers fell through, Realtor Donna Jones said. A business owner would look to build a structure to serve as office space, with the potential to expand, and use the property for outdoor equipment storage for his roofing business.

Canney suggested an outline for the site plan be developed and shared with the Select Board. This could be done at next month’s meeting, slated Wednesday, Nov. 18, to avoid a conflict with Veterans Day the week prior.

“The kiosk is looking really good.  We want to thank JSI for the work that they did,” Breena Bissell of the Milo Economic Development Committee said about the new downtown information hub. “Bill Bailey who did a lot of the painting for us. Dick DeWitt who has put the electricity in the kiosk for us.”

Friends of Milo is working with JSI Store Fixtures to secure display cases that will hold maps and information about Milo and the surrounding area. Cork boards will be included to provide local groups and businesses a place to post notices and announcements, some of which are already in place.

The website www.visitmilomaine.org  just went live and is up and running, Bissell said. Business owners can add themselves to a site directory.