Dover-Foxcroft’s Mayo Mill Benefits from Collaborative Financing for the Economy and Environment

Wiscasset, ME–The Maine Community Foundation (MaineCF) has committed $500,000 in new loan funds to Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), repayable in five years, to be used for fisheries-related enterprise development and the rehabilitation of downtown buildings in Maine’s rural communities.

“Our downtowns are important engines for commerce, culture and overall quality of life in Maine’s communities,” said Meredith Jones, President and CEO of the Maine Community Foundation. “With CEI’s expertise and resources, MaineCF’s investments can have greater impact  in revitalizing our downtowns and strengthening fisheries-related enterprises vital to our coastal communities.”

“CEI welcomes this partnership with Maine Community Foundation to provide resources for the people and places that fuel Maine’s economy,” said Ron Phillips, President and CEO of CEI. “Our deployment of the loan funds will include the identification of projects that will create jobs and leverage additional resources for long-term sustainability.”

The agreement builds CEI’s capacity to support businesses and communities struggling to access needed capital. The funds supported a recent construction loan from CEI for the complete renovation of Mayo Mill in Dover-Foxcroft, the county seat of Piscataquis County, Maine’s least populous county. Approximately 11.5 percent of the county’s population is unemployed as the region moves from a manufacturing to service-based economy.

The project will create an economic hub on the Piscataquis River at the center of town, with 22 affordable rental units, eight commercial tenants (providing an expected 42 jobs on site), and a state of the art data center to support the 3-Ring Binder fiber extension project, an effort supported by the State of Maine to expand high-speed internet to rural communities. The entire energy load of the project is from renewable sources, including geothermal heat pumps, solar and hydro-electric power from the adjacent dam. The renewable source for the building’s energy budget is helping to keep rents at affordable rates, and utilities as low as possible.

“The powerful combination of new community investment, job growth, quality housing for median-income residents and renewable power and heating makes the Mayo Mill revitalization a compelling triple bottom line investment for CEI,” said John Egan, Senior Vice President, Housing and Real Estate, CEI. “Twenty of the 22 residential units are already spoken for, largely by returning native Dover-Foxcroft residents who want convenient, affordable housing in a green space back in their hometown.”

CEI is leveraging the MaineCF loan fund with capital from other private and public sources, including Bangor Savings Bank, Genesis Community Loan Fund, the Northern Border Commission, Cordish Capital and CEI Notes, Inc., to enable the revitalization of this mill, which once housed Moosehead Manufacturing.

About Maine Community Foundation
A statewide organization with offices in Ellsworth and Portland, the Maine Community Foundation works with donors and other partners to improve the quality of life for all Maine people. To learn more, visit www.mainecf.org or call 1-877-700-6800.

About CEI
CEI, one of the nation’s premier Community Development Corporations and Community Development Financial Institutions, specializes in rural business development and financing. Founded in 1977 in Wiscasset, Maine, CEI helps create economically and environmentally healthy communities in which all people, especially those with low incomes, can reach their full potential. For more information, visit www.ceimaine.org or call 1-207-822-7552.