The Newcastle Board of Selectmen ordered a halted downtown construction project fenced and authorized the town lawyer to bring a legal action against the developer.
At the request of Selectman Lee Straw, the board ordered the town administrator, Ron Grenier, to hire a fencing contractor to protect a failed condo project at 52 Main St.
After Grenier reported the project has several openings where someone could fall into the basement, Straw interrupted.
“The kids are back in school and I want it fenced before Halloween,” he said saying it was a dangerous situation,” he said.
Kevin Mattson, the developer, said he will secure the property in any way to protect public safety. “Of course, we will, but we want the town to give us specific directions,” he said.
As for the project itself, he said he wants to go forward, but said he faces several problems.
First, he said he wants to sit down with the town to find out what they will permit. “Is it a condo, is it retail? I don’t know,” he said.
Second, he hates to tear down the elevator shaft and the steel if there is a way to go forward. “I hate to spend $50,000 to tear it down if we are going to build it up again in a few years,” he said.
The town issued a permit to the Newcastle Publick House, LLC in Aug. 2007 to construct a five-unit condominium project on the banks of the Damariscotta River.
According to a timeline presented by Grenier, in Sept. 2008, after contractors constructed the basement, erected an elevator shaft and put up some steel beams for the upper floors, the project was put on hold.
Last March, the owner’s representative said they wanted to redefine the project. In May they pledged to take down the steel and the elevator shaft. Two months later, they changed their mind and said it would remain “as is.”
In August, the owner was given an order to take it down or incur fines and possible legal action.
Last week, the board met behind closed doors in executive session and agreed to institute legal action.
On Monday, town lawyer Peter Drum said he had drafted a complaint and began the process to file legal action.
Straw said the action was needed because the company had not acted in good faith.
“They shined us,” said Straw.
Mattson has a different take. He blamed the town for imposing a year-long moratorium on the project after the Army Corps of Engineers issued a permit to expand the projects planned marina. “That is their right,” he said.
“The commercial building market was going great guns until summer 2008, when the financial hurricane hit. If they had not imposed that moratorium, it would be up and built,” he said. “We spent two years and several million dollars going down a path that was never going to be.
“Now I want to sit down and find out what they want. Do we button it up for four or five years? I don’t know. We want to build a building and the town wants a building that pays taxes.
“We like Newcastle and want to be a good neighbor. We will figure it out,” he said.
