The white Worumbo Mill building was demolished in 2016. The town bought the property earlier this year. Times Record file photo
LISBON — After several years with the future of the former Worumbo Mill site up in the air, the town is starting to hone in on exactly what might be possible on the waterfront property.
Earlier this year, the town bought nearly 4 acres of developable land at 1 Canal St., the site of the former textile mill near the corner of Route 196 and Main Street. The 96-year-old vacant mill building that stood on the property was torn down in July 2016.
Now the town needs to figure out just what to do with the property, which sits along the Androscoggin River. Ben Smith of North Star Planning, the town’s planner, is studying what the town can and can’t use the property for. A recent environmental study found some asbestos on site but no other glaring environmental issues. The town is awaiting a quote from a contractor to remove the asbestos.
“There are definitely options,” Smith said Thursday.
Commercial development is allowed at the property but the proximity to the river and existing easements may limit what can be built there and where.
“Could you put a couple thousand square feet of commercial property or apartments or something like that?” Smith said. “I’m looking at this as investigative research — finding out the parameters and the end result will be a statement of constraints and opportunities.”
Smith hopes to present his findings to the town council this winter. It will be up to the town to determine what it wants this area to be in 5 or 10 years.
The Lisbon Development Committee has been eyeing the property for a parking lot to meet the growing demand for parking spaces in downtown Lisbon Falls. There has been a burst of new businesses and restaurants on Main Street in recent years.
“There’s really kind of an amazing energy in town, and I think the opportunity to use that Worumbo Mill property to build on that is very exciting,” Smith said.
The town first considered buying the property six years ago. A $1 million bond proposed by the council to acquire and demolish the building was rejected by voters in 2013.
Councilor Fern Larochelle supported that bond. He said he still feels the property is worth more than $1 million.
Now that the town finally owns the property, “we don’t want to rush into anything,” said Larochelle, who also serves on Lisbon Development Committee. “At the end of the day the goal is to present something to the council that lays out what the options are and what’s the most feasible, and set up a plan not just for today and tomorrow but that may be a staged plan,” over a number of years.
The Lisbon Development Committee will hold public meetings so residents can share their vision for the property.
“At the end of the day no matter what we do, it’s still going to be an asset,” Larochelle said.
dmoore@timesrecord.com
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