Staff Writer
HOULTON — A local businessman may soon use a parcel of town-owned land at the former Houlton International Airport for commercial development.
Chad Walton, operating under the business AKTEM, has owned a five-acre parcel of property at the airport for about three years, according to Wade Hanson, community development director for the town. However, it was discovered that the Federal Aviation Administration owned a small portion of the land. Many years ago, Houlton International inadvertently expanded its facility at the airport on land that was owned by the FAA.
“Once that was discovered, the FAA released the property to the town,” explained Cathy O’Leary, Houlton’s town clerk. “The town is now in the process of transferring that parcel to the current business owner.”
A portion of the site is home to the Twenty2 Vodka distillery, while the remaining buildings are presently empty, Hanson said.
Walton is also working on further economic development at the site, with the help of the Shiretown Development Corporation, which is comprised mainly of members of the Houlton Town Council, and Jon McLaughlin of the Southern Aroostook Development Corporation. The three groups met in executive session Monday evening following the regular council meeting.
In other agenda items, the town council authorized the town manager to apply for a capital investment grant with the Maine State Planning Office’s Waste Management and Recycling Program for the purpose of buying a wood chipper for the town’s Public Works Department to aide in cleaning up trees and brush.
If the town is successful in its grant request, it will have to provide 15 percent of the cost as matching fund. The maximum amount the town could request is $25,000; however, Town Manager Doug Hazlett said he envisioned spending less than that amount.
“We are getting estimates right now and will probably be in the $15,000-$20,000 range,” he said.
The matching funds for this grant would come from the town’s Public Works Equipment Reserve account.
The next regular meeting of the Houlton Town Council is set for Monday, April 25 at 6:30 p.m. in the council chambers.
