PERU — A program manager with Community Concepts met with the Board of Selectmen on Monday evening at the Town Office to discuss economic development opportunities for the town.
Mia Purcell, program manager of economic development in Oxford County for Community Concepts Finance Corporation, said she does not have a staff, which made it difficult to have in-depth meetings with communities.
“It’s just me, myself and I,” Purcell told selectmen.
According to its website, Community Concepts offers a variety of housing, economic development and social services for the communities of Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties.
Purcell asked selectmen and residents if there are any empty buildings that could be used to house a new business.
“There aren’t many buildings around here that I can think of that would be used for businesses,” Board of Selectmen Chairman Lee Merrill said. “I think there’s the old Pepsi plant, but I believe Catalyst Paper Company owns that.
“It’s tough,” Merrill said. “I mean, look at the island in Rumford. It’s dead there compared to what it used to be.”
“We’re working on that,” Purcell said with a smile.
Selectman Larry Snowman said the building housing the Peru Historical Society may be available for a business to use.
“I’m not really sure what you could put there, but it’d be nice to see some business come into our town,” Snowman said. “It could really help us out.”
Editor’s note: This story was updated to correct an error. The Winderosa building is not vacant, nor does the company have any plans to relocate. The information was incorrectly provided to the Sun Journal.
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