Walmart to receive $1.7 million facelift
ELLSWORTH The Walmart Supercenter on Myrick Way is scheduled for remodeling. The store received a building permit from the city of Ellsworth in April for an estimated $1,774,730 facelift.
The hefty price tag will cover renovations including the remodeling of bathrooms and moving aisles, city Code Enforcement Officer Dwight Tilton said.
“There’ll be no change in the footprint [of the building],” Tilton said, “and no new businesses.” The Supercenter currently houses several kiosk businesses inside the store.
The store was last remodeled in 2018 at a then-projected cost of $1.43 million.
Tilton issued 23 permits in April, a sign of a springtime jump in residential projects, with only three permits issued for commercial businesses. In addition to the Walmart renovation, these include the demolition of the former Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce building and construction of a garage at 441 Main St. to house Northern Light Medical
City clarifies how and when it can take control of abandoned, derelict buildings
ELLSWORTH Citing the public danger posed by neglected and/or abandoned properties in the city, Code Enforcement Officer Dwight Tilton proposed including state law on dangerous buildings in the City Property Ordinance. Councilors approved amending the ordinance 6-1 on April 19, after seeing photos of a Birch Avenue property with missing windows, open doors and a hole in the foundation large enough for a child to squeeze through and certainly attractive to foxes, raccoons and rodents. Councilor Michelle Kaplan was the sole nay vote.
“We do not need buildings like this in Ellsworth, Maine,” Councilor Marc Blanchette said. “This should have been torn down a decade ago.”