SANFORD, Maine — Demolition started Monday, July 29 on part of a mill in Sanford that burned more than a year ago.
The rear tower of the Stenton Trust Mill was destroyed in 2017 after three teenage boys set fire to it. Monday morning, a high reach excavator started taking down the building piece by piece.
"When buildings like the mill catch fire and are destroyed, all the debris contains asbestos," said John McKeown, a Federal On-Scene Coordinator.
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He added there will be no wrecking ball or implosion in the demolition -- instead, giant metal sheers are ripping apart each section of this building.
"We're in a residential area. There are homes behind it, a community center, businesses -- so we don't want to have a massive mess and dust everywhere."
Dust was also being contained by water that was shooting from the excavator's arm and from below, as the debris fell to the ground.
"It's a very complex process," McKeown said.
But the city of Sanford is excited about it. Several years ago, city officials were in talks with a developer to re-develop the mill, but the fast-moving, massive fire ravaged the abandoned building in 2017.
"We all got very nervous, but we picked ourselves up by our bootstraps, continued to work on it and just waited -- and the patience is being rewarded," said Beth Della Valle, Sanford's Director of Planning and Development.
Della Valle says someone is interested in re-developing the mill's adjacent front tower. The site of the rear tower, which is being dismantled, could be used for the parking.
"We've been working with a developer, and we're strongly encouraging mixed use," said Della Valle. "That would include some levels of housing, probably on the upper floors, and the first floor would be used for mixed use, retail shops and offices -- that sort of thing."
The demolition should be completed by September, and then crews will sift through the materials to separate the asbestos from the metal, which can be recycled. The concrete and other materials will have to go to a specialized landfill.