Million Dollar Investment in Millinocket

The Center achieved its initial goal of raising $1 million in investments for its Millinocket Housing Initiative Fund and has put the money to work directly in the community.

The Center created the Millinocket Housing Initiative Fund, its first social and economic impact investment fund, to create quality homes for people who want to make a future in Millinocket.

Only two years after the launch of the fund, the Center had purchased and renovated six buildings, turning dilapidated downtown properties into comfortable, high quality homes.

Rob Riley, president of the Northern Forest Center, speaks on the Aspen Institute’s Aspen panel.

We owe our success to the generous investors who stand with us in supporting the future of Millinocket. We’re seeing great enthusiasm by individuals and foundations who want to make impact investments to advance the revitalization of our rural communities.”

– Rob Riley, Center President

Renovating to revitalize the Community

Four of the renovations were extensive, reconfiguring the living spaces, replacing all windows and insulation, replacing a roof and adding Automated Wood Heat. In September 2020, we completed a top-to-bottom renovation 100 Katahdin Avenue, a grand but long-abandoned home on Veteran’s Park within walking distance of downtown stores, the elementary school and the library.

The most ambitious of the renovations, the 100 Katahdin Avenue project reconfigured the building from five apartments to three.

Renovating neighborhoods in Millinocket, Maine

100 Katahdin with finished siding.

Fostering strong communities

Housing is one piece of the Center’s broader strategy to support a strong and diversified economic future in the Katahdin region. We also:

Helped bring tax credit financing to the Millinocket Memorial Library renovation;
Provided seed funding for Wi-Fi hotspots downtown;
Secured funding for and coordinated a downtown community design project;
Coordinated a wayfinding initiative to improve signage and orient visitors;
Supported improvement of recreational trails; and
Helped homes and businesses convert to wood pellet heat.

Want to help?

The Center welcomes inquiries from people interested in making impact investments in Millinocket or other Northern Forest communities. Contact Director of Devlopment Kristen Sharpless for more information.

Email Kristen

Why Housing Improvements Matter

Millinocket’s economy declined steadily after Great Northern paper mill closed in 2008, eliminating the source of jobs that had created the town and which drove the local economy. Over the years, the town’s population declined and home values plummeted, leaving blighted neighborhoods and discouraging investment in residential improvements.

Recent initiatives, including the designation of the Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument, are stimulating Millinocket’s economy, yet employers and others in the community have told us there is a real need to improve the quality and condition of in-town homes available for people who want to be part of the town’s renaissance.

Good quality housing is crucial to attract professionals to new job opportunities, to provide seasonal rentals for workers in the recreational industry as it grows, and to complement revitalization activities downtown and at the former mill site. Our program will also ensure that at least some of Millinocket’s vacant housing will be quickly renovated and available, rather than caught up in any rise in real estate speculation.

Building on a Small Town’s Momentum

From the beginning of the Center’s community revitalization work, Lancaster, NH stood out as a place where concentrated investment would go a long way. Read More

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This is your Northern Forest.

Whether you live here or nearby, love to visit the region, or value all that it offers, you can help build strong communities and a sustainable, resilient economy across the region. Both are essential to keep the forest intact. Donate today to give back to the Northern Forest.

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Staff Contacts

Kelly Short

Communications Director

Cell: 603-848-3335