Towering Sanford smokestack being dismantled

City officials in Sanford hope the project could spur economic redevelopment

City officials in Sanford hope the project could spur economic redevelopment

The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox.

City officials in Sanford hope the project could spur economic redevelopment

It is the end of an era in the city of Sanford. A 136-foot smokestack that has towered over the downtown mill district is being taken down — before it falls down.

High above what was the old International Woolen Mill, the so-called boiler house exhaust stack is being taken down — brick by brick. Officials say the smokestack is in danger of collapse.

"We're technically abating a public nuisance – the stack that's falling down," said Ian Houseal, the director of community development for the city of Sanford.

Sanford voters passed a $1 million bond to invest in this project with hopes of spurring economic development down the road.

In its heyday, Sanford was a thriving mill town with thousands of employees working in these mills. Those mills have since fallen into disrepair.

In 2013, the former Sanford Mills along the Mousam River was redeveloped into condos. Other plans are in the works, according to city officials.

The city hopes this is the beginning of a development wave, saying, "They did it in Biddeford — we can do it in Sanford."

"The community has come together to almost mourn the loss of this building, but they're excited about the future that it could bring," said Jordan Wilson, a communications coordinator for Sanford. "I think it just shows how engrained the mills are in Sanford, but I think we see that sometimes these structures need to come down for us to move forward," she said.

The smokestack demolition will take about three weeks, at which point city officials say they're planning to reinforce the wall running along Pioneer Avenue.

"We're only taking the stack down to roof level," Houseal said. "We're talking about some selective demolition, so integrating a parking lot with that, possibly a parking garage, park space or green space as well, something interesting."

City planners say there is so much potential for revitalizing the old mill buildings that are just sitting there. They're planning to assess each building for its future potential.