MEXICO – A new retail strip mall for downtown Mexico was announced on Tuesday.

Speaking for the town and for the River Valley Growth Council, Town Manager Joseph Derouche said a nearly 6,500-square-foot complex will be built almost directly across from the town office at 137 Main St. by autumn.

Anchoring the three-unit, one-story building will be Viewer’s Choice Video, a business that will move from its current location in the Mexico Plaza to the downtown area. Derouche said Viewer’s Choice Video owner, Rob Howe, and an unnamed partner will develop the site. Although he would not disclose details, Derouche said two other businesses will move into the building.

He said Howe owns five video rental shops in the state, including one each in Bridgton and Bethel.

Details will be announced at a Mexico Planning Board meeting set for 6 p.m. on June 19.

The current century-old cape owned by Frank and Shirley Swett, who operate a heating contractor business, will be taken down to make way for the new business complex. Some of the features of the cape, such as the windows and beams, will be salvaged.

The site of the current Viewer’s Choice Video store in the Mexico Plaza will be filled with another business to be announced later.

Derouche said the proposed building will measure 118-by-55 feet. Parking will be available for nearly 40 cars in the front and rear portions of the nearly-acre-sized lot. The building will be set back 70 feet from the street.

The new video store will employ 15 to 20 full- and part-time people, up from the current five full- and part-time at the present store.

Construction of the mini-mall fits well with the town’s economic development plan, said Derouche.

“We’re trying to create a diversification of the downtown,” he said. “Businesses are spreading out. They aren’t just in the Wal-Mart area.”

He said the RVGC has been working with Howe and the unnamed partner for more than six months to bring the project to town.

eadams@sunjournal.com