LEWISTON – Councilors Tuesday cleared the way for the first part of last week’s Heritage Initiative downtown revitalization scheme.

The City Council agreed to buy 10 properties on both sides of Maple Street between Knox and Park streets to make room for a Community Concepts Inc. office building. That building would be the first stage in a plan to change the character of the city’s poorest neighborhood.

“We see this building as a nice transition between the commercial development going into the southern gateway and the residential development we have planned for behind this building,” said Greg Mitchell, assistant city administrator.

Mayor Lionel Guay unveiled the 10-year program last week that is designed to bring revitalization to the poorest section of downtown. Plans call for new housing projects along Blake, Birch and Maple streets and new downtown office buildings.

New development would be connected to the rest of the city by a $4.5 million boulevard that would run from Lincoln to Lisbon Street, cutting through the Knox and Birch neighborhoods and end at Bates Street. It would cross blocks of aging tenements in the poorest parts of the city.

The Community Concepts office would be the first part of that program. The company would agree to build a 22,500-square-foot office building at Park and Maple streets and would pay the city at least $83,000 per year in lieu of taxes.

The city agrees to acquire seven lots at the southern end of Park and Maple streets for the office building. That’s about 30,567 square feet. The city will also pick up the three lots across the street for the company’s parking lot. That’s another 20,000 square feet.

The city will demolish any buildings on those lots, including several old apartments and the Ritz Cafe, before May 2005. The company agrees to pay the city $250,000 for the land.

The city would also close Maple Street between Knox and Park streets, making it part of the development. Councilor Mark Paradis said that was one point he was unsure about.

“I think it would take more time than we have tonight to convince me closing Maple Street is a good idea,” he said. “Otherwise, it’s a great project.”

Community Concepts Executive Director Matthew Smith said the project would bring 100 jobs to Lewiston, consolidating smaller offices currently in Auburn and Oxford County.

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