By Mark LaFlamme,Staff Writer

WATERFORD – Firefighters from three towns battled an early morning blaze Tuesday that leveled a large unoccupied, unfinished home on Bear Pond.

The cause of the 2:30 a.m. blaze on the southern end of the pond is under investigation by the State Fire Marshal’s Office to determine the cause.

“Everything was destroyed,” said Waterford Assistant Chief Bill Haynes. “It’s pretty much flat.” The two-story building was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived, he added.

“The fire lit up the whole sky as well as the pond,” Haynes said.

It was reported by a resident who lived on the pond.

The house was situated on a small piece of land between the pond and Route 37, near the intersection of Route 35. It was one-half mile from both the Harrison and Bridgton town lines, and firefighters from those towns were called to help extinguish the flames.

According to town records, Pamela Avedisian of Winthrop, Mass., owned the home. It was referred to by some as the “Bear Mountain mansion” because of its size.

In 1999, the town won a court decision over Avedisian and Gary Decicco, her fiance, contractor and “beneficial owner,” for code violations at the site, according to Selectmen Charles Fillebrown. A District Court judge ordered the building’s roof lowered to 35 feet, he said.

Fines for overbuilding in the shoreland zone and court costs totalled $14,000, which were paid, he added.

The building had little insulation and the interior was still under construction. Little work has been done at the building in the last year. Avedisian had never occupied the former Jack Matlon cottage, which was built in 1972, since she began adding onto it in 1997.

The 2004 valuation was $214,900, and taxes of $3,001 were paid, Fillebrown said.