There has been many years of discussion about the fate of Bates Mill No. 5 — fill it up, tear it down. I think the taxpayers of Lewiston should get to decide its future. Sell it for a dollar and walk away.
When the city sold the other mill buildings, the city should have just walked away. The taxpayers of Lewiston were forced to throw tens of millions of dollars at the complex — for someone else’s profit. I saw the budgets, years back, when $6 million a year was budgeted for the Bates Mill. And the city didn’t even own it. Those were bad business decisions.
All the money spent on minimal maintenance of mill No. 5 through the past 25 years could have been used to tear it down three times over.
I believe one of the city’s dearly departed administrators threw the taxpayers of Lewiston under the bus for his own good fortune. I hope someone has the conscience to turn things around.
Bob Pelletier, Lewiston
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