JAY — Job losses at Verso’s Androscoggin Mill in Jay are affecting other businesses, as evidenced by Sunday’s closing of the Mill Street Cafe.

The restaurant had opened in April 2012 in the former train station at the Otis Mill, with Mary Howes and Tim DeMillo as owners. It was sold to Doug Perreault in April 2014 and Howes bought it again in February 2015.

“The uncertainty of the Verso mill has already created a downturn in business and I believe that will only get worse,” Howes wrote via email. “This is my community and I would hate to see anything happen, but I have to prepare for the worst-case scenario.”

She said that she was departing the restaurant business because it was never her dream to own one. The cafe was meant to be an incentive to attract other businesses to the former mill, which didn’t happen, she said.

For personal reasons, she said, she had to give up her vision for the mill, which was extremely difficult. Howes said she supported the mill’s new owners and wished them success.

She said she would be helping the restaurant’s chef, Rick Mealy, move the cafe to a new location closer to where he lived, where there is a much larger population to draw from.

Additionally, Howes pointed out that the state of Maine licensing fees are expensive and are applicable only to the occupied location at the time of inspection. They cannot be transferred.

“So, it makes no sense to pay these fees for the Jay location, only to turn around and pay them again for a new location,” she said. “Again, (it is) a decision based on best business practices.”

Howes emphasized that she had to do what made the most sense, business-wise, “regardless of my personal beliefs.” She said she had offered help to the restaurant’s employees to find other work or to sign up for unemployment.

“That was the toughest part of the decision, knowing they lose their jobs, but they understand the reasons why and support my decision,” she said. “I have always worked hard to support my community, and I will continue to do so in many other ways.”

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