JAY — A local couple has bought Wausau Paper’s Otis Mill with plans to redevelop it into a business and industrial complex and preserve its history.

Mary Howes and Tim DeMillo, wife and husband, are the principals of Otis Ventures LLC. They sealed the deal Tuesday, Howes said Wednesday. The couple also owns Howie’s Welding and Fabrication Inc. of Jay, which will be staying where it is, she said. Otis Ventures is a separate entity from the welding operation.

Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments has financed the purchase, Howes said. The couple declined to disclose specific plans on the redevelopment of the mill or the price tag.

“We have a vision, but we’re not the type of people to give out a lot of information,” Howes said. “We want to make it happen first. We don’t know what
businesses are going to go in there. … We looked at it as an
opportunity to help our community, preserve the building and hopefully
put people back to work.”

The couple plans to look at warehousing as well as other ventures. The redevelopment will happen over time, Howes said.

According to Bob Thompson, executive director of AVCOG, there is up to $400,000 of working capital approved for the project. 

Howes said some of the focus will be on preservation. “We are hoping to develop and preserve a lot of parts of the building,” she
said. “We’re getting all of the assets along with the building. We own the
paper machines. We are going to do a lot of liquidating.”

The original portion of the mill that straddles the Jay/Livermore Falls line along the Androscoggin River was built in the late 1800s. The facility was continually improved over time. At one point, Howes said, it was the largest mill in the world.

International Paper had owned the mill for many years and sold it after IP built a new mill in Jay. The business has passed through many companies, with the most recent owner, Wausau Paper, based in Wisconsin. The company shut down the mill permanently in June, leaving more than 200 workers without jobs.

“It’s a work in progress,” Howes said of the redevelopment project. “We are very much at the beginning stages. We’ve taken it over at the worst time of year. … We’re getting it winterized and we’re going to keep a couple guys on.”

The paper machines have many restrictions on them and cannot be sold in any of the Americas, north, south and central, she said.

“A lot of the other equipment we pretty much can do what we want with,” Howes said. They’ll keep what is necessary for the redevelopment and sell the rest, she said.

Wausau Paper confirmed the sale of the mill Wednesday but declined to reveal the sale price.

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