Augusta Matters

The following is a press release from Augusta East Redevelopment Corporation in regards to the eastside hospital property. Please check out the new webpage and video.

AUGUSTA EAST RELEASES VIDEO, URGES CLOSE SCRUTINY OF TIF DOCUMENTS

(Augusta, Maine) Augusta East Redevelopment Corporation, LLC has published a video urging residents of Augusta to study all documents pertaining to the proposed Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district that would make it possible to redevelop the MaineGeneral Health properties in downtown Augusta.

The video is available at: http://bit.ly/12vZtsg

The developer said he posted the video online because TIFs are “complicated instruments,” and residents are unlikely to understand what a TIF is all about if they only read about the proposal in a newspaper story. He invited residents to watch his video, but to also do their own online research or visit Augusta City Hall for more information.

“I’m only one source of information, but I do want Augusta residents to have the ability to hear directly from me, in detail and in context,” said Kevin Mattson, managing director of Mattson Development. “It’s a lengthy video, but I think it complements the information that has been published so far in the Kennebec Journal.”

Augusta East Redevelopment Corporation, LLC is a subsidiary of Mattson Development, Kevin Mattson’s commercial real estate development company.

Mattson’s video is more than ten minutes long, and is a wide ranging discussion about the proposed TIF and a variety of related issues, including the built-in “restraints” that are written into TIF documents. He said he doesn’t take criticism of the proposed TIF district personally, “but I do take it personally that people get the information that they need to make a good decision as to whether or not the deal makes sense for their town.”

He said that as redevelopment of the sprawling complex continues, details will be posted at the development’s web site,www.AugustaEast.com, and on associated social media sites.

Augusta East is a Mattson project. Mattson Development (www.MattsonDevelopment.com) is one of Maine’s leading real estate development firms. Since its inception in 2007, it has invested more than $200 million in the development, rehabilitation and management of commercial real estate. The company’s mission is to bring exceptional professional service to imaginative and historically significant projects.