Former mill employees inspect the historic kiosk All photos by Daimian Lix.
Vermont Business Magazine An historic marker honoring the former site of Robertson Paper Mill was dedicated in Bellows Falls in conjunction with the Vermont Downtown and Historic Preservation Conference in June. Over 50 people were in attendance, including conference-goers and local families whose relatives and neighbors, or who personally worked at the 120-year-old mill prior to its closure in the 1980's, and demolition in 2019.
Robin Sweetapple, president of the Bellows Falls Area Development Corporation (BFADC), said the intent behind the BFADC purchase of the building in 2013 was to preserve the building and redevelop the site.
"But we quickly realized that we didn't have that option," said Sweetapple. Decades of industrial activity had contaminated the soil, and years of neglect left the buildings unsafe and beyond rehabilitation. The difficult decision was then made to demolish the structures, mitigate hazardous waste, and ready the site for redevelopment through the US Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) Brownfields program. Nine stacked federal, state, and local partners funded the project.
Funding for the Roberston Paper Mill historic marker, dedicated at the event, was a requirement of the Brownfields program as a measure to preserve the historical significance of the site. The marker was crafted from bricks, granite window lintels, iron I-beams, and rosette stabilizers salvaged for the kiosk during mill demolition, with an aim to provide visitors a tactile connection to the area's industrial past.
"We recognize the importance of preserving the past and the streetscape," said Sweetapple. "It's a snapshot into the development of the area at that time. What was going on here and when, what economic drivers were influencing the needs - these are the same things that drive us now."
Project manager Maia Segura details materials reclaimed from the mill and incorporated into the project.
Betsy Thurston, director of the Bellows Falls Downtown Development Alliance (BFDDA), noted the critical location of the property for new downtown development through updated zoning which will allow mixed use transit-oriented development including industrial, commercial, retail, and housing. "We cherish the memory of the last remaining paper mill, while embracing the future of the Bellows Falls Designated Downtown," she said. "The Area Wide Plan indicates what we all desire to see on the island. The kiosk is the first step in making it all happen."
During the ceremony, Gary Fox, Town of Rockingham Economic Development Director noted that the site has been chosen as a finalist for a desirable, community-oriented redevelopment project, partly due to positive discussion and community placemaking efforts related to the historic marker project. Other speakers included Bellows Falls native, historian, and SUNY professor David Deacon, and Creative Catalyst Communications principal and project manager Maia Segura.
More information about the project and history is available at https://www.rockinghamvt.org/p
Dozens of lanterns, lit at dusk, were decorated by locals with paper salvaged from the mill.