Hampden business park will be green > Route 202 facility will have trail systems

HAMPDEN – People’s recreational needs are as important as their work habits, according to planners of the new business and commerce park on Route 202.

That’s why trail systems and plenty of open green spaces will be prominent features, said Robert Frank of WBRC Architects-Engineers, whose Bangor firm recently was chosen to oversee the development of the 165-acre park.

The area “will be more than just a place where people go to work,” said Frank, who wants employees to have ample spots to mingle and recreate.

“It’s not just the building that affects how productive you are or how well you feel, but also the surroundings,” he said Tuesday from his car phone.

The park includes more than 28 lots which range from slightly more than 1 acre up to 8.

Today’s industrial park is a different animal than that of the 1950s and ’60s, according to Frank. The plain, pre-engineered metal buildings that once were hallmarks of commerce areas have come a long way, he said.

“They’re not just boxlike structures anymore. More architecture is being worked into the buildings. Masonry can be used, and there’s the appearance of roof lines, a sense of fatade and appropriately scaled windows and doors.”

The park will look different in other ways, too. Setbacks will be based on location and buildings will be clustered “so they’re taking up the same land area, but don’t break up the entire landscape,” Frank said.

With a mix of professional, commercial, light industrial and service tenants, the park should draw more than just the people who work there, according to Frank.

A centrally located area with smaller shops such as a pizza parlor, laundromat or child care center could lure commuters headed to Bangor, he said.

“These businesses aren’t intended to compete with downtown Hampden, but will help the whole tax base grow.”

Financed as part of a $3 million referendum authorized last year, the project will dovetail with a municipal sewer interceptor extension planned to begin within the next several weeks.

Three businesses which would use more than 100,000 square feet of floor space have expressed an interest in the park, according to Bion Foster, the town’s economic development director.

The park will be developed in two phases, according to Frank. The first portion, which probably will incorporate 100 acres, is to consist primarily of smaller businesses such as consulting firms and medical offices or those involving technology and research and development.

Visible from Route 202, the buildings will be on 2-4 acre lots and are planned to be more “aesthetically developed” than those housing the traditional industrial businesses to be constructed later on 5-7 acre lots, according to Frank.

Convenient to I-395 and I-95, the park’s location is one of its biggest assets, he said.

“It’s very well connected to any other properties that might serve similar businesses, and it allows for easy access for out-of-state businesses and clients,” said Frank.

Since businesses feed off each other, the new park should be a boon for everyone, according to Frank.

“What’s good for Hampden is good for the entire region,” he said.