A home that has been sliding into the Penobscot River for nearly two years will soon be demolished.
Penobscot County received roughly $280,000 in hazard grant funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, it announced Tuesday. That money will be used to buy and demolish a home in Argyle that has been slowly falling into the Penobscot River since a landslide in June 2024.
The county received the money one day after the Bangor Daily News reported it had been waiting nearly two years to get the funding from the federal government. Penobscot County officials applied for the grant in 2024, but a lengthy approval and awarding process, which was delayed due to a partial government shutdown, prevented any work being done on the property for more than a year and a half.
Along with FEMA, county officials worked with the Maine Emergency Management Agency to submit the application and secure the grant, according to the announcement.
The county will buy the home and property from owners Aaron and Elaine St. Louis, demolish the home, and then stabilize the area, according to the announcement. There is no schedule yet for the demolition or land remediation.
Grant funding was needed because most of the soil between the home and the Penobscot River has eroded away, raising the risk of the home falling into the river.
“This funding represents an important step forward in reducing immediate risk to public safety
and preventing debris from entering the Penobscot River,” said Christopher Fox, Director of
Penobscot County Emergency Management Agency.
Because of how close it is to the river, an excavator will be used to pull the home away from the riverbank to an area where it can be safely demolished, according to George Buswell, director of the unorganized territories in Penobscot County.
Argyle is part of the unorganized territory, meaning Penobscot County provides all of its services rather than a municipality.
Penobscot County Commissioner Dave Marshall previously said the land may be used as a small picnic area after the county owns it. Exact plans have not been decided, he said.
Work couldn’t start before the grant was awarded because the county wouldn’t have been reimbursed, Marshall said. The county did all it could during the approval process to get the funds quickly and begin work before the home fell into the river.
“Residents in the Unorganized Territory deserve the same level of responsiveness, and this project shows that Penobscot County is committed to ensuring that no one is overlooked, regardless of where they live,” Marshall said.
