On Jan. 25, the Windham Town Council approved two applications for Community Development Block Grants, which subsidize projects targeted to benefit people of low-to-moderate income.

One of the applications is for additional funding toward redeveloping the mill building on Mallison Falls Road into a 109-unit apartment complex. According to Town Manager Tony Plante, the grant, if approved, would provide $120,000 toward the redevelopment of the property, alleviating costs for either the town or developer. Plante said the application is “one piece of the overall funding puzzle for that project.”

Another financing method, tax increment financing, was proposed by the developer of the site in December. Plante said the council has not decided whether matching funds will be used to develop the site, and if so, where the matching funds would come from.

The second CDBG application, if approved, would provide subsidized fares for the Lakes Region Explorer, a bus with routes through Windham, Raymond, Casco and Naples. Individuals receiving general assistance, as determined by the participating communities, would be eligible for reduced fares.

The council also approved an agreement to purchase 19 acres of land – home to the town’s soccer fields – from the Portland Water District for $80,000. The soccer fields, which were developed by the Windham Youth Soccer Association, are located on Gambo Road.

For more than 20 years, Plante said, the town leased the property from the water district. Three years ago, when the district decided to sell the property, the town began to work out an agreement for the sale. Now that the agreement has been approved by the council, the town will begin to finalize the sale.

In other action, the council decided to begin meeting nearly once each week, on the first through fourth Tuesdays of the month, rather than every other week, as it has for about five years.

Plante said the council decided to schedule more meetings because “there’s a lot going on that the council needs to work on.” Scheduling meetings more regularly will help ensure meetings are productive and don’t run late into the evening, Plante said.