As Rail Trail Village nears the opening of its fourth of six floors of apartments

LITTLETON — As Rail Trail Village nears the opening of its fourth of six floors of apartments, the Select Board has approved more than $400,000 in state demolition grant funding to move the project along and reimburse it for flooring work since completed On Tuesday, Al Croteau, the owner-developer, gave an update on the development, which began in 2021 and is located in the former Hitchiner Manufacturing building at 24 Beacon St. On June 24, the Select Board approved up to $442,670 from the InvestNH housing program, at the request of Katelyn Robinson, director of economic development for Northern Community Investment Capital, a program of New Hampshire Community Loan Fund. The InvestNH municipal demolition grant program is offered through the New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs and makes funding available to municipalities to use or distribute for demolition or abatement activities related to vacant or dilapidated buildings. InvestNH aims to increase the number of housing units in the state, which has a housing shortage.