Bingham plywood mill moves closer to opening with promise of 110 jobs for economically challenged region [Video]

BINGHAM — Charlie Martin describes what he has been working on in Bingham for the last few years as akin to the TV show “This Old House.”

But instead of fixing up an old home, Martin is trying to resurrect an old mill that’s been vacant for more than a decade and turn it into a plywood factory.

When it opens, Maine Plywood USA is expected to employ about 110 people. It would be the only plywood manufacturer in New England, and the only one in North America making its specific product. And it could expand domestic manufacturing of a product that today is largely imported from Asia.

“We’re taking this old, old building that sat dormant there for 14 years,” Martin said, “and bringing it back to life.”

Through millions of dollars in investments — a combination of his own savings and support from several state and regional public-private …