Norway Oddfellows Hall gets fourth last chance

NORWAY — In the fourth reprieve granted in as many months to the vacant Oddfellow’s Hall on Norway’s Main Street, the Growth Council of Oxford Hills has given a potential buyer until January 15 to come up with the balance of the $150,000 selling price.

                                               

At a recent appearance before Norway selectmen, Growth Council president John Shattuck said he has observed an “alarming pattern of behavior” on the part of Rick Lockwood, since the Gorham developer signed a purchase and sale agreement and put a deposit on the building in early November.

Shattuck said later that Lockwood missed several agreed to performance standards, although he refused to say exactly what was not done, beyond not coming up with the full purchase price by December 31.

Shattuck did acknowledge that sub contractors for Lockwood have already done some work on the building, using about $95,000 salvaged from state grant money given to Norway when the Growth Council began its renovation of the building.  Work was done to the heating and plumbing systems, and a new liner was put in the chimney, he said.

The Growth Council bought the three-story brick building from the last remaining Oddfellows in 2002 for $68,000, with the intent of turning the building into a center for nonprofit business.  A  $500,000 Municipal Investment Trust Fund (MITF) matching grant awarded to Norway in 2003 for the project. 

After spending about half of the money, and giving continued reassurances to Norway selectmen that the project was moving along, former Growth Council CEO Brett Doney finally copped to a cash flow shortage in late August, announcing that his group could not meet the dollar-for-dollar match required to spend the rest of the grant.  Instead, he said the Growth Council would abandon the Oddfellows’ project in favor of other items on its long-tern strategic plan.

The Department of Economic and Community Development gave Norway 30 days to find a new developer for the project, or else it would take back all MITF money not spent by the Growth Council.

In late September, the Growth Council announced that a buyer had been found.   However, after their selection, an announced press conference failed to come off and, as the weeks passed, sale papers went unsigned.  By November those buyers bowed out, unable to come up with the money they had offered for the building, and Lockwood stepped in.

By that time, the Growth Council was only able to salvage about $92,000 from the MITF grant to match money it has already spent gutting the building of all utilities.  Ultimately, about $268,000 in grant money was returned to the state.

Lockwood did not return messages from this newspaper requesting comment, but previously said that he intends to renovate the first two floors for retail, create office space on the third floor, and put “a nice Italian restaurant” in the basement, with tables looking out onto the Pennesseewassee Stream.

“I think Norway’s citizens are going to be very proud to have this building in their town,” Lockwood, said in an earlier interview. “It will be a beautiful building when we get done.”

Vicki Farr confirmed that she plans to close on a deal to buy Maine Made and More January 15, and move it into the Oddfellow building as soon as renovations are complete. 

The Growth Council had given Farr until the 15th to vacate the stores current location in the former Newberry building, recently leased to Norway Savings Bank for use as office space.  Growth Council vice president Marcy Boughter says she will work with the bank to buy Farr some additional time.

Shattuck says that another potential buyer has been lined up, if the deal with Lockwood falls through.  Farr says she has spoken to that person and is confident that Maine Made will end up in the Oddfellows building regardless of who ultimately ends up owning the site.

Farr says the only difference is that Lockwood has promised to install stairs and an elevator, so that she can occupy the bottom two floors.  The other potential buyer currently waiting in the wings, has said he can not afford an elevator, says Farr, which will relegate her to the ground floor.