A local developer shares plans to turn the building into apartments and commercial space, while still maintaining the food pantry on the lower level.

Dozens of residents gathered Thursday at the Quarry Tap Room, eager to hear long-awaited news about the development of the historic former fire station and city hall building, which is finally moving forward.

Benjamin Spencer, local developer with commercial real estate firm CORE, presented plans to renovate the building to include three apartments and commercial space while retaining the Hallowell Food Pantry on the lower level.

Spencer, who owns and has done interior renovations for several buildings downtown as well as renovating buildings in downtown Gardiner, said his firm hopes to close the deal in the next month after submitting a bid for the project over a year ago. The city is selling the building for $10,000.

The historic Second Street building was built in 1828 and housed the fire department from 1900 until 2018 when it was relocated to a new building after an anonymous donor pledged $1 million to build a new station in Stevens Commons on Winthrop Street.

In the years following the transition, the future of the building was uncertain. In a nonbinding 2022 referendum, residents indicated they wanted to see it renovated. Now, the project is finally moving forward.

Spencer said the developing team is applying for a $200,000 REvitalizeME Downtown Grant that, with matching funds from CORE, will fund the exterior renovation, estimated to cost $260,000. The interior renovation will cost around $250,000.

Spencer said his team plans to replace the building’s windows, doors and exterior siding first. While the grant requires the facade be maintained in a historical manner for 10 years, the city stipulates the same requirements for the lifetime of the property.

Jesse Gibbon, a partner on the project, owns Hallowell-based G&G Construction, which will complete the exterior renovations. If they receive the grant, Spencer said the team hopes to begin construction as early as possible next year.

When it comes to the interior of the building, there is an agreement to let the food pantry stay in its location on the bottom floor for free for the next 10 years. Spencer hopes to turn the top floor into three market-rate apartments and the ground floor into a retail space, mentioning the possibility of a farmers’ market space.

When asked by an audience member if the apartments would potentially be Airbnbs, Spencer clarified that the apartments would be yearlong leases and not short-term rentals like Airbnbs.

The historic fire department artifacts housed in the old fire station will be moved to the new station, and the weather vane will be returned to the city. Spencer said he also hopes to preserve some amount of public viewing access to the hose tower.

While there are no time stipulations in the agreement, Spencer said they are incentivized to complete the project to get it done but also for the value of his five other downtown properties.

Spencer is excited to undergo the project because the community is so strong in Hallowell, as evidenced by the attendance at the Thursday presentation, he said.

“That’s what excites me about it more than just an older building that needs renovation, you’ve got a strong community behind you as well,” Spencer said.

Julie Howell, manager of the food pantry, said she felt positive leaving Spencer’s presentation and is excited to see the building be taken care of while also allowing the pantry to continue operations.

“For a local developer to want to have an interest in taking on the building and enabling us to stay where we are was just a huge weight off our shoulders,” Howell said. “And so we can just get back to concentrating on what we do.
Howell said she appreciates the experience of the developers and their willingness to work with the pantry.

“We’ll be great neighbors to them, and I think they’re going to be great neighbors to us,” Howell said.

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