LEWISTON — At the annual Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce dinner in January, Paul Andersen teased the packed room that Androscoggin Bank was “doubling down” on Lewiston.
On Tuesday, after early support from the city’s Planning Board, he revealed what that meant: plans for a massive renovation and expansion of the bank’s Lisbon Street headquarters and a new branch near Longley Bridge that the bank president hopes will set a new tone for that area.
“Our plan is to build what we’re calling a ‘showcase building,'” Andersen said. “It’s really going to be a beautiful building that will create a whole new entrance to the city of Lewiston.”
Next week, the City Council will vote on whether to give Androscoggin Bank an option on a quarter-acre city parking lot immediately beside Raymond Park, along Main Street and just in front of Bates Mill No. 5. If the city approves, the bank can officially explore building that “showcase.”
“I had a friend come to see me recently, a very successful businessperson who could expand into Lewiston-Auburn,” Andersen said. “He came from that direction and the first thing he said to me was, ‘Urban renewal has not worked in Lewiston.’ That hurt. That’s not the kind of image we want, so that’s what I’m trying to address.”
That new space would be several stories tall in a “modern but classic” design with a balcony, community room on the top floor, drive-through window and roughly 20 employees.
Lincoln Jeffers, Lewiston’s economic and community development director, said the city’s Riverfront Island Master Plan called for a future building on that lot. Other businesses have expressed interest, but “this (discussion) has gotten further than any other,” he said.
As proposed, the city would charge Androscoggin Bank $1 for the right to a six-month purchase option. The bank could extend that for another six months for $5,000.
An appraiser would determine the lot’s fair market price in the event of a sale.
“Androscoggin Bank has seen great success in the marketplace, and growing, and we’d love to see them continue to grow in Lewiston, as well as elsewhere in the state,” Jeffers said.
If approved by the city, plans call for the bank to start construction later this year, wrapping in 2017, then it will turn its attention to its 30 Lisbon St. headquarters in 2018-19.
Andersen said Androscoggin Bank has deep roots here.
“We have been basically one of — if not the — major anchor tenant for Lisbon Street for 146 years,” he said.
Its headquarters is 40 years old and it shows, Andersen said.
Early plans call for a renovation that would open up the interior, add more glass and communal space and increase the square footage by up to 50 percent.
“If people walk into places that are dark, all chopped up, old school, it’s harder to attract particularly millennial employees who enjoy working in open, big spaces, all together,” he said.
Pending regulatory approval, the branch at 30 Lisbon St. would move to the new space in front of Bates Mill No. 5 and the headquarters would house only bank operations.
Androscoggin Bank has added 26 jobs this year and plans to add 40 to 50 more over the next few years, Andersen said.
“When we win the business of a new client, that client — whether it’s in Scarborough or Sanford or Augusta or Presque Isle or anywhere in the state — those clients are serviced here in Lewiston-Auburn,” he said. “Billing, statements, all of our support people are here.”
Androscoggin Bank has 150 employees and serves nearly 20,000 families, nonprofits, businesses and municipalities. According to a spokeswoman, the bank’s assets have grown nearly 25 percent in the past five years to $866 million.
It’s also working on expansion plans in greater Portland and Scarborough, either renovating buildings or moving to larger locations.
Neither Lewiston project has an estimated cost yet. Andersen said details like that will come as the bank works with the city.
“For our showcase building, the No. 1 purpose is to create a better entrance to the city (of) Lewiston, to create something people can be very proud of, to help address the concern of everyone, ‘Is Lewiston a good place to be? Is it a good place for business? Is it a good place to live?'” he said. “We want to help change the dynamic of how people view Lewiston for the positive.”
kskelton@sunjournal.com
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