NORWAY — The Planning Board voted unanimously Thursday evening to authorize a building permit for a Dunkin’ Donuts shop in the former Tim Hortons Coffee & Bake Shop at 60 Fair St.
Michael Rentschler, construction manager of MDM Management Group of Acton, Massachusetts, said the permit was to allow general contractor Thompson Building Services Inc. of Gardiner to remodel the property. He said the only change to the exterior would be updating the style to match other Dunkin’ Donuts shops.
There will be no change in the property size or in the number of parking spaces offered.
Rentschler estimated that the new shop would bring about 35 new jobs to the area.
MDM Management Group also owns the Dunkin’ Donuts restaurant at 169 Main St. in South Paris, half a mile away.
Planning Board member Mary Lou St. John asked Rentschler whether the South Paris location would close as a result of the new shop.
“To be honest, right now, the Dunkin’ Donuts in South Paris is going to stay where it is right now,” Rentschler said. “Maybe down the road, we’ll relocate it to a different place within Oxford County, but as of right now, it’s staying where it is.”
Code Enforcement Officer Joelle Corey-Whitman said there would be no structural changes to the building.
“The plumbing is staying pretty much the same, in terms of the toilets and sinks,” Whitman said. “The freezers are staying where they are. If anything needs to be moved, they can come back in and get a plumbing permit.”
Rentschler said while many of the Dunkin’ Donuts locations are open all day and night, the Norway shop would open as early as 5 a.m. and close as late as 11 p.m.
The permit was granted to Penobscot Holdings.
Tim Hortons in Norway, along with several other locations throughout the state, closed without warning in November 2015.
mdaigle@sunmediagroup.net
Send questions/comments to the editors.
