Opera House bids due Aug. 17

Photo: Brenda Melhus

OUT TO BID — Architect Jake Keller, center, and engineer Al Hodson, right, discuss masonry work to be done on the Norway Opera House with subcontractors on Monday. Three pre-qualified contractors currently bidding on the rehabilitation of six street-level storefronts toured the historic building last week. Bids for the $1.1 million project are due back on August 17.

NORWAY — After years of work, a request for bids to rehabilitate six storefronts in the historic Opera House building has finally gone out and the work may soon be on its way to completion. 

Last week, members of the Norway Opera House Corporation, project architect Jake Keeler and engineer Al Hodson accompanied three contractors on a walk-through of the historic building. A group of sub-contractors did a similar walk-through on Monday. 

Bids for the project are due on August 17 – its estimated cost is $1.1 million.

NOHC board members have said they would like to see the storefronts ready to rent by November.

According to NOHC board member Bruce Cook, who joined the walk-throughs, the three pre-qualified contractors have all worked on historic buildings before.

"We know that they have experience working on old historic buildings and living with the rules imposed by the National Parks Service," says Cook. The parks service oversees historic structures across the country.

In addition, says Cook, the contractors have experience with renovation tax credits, which is especially important for the Opera House project.

Brenda Melhus, a Norway Downtown board member who has been active in the Opera House project accompanied the two walk-throughs and says the experience was positive. She's excited to see the project move forward.

Cook says he feels relieved that the bids have finally gone out. Getting to this point in the project has been a struggle, especially after the past month's drama sparked by Governor Paul LePage's decision not to release bonds that included funding for the project.

Last week Norway and NOHC received a memo from the Governor agreeing to issue the bonds by 2015.

"It's taken on a life of it's own," says Cook.

Cook says that by the end of the month NOHC should close with Norway Savings Bank to become the for-profit NOHC LLC, but will remain under the control of the not-for-profit Norway Maine Opera House Corporation.