SACO — The city is selling former Methodist church at 12 School St., and the Council will be looking for a plan with significant public benefit.

The church building, located at the corner of School and Middle streets in downtown Saco, was used as a Methodist church for about a century before going into private use as a home and studio in 2001. The City of Saco purchased the property in 2019 for $240,000 with plans for the Recreation Department to use it for a teen center.

Since then, the Recreation Department has decided to pursue other space for a teen center, as an evaluation by Port City Architecture revealed the cost to bring the 12 School St building up to code and functional as a teen center would be about $900,000 – three times the cost estimated in 2019.

According to city records, the former church sits on a .15 acre lot and has nearly 7,000 square feet of space over two floors, plus an almost 3,500 square foot unfinished basement.

Earlier this year, the city discussed selling the property at $200,000 – a $40,000 loss- for an affordable housing project, which prompted debate from residents.

At a July public hearing, several representatives from Age Friendly Saco asked the city not to sell the building, stating that they would like to see it used as a community center.

Comments from community members at the public hearing prompted the Council to hold off on an immediate sale and schedule a workshop to further discuss the matter. After the workshop in October, the Council decided the city should sell the property, and at the Nov. 7 meeting the  City Council formalized the decision by directing the Economic Development Department to solicit bids for the property.

The City Council voted not to require a minimum bid on the application. Councilor Michael Burman said the city needed to weigh in any public benefits from the proposed use.

The city will be collecting bids for the 12 School St. property through Feb. 5.

Publisher Liz Gotthelf can be reached at newsdesk@sacobaynews.com.