Seavey house in Saco may be up for sale

Seavey house in Saco may be up for sale
The Alton B. Seavey home in Saco was acquired by the city in 2016. LIZ GOTTHELF/Saco Bay News
Liz Gotthelf, Publisher

SACO — A historic fixer-upper could soon be on the market.

The city is considering selling a tax acquired property at 90 Temple Street in acquired through tax foreclosure in 2016.

The Queen Ann style home at 90 Temple Street was designed in 1890 by J.M. Littlefield of Haverhill, Massachusetts, according to documents from the Maine Historic Preservation Commission.

The house is two and a half stories tall, and features that include a gabled dormer, front porch and a three-story high corner tower.

The original owner of the home, Alton B. Seavey, was a local businessman with a strong interest in the arts, according to Maine Historic Preservation Commission. Seavey sold musical instruments and was the sponsor of an arts exhibition.

In 1978, the house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and at the time the condition of the house was described as “well preserved.”

The house was involved in a fire in 2012 in which it endured extensive damage, and has become further in disrepair as sections of the home have been left open to the elements, with tarp covering areas of the roof destroyed by the fire.

The home and attached carriage house have a combined square footage of 7,600 square feet, with about 4,000 square feet of living area, and sits on a quarter acre lot, according to city records. The land is valued at about $78,000, according to city records.

In 2016, HardyPond Development expressed interest in refurbishing the building and transforming it into apartments, but later decided not to move forward with redevelopment.

City Planner Emily Cole-Prescott said at Monday night’s City Council meeting that it would take a “substantial amount” of work to restore the property to assure that it will stay on the historic register.

Allied Engineering conducted a structural review of the house, and in a February report made many recommendations should someone want to restore the house. Recommendations include restoring brick and repositioning granite in the basement, replacing the floor, framework and rotting beams on the first and second floor and tearing down walls to determine if there is further damage, and complete reconstruction of the roof.

Councilor Nathan Johnston said in hindsight the city should have closed up holes in the roof so that the building wouldn’t have fallen into more disrepair.

“It’s rotting, it’s literally rotting,” he said. He said the city received court approval in 2015 to demolish the building, but at the time decided against it because there was community support in preserving the home. He said he thought the city should try to find someone who want to preserve the building, though it might not find someone who would want to take on such a project.

Councilor Alan Minthorn said he concurred, and the city should try to find a buyer who in favor of historic preservation, but if it can’t find a buyer, remove the building and sell the lot.

“It is a safety hazard. It’s an attractive nuisance for younger kids,” he said.

The council will decide at a later date whether to ask for bids for the property, and the matter will go before the council again on May 4.