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V O L . X X V N O. X X V O C T O B E R 2 8 , 2 0 1 9 6 Another commercial property on Monument Square sells B y L a u r i e S c h r e i b e r P o r t l a n d — The hand- some old buildings surround- ing Monument Square down- town continue to attract inter- est on the real estate market. In a deal that closed Oct. 7, Bradley McCurtain sold 15 Monument Square for $2.2 million. The buyer was a lim- ited liability corporation, 15 Monument Square LLC. McCurtain was an owner- occupier of the building who has been operating a coffee shop called Others! on the ground level. "It was a straightforward, private transaction," said Maine Realty Advisors's Josh Soley, who represented the buyer in the deal. "It wasn't on the market." Like most of the properties facing Monument Square, the building combines office space and ground-floor retail. It has two retail and six office units; about half of the spaces are vacant. Soley said he planned to start listing the available space immediately. Some renova- tions will be performed in the vacant offices spaces, and then those will be listed as well, he added. Soley is responsible for brokering the lease of one retail space in the building to Sisters Gourmet Deli several years ago. Others! will close, he added. According to the city of Portland's historic resources inventory, 15 Monument Square was built in 1891 to the design of architects Francis H. Fassett and Frederick Tompson. The property has been known as both the Choate Block and Columbia Hall. The four-story brick-and- stone building is an example of the late-19th century commercial Classic style. Other deals on Monument Square Other recent deals nearby include the sale of 18 Monument Square, a four-story brick building dating from 1913 that was designed by John Calvin Stevens and John Howard Stevens. Soley brokered that sale as well. 22 Monument Square, another 1913 building designed by Stevens, sold in January 2018 for $2.1 million. That was followed in April by the $4.25 million sale of 50 Monument Square. Called the Lancaster Block, it was built in 1881 from the designs of Fassett and Stevens. The nearby 14-story Time & Temperature Building, at 477 Congress St. on Monument Square, sold in October 2018 in an auction, with a winning bid of $9.3 million. Built in 1924, it's distinguished by a large display screen on the roof that flashes the time and local temperature. Lower rates offered by MaineHousing MaineHousing has dropped its base interest rate on 30-year First Home Loan mortgages, aimed primarily at first-time buyers, to 3.25%. e new rate is down from 3.375%. First Home Loan income and purchase price limits also increased earlier this year, result- ing in more people and homes qualify- ing for MaineHousing's loan program. According to MaineHousing's afford- ability index, the median salary needed to buy a house in Maine rose $16,386 from 2014 to 2018. In 2014, the median price of a home in Maine was $170,000, and to afford that home, a person had to make $47,381. e state's income was $49,747, and a person making that could afford a home of $176,000. In 2018, the state's median home price was $212,500, and a Mainer had to have an annual income of $64,367 to afford a house of that price. e state's median income was $56,987, and someone making that could afford a house costing $188,138. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E A deal involving Maine Water Co. received approval. The buyer, San Jose-based SJW Group, will have 1.5 million customers across California, Connecticut, Maine and Texas. Clinton, Conn.-based Connecticut Water provides water services to more than 136,000 customers, including 32,000 in Maine. Candidates tackle housing 'crisis' Portland Mayor Ethan Strimling and his three opponents in November's mayoral race on all highlighted the lack of affordable housing as a priority problem. "Our city is at a crossroads," Strimling said in his opening remarks at a debate hosted by the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce, part of the "Eggs & Issues" event series. Strimling, who has been mayor since December 2015, is seeking a second term. He's running against former Portland Board of Education Chair Kate Snyder; Spencer ibodeau, a real estate lawyer who serves on the Portland City Council; and Travis Curran, a waiter at Empire Chinese Kitchen. Both Strimling and Curran described the current housing situation as a crisis. "is really is a crisis for our city," said Strimling. He also said he'd propose a $15-an-hour minimum wage if re-elected. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King announced that Coastal Enterprises Inc. in Brunswick was awarded $1.2 million to implement the Incubating Child Care Centers in Rural Maine Project, an innovative five-year fi- nancing, social enterprise, business de- velopment and workforce initiative. The project seeks to provide capital and technical assistance to start-up child B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E S O U T H E R N Colby operations, development have $1.5B impact on Maine, study says — Changing a campus and the surrounding area for the better Biddeford tower clock ticks again, telling time for a new downtown — A symbol for downtown redevelopment Maine helps employers by helping inmates re-enter workforce — We need every available worker Maine Harvest Credit Union, nation's first to focus on agriculture, opens — America needs farmers and farm financing MaineHousing drops base interest rate for first-time home buyers — This is good news, but we still need more housing Affordable housing challenges loom large in Portland, report says — Although we didn't need a study to know that Prescription for Maine's health: It's all about access — That's a significant caveat Heat waves are costly, and UMaine study finds they may nearly double in size — Is Maine ready for climate change? C R E D I T S & D E B I T S B R I E F P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F M A I N E R E A LT Y A DV I S O R S In Portland, 15 Monument Square, an office and retail property, sold in October for $2.2 million. The Portland property, 15 Monument Square, combines office space and ground- floor retail.

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