AUBURN, Maine — This week, the Auburn City Council approved the sale of the historic St. Louis Chruch to developer Tom Robinson.
The church property, located at 32 Dunn St., has been on and off the market for nearly a decade, Auburn’s Director of Economic Development Jay Brenchick said.
"We wanted to find a developer who was going to honor the architecture and the overall look of the building," Brenchick told NEWS CENTER Maine. "The challenge is we had to find somebody with a true passion for a project like this."
Robinson’s plan for the church, which he is purchasing for $50,000, is to create 20 new bedroom market-rate apartments, according to a press release from the City of Auburn.
Although the building is structurally sound, it's in need of a million-dollar repair, Brenchick said.
Like many Maine cities and towns, Auburn is facing a housing shortage. It's one reason why Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque is excited about the project.
"This is a great example of urban infill when you’re taking an abandoned property, in this case, abandoned for over a decade, and you’re finding the right developer who can convert this into really obtainable housing that will match the rest of the neighborhood," Levesque explained to NEWS CENTER Maine.
Work is expected to begin on the church in the coming months and will take several years to finish, Brenchick said.