Dear Editor:

On June 13, Wiscasset voters will find two articles on their ballot relating to the Old Academy Building. This town-owned structure (built in 1807) has been leased to the Maine Art Gallery (MAG) for more than 60 years for $1 year rent. Article 56 is a request from MAG for funds not to exceed $28,800 to match a foundation grant for long-deferred preservation maintenance by MAG (primarily restoration of the windows that the town purchased and installed in the 1980s). Matching grants programs were devised by foundations to ensure that there was broad-based, private support for a nonprofit’s project. In other words, it is normally expected that the matching funds would be generated by gifts and pledges from membership and other supporters, including businesses and other parties. However, rather than seeking such private funding support for this project, MAG has turned over the entire matching bill to the Town. Three of five Select Board members recommend a “no” vote to this article, seconded by the Budget Committee in a unanimous “no” vote and I urge taxpayers to vote “no” accordingly. MAG’s current lease requires them to maintain the structure and yet these are not the only monies they requested from the Town this year, the other being a request for $40K which was discussed, but rejected for inclusion on the 2023 Warrant. 

Article 73 is a proposal by Selectman Maloney that the Board consider sale of the Old Academy Building “at fair market value with the Right of First Refusal to…the Maine Art Gallery.” I fully support this proposal if the town ensures that criteria are included in the sales documents to ensure that renovation work by the purchaser must follow the Secretary of the Interior’s standards for historic preservation. I have already pledged $1,000 to the Maine Art Gallery towards purchase of the Old Academy Building—provided these guidelines are adhered to. Vote “Yes” on Article 73 to remove future financial impacts to taxpayers for its care and ensure the preservation of the Old Academy Building.

James Kochan

Wiscasset