Conservatory may gain city’s backing> Meeting leaves Rhodes encouraged

BANGOR — City councilors won’t take up the future of the Freese’s building until Wednesday evening, but Daryl Rhodes has a song in his heart after meeting with City Manager Edward Barrett and economic development director Ken Gibb on Thursday.

“I came away feeling very uplifted and very encouraged,” Rhodes said afterward. He believes there is a very good chance that the city will get behind the Northern Conservatory of Music’s proposal to develop the building and start the Maine School for the Arts.

Barrett was hesitant to say too much on Thursday, especially because the council’s meeting on Freese’s this past Monday was in executive session.

“I think there’s a chance, but until the council makes some formal decisions, I can’t say what’s going to happen. There are a number of options,” Barrett said. “The city could cash Mr. Fitzgerald’s check. The other extreme would be taking possession of the building and returning his check.”

The check in question is the approximately $62,000 in back taxes that Fitzgerald wants the city to cash as a preliminary to returning Freese’s to him.

“It is basically our position we have a mature tax lien and the building belongs to the city,” Barrett said.

It has been almost 11 months since Fitzgerald declared his intent to donate the building, saying he would retain 15,000 square feet of space on the first floor for a farmer’s market.

Since then, there have been many ups and downs in the process, not the least of which was the city’s taking title to the Freese’s building in December 1994 after two liens had matured. In addition, Rhodes and Fitzgerald have differed on what conditions could be placed on the donation.

At the council meeting next Wednesday, one of the proposals will be the oft-tabled order to return the empty downtown department store to Fitzgerald.

A new order would direct the city manager to take possession of the building on April 3 and secure the property.

That order, Rhodes hopes, would lead to an agreement between the city and the school. If that happens, “we’ll have to do a business plan and develop a schedule,” he said.

The music educator brings some valuable experience to the project, he says. In its 13 years in Bangor, the conservatory has provided 130,000 lessons to youngsters from 50 towns, he said. Staff members also have years of experience teaching in local schools and putting on performances.

Last week, both Rhodes and Fitzgerald attended a City Council workshop on the future of Freese’s, but nothing was worked out. Since then, Rhodes has met with city officials and talked with individual councilors to try to get the project back on track.

Barrett said Thursday that he did not think that Fitzgerald or his attorney had met with any city officials in the past few days. That was confirmed by City Solicitor Erik Stumpfel. Fitzgerald’s attorney, Charles Gilbert, is not in his office this week.

“The city did try to assist the different parties,” Barrett said. “At the moment that doesn’t seem to be working out. The city has looked at other alternatives.”

Rhodes hopes the green light will be given to an agreement between the city and the conservatory, which would sell a portion of the building to Realty Resources for senior housing.

From the proceeds, estimated at $225,000, the school would put $35,000 into repairs and $40,000 into structural analysis of the building and taking care of asbestos.

Rhodes had proposed having the city and the school each hold $75,000 of the remaining money in escrow for six months, but said the city wants to hold the whole amount in escrow.

Barrett emphasized more than once on Thursday that any decision was up to the City Council, but added, “I think there is a good chance that something may be worked out. … The city is concerned that something be done fairly immediately. We want to stabilize some of the major problems with the building and see some form of redevelopment of the property.”

That could be music to Daryl Rhodes’ ears.