New home for area Boy Scouts quickly taking shape in Orono > Freedom Hall’s look full of symbolism, says council president

ORONO — Work is progessing quickly on the new regional headquarters for the Boy Scouts of northeastern Maine.

With its stone chimney, 20-foot windows, cedar shingles and green roof, the Katahdin Area Council’s 49,000-square-foot regional service center is shaping up quite nicely.

It sits on more than 35 acres of prime Orono real estate on Kelly Road near the I-95 interchange, the gift of Galen Cole and the Cole Family Foundations.

“It’s taking on character. It’s taking on some color,” said Brian Ames, Katahdin Council president and owner of the Ames Corp., the Bangor architectural firm that developed the building and site designs.

“What’s left really is internal work — finishes, plumbing, lighting, flooring,” he said.

The new regional headquarters — called Freedom Hall — will house a Scouting Museum and a store, a dining area, a conference room and large room with a fireplace made of native stone, much of it collected on site.

The back part of the complex will contain offices. A second-story loft will provide room for storage.

“We’re very pleased with the progress and the quality of construction and how well the project has been received,” Ames said. “But we still have a lot to do, especially in fund raising.”

The council announced recently that its $700,000 fund-raising campaign has surpassed the halfway mark. That figure includes in-kind contributions of labor, expertise, materials and equipment.

“Fund raising is proceeding on three fronts,” Ames said Thursday. Project supporters include community leaders, corporations and businesses, and troops and packs from through out the council’s service area.

The Katahdin Council serves an estimated 5,000 Scouts and 3,000 adult volunteers in northeastern Maine. The largest council in land area east of the Mississippi River, it encompasses all of Aroostook, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Waldo, Washington and Hancock counties.

“That is why we really wanted to be located close to the interstate, to better accommodate some of our far-flung troops and packs,” Ames said.

Construction began on Veterans Day, when up to a dozen local contractors met at the site to complete the groundwork. Work continued steadily over the winter.

Ames said that the council hopes to start moving into its new home by May 15. The Scouts originally were given an April 15 deadline to vacate their current headquarters on North Main Street in Brewer, which will be razed this spring to make way for the new Bangor-Brewer bridge.

When it became evident that the Scouts needed more time, the council obtained an extension allowing them to occupy the Brewer building until June 30.

While the exterior of the new headquarters will be clad in cedar shingles, the entrance will feature a stone accent wall and a brass-colored Scouting emblem.

Ames said the decision to incorporate stone inside and outside was for more than cosmetic reasons. It also is meant to make a philosophical statement.

“It all sort of ties into the idea that it signifies a long-lasting organization. One with solid roots that obviously has been around for a long time and intends to stay a long time,” he said.

The fireplace, which was affordable because stone was so readily available, also ties into Maine’s Scouting heritage. “There’s a similar fireplace at Camp Roosevelt [in Eddington],” Ames noted.

The building project is receiving widespread support. A number of area contractors and suppliers have donated time, equipment and materials. Donations have included a water well, concrete work and asphalt.

James River Paper Co. has pledged $35,000, and Bangor Savings Bank pledged $25,000. Ralph Leonard, Doug Brown and G. Pierce Webber have made substantial personal donations to the construction program.

“Naturally, we’ve found that most people are quite willing to contribute some amount,” Ames said, adding that donors can spread payments over as long as three years.