Abandoned warehouse donated to New Balance

SKOWHEGAN – It could have been a white elephant. Most towns in Maine have at least one: an abandoned warehouse, a woolen mill, shoe manufacturer, dairy or other business that closed and left.

But when Dexter Shoe closed its Skowhegan facility on the Kennebec River earlier this year and a philanthropist donated the enormous 50,000-square-foot warehouse to the town of Skowhegan, three local businesses quickly lined up seeking occupancy. The lure of a “free building” was strong.

This week, town selectmen voted to give the building and land to New Balance Athletic Shoe Co. Town records value the property at $600,000.

Dexter Shoe closed the facility, eliminating 90 jobs, earlier this year and the company’s former owner, Harold Alfond, donated the land and structure to the town.