Museum L-A, undeterred by fire, seeks input on new building design
Photo / Maureen Milliken
The former Camden Yarns building, 1 Beech St., in Lewiston, is being renovated to house Museum L-A, which is currently in the Bates Mill complex.
Museum L-A's plans to move from its location in the Bates Mill in Lewiston to a nearby former woolen mill on the edge of Simard-Payne Park haven't been derailed by a recent fire and vandalism that damaged the building and artifacts inside.
The museum this week plans to hold community sessions to discuss the design process and get input from both the residential and business community.
“The day we have all been waiting for is here and we want to listen to our community, as we always do, to find out what they want to see in their new museum,” said Rachel Desgrosseilliers, museum executive director, in a news release. "This is very important to us."
The June 9 fire and vandalism of artifacts has not deterred the museum from moving forward with its plans, Desgrosseilliers said.
Architects on the project, including Gabrielle Russell of Platz Associates in Auburn and Paul Lewandowski of PaulDesignsProject in Portland, will be at the forums.
“This is a very important step in the design process for the new museum,” said Lewandowski, whose grandmother worked in the mills. “We try to not start with preconceived ideas about what the museum will look like and rather have discussions as a way of understanding how the greater community can experience the new Museum L-A."
The museum bought the sprawling former Camden Yarns mill in 2009, and has been working toward moving there for the past decade. The building, constructed in 1864, had several later additions. It has been vacant for decades, and much of it is in disrepair. Some 17,000 square feet of the mill has been removed, and other parts stabilized. The museum hopes to move into 15,000 to 20,000 square feet of renovated space.
The museum has put about $1.5 million into the mill, and Desgrosselliers told Mainebiz that the final renovation is expected to cost around $13 million.
"There are many things included in that," she said Monday. "We are working with architectural team now to zone in on many design and concept decisions, including exhibit design that need to be made to give a final figure." She said once the conceptual design is finished, the exact cost will be better known.
The museum focuses on the working and community history of the Lewiston-Auburn region. It is a partner in several major community development programs, including the new Franco Trail L-A project, which promotes Lewiston and Auburn's historic sites, particularly those related to its Franco-American history, and also ties in with a New England tour that stretches to Rhode Island.
Still determining fire damage
The June 9 fire was not the first time the building, vacant for decades, had been vandalized or damaged. In the past few years, antique gears were stolen from the mill building, as well as about $17,000 worth of copper.
Desgrosseillers said she is meeting with structural engineers today and still trying to determine costs associated with damage to artifacts that were stored in the building and damaged by both vandals and smoke from the fire.
The fire was a "flameless combustion," of an undetermined origin, but most probably caused by a human element, the museum said in a post the day of the fire. Vandals had cut through a boarded up window and artifacts from the former yarn mill were damaged, including blankets woven at the mill that had been packaged, but were torn, ripped and strewn about the the building's first floor.
"Unfortunately, the high estimated costs of the damage were not included in the museum’s budget," the post said.
Community sessions this week
The first community session will be this afternoon and aimed at young families and young professionals. It will run from 4-6 p.m. at the Pub at Baxter Brewery, which is also in the mill complex, at 100 Mill St. It was also designed by Platz.
A session for the general public will be held from 5:30-7 p.m. Thursday at The Atrium at Bates Mill.
The forums will have a presentation of the status of the new museum building process and its phases, followed by a discussion about the relationship between the museum and the community.
“We look forward to seeing lots of people attend this meeting to share their dreams and ideas for the new Museum L-A,” Desgrosseilliers said.
The community will get updates and more opportunities to weigh in as the design process continues, the release said.
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