Photo / Maureen Milliken
The Waterville Savings Bank vault will remain in space to be leased by Money Cat Fried Chicken and Donuts.
May 16, 2018
Second restaurant tenant signs at building redeveloped by Colby
Photo / Maureen Milliken
Money Cat Fried Chicken and Donuts will occupy the corner space at Colby College-owned 173 Main St. in Waterville.
By Maureen Milliken
WATERVILLE — The second storefront commercial space in Colby College-owned 173 Main St. has a tenant, the college announced last week.
Money Cat Fried Chicken and Donuts will occupy the 2,500 square feet on the corner of Temple and Main streets. The other ground-floor space — a 3,500-square-foot L-shaped unit — was leased by Patrick Mulligan in February and will house a Portland Pie pizza franchise.
The terms of the lease, brokered by CBRE | The Boulos Co., were not made public by Colby.
The 40-seat restaurant, which will serve doughnuts and Thai-inspired fried chicken, is owned by Kevin Sandes, who owns the Eight 8 Donut Cafe in Portland and Dallas, Texas, chef David Gilbert. It is expected to open in late summer.
'More than a business'
The space was once the Waterville Savings Bank, and still has a large brass vault, as well as mosaic tile floors. The vault will be retained by the tenants, as will the original restored flooring, Colby officials said.
The owners plan to employ eight to 10 workers.
Featured will be Thai street-food inspired fried chicken and made-to-order bite-size doughnuts, in a collaboration between the two owners, who met at Johnson & Wales University in Rhode Island, where they attended culinary school, according to a Colby news release.
The release said they were looking for a location for their chicken and doughnuts collaboration and Waterville “with an influx of residents and professionals in the downtown area,” because of the renovation efforts, presented a good opportunity.
“You never know what can happen,” said Gilbert. “One thing I’ve learned is to not be afraid to take risks.”
“This is more than a business,” said Sandes. “It’s about building community, friendships, connections.”
Colby bought the building in 2015 as part of its $50 million downtown revitalization project, which included purchase of four other buildings.
The school is also building a 150,000 square foot mixed use building on Main Street, across the street from 173, which will have 52 student and faculty apartments, as well as classrooms and retail space.
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