The University of Maine withdrew its decision to sell The Frederick Hutchinson Center to Calvary Chapel Church Belfast. The University–facing financial challenges–initially sought to sell the building, as it has been underutilized in recent years. The bidding process will reopen later this month.
The Frederick Hutchinson Center in Belfast was donated by the Bank of America to the University of Maine in 2007, and the building was built in 2000. Following the pandemic, many assert that the Hutchinson center has been under-utilized. No degree-seeking student has had a class there in several years, and the center has also seen a decline in space rentals from outside organizations since 2020.
Unable to keep up with daily operations costs, UMaine and other schools in the system have been selling properties to generate revenue and cut expenses. This summer, the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the University of Maine system approved the sale of the Hutchinson center. However, this is not a traditional commercial real estate sale. After input from the Belfast community— and to keep with the original mission of the property— the University opted to have local nonprofits submit creative proposals to purchase the building.
A few parties submitted bids to the University. The primary bids were from The Future of the Hutchinson Center Steering Committee, Waterfall Arts (FHC-WA), the Calvary Chapel Church Belfast and Waldo Community Action Partners (WCAP). The FHC-WA proposal was for a local hub of non-profit spaces. This would include spaces for senior citizens and a space for the chamber of commerce. The Calvary Church Belfast plan was for the space to be home to many of their programs, including a homeschool co-op, a drug and alcohol recovery program and their Sunday service. The WCAP plan included spaces and programs that assist low-income Waldo County residents.
In August, UMaine announced that it had elected Calvary Chapel Belfast as the winning bidder on the Hutchinson center. Both WCAP and Calvary Chapel Belfast submitted bids of one million dollars.
This decision sparked public outcry. Members of the community were concerned with losing the initial purpose of the Hutchison center, the public education mission. Others came out with stories of how the church carried and promoted views that could be considered extremist and politically conservative. Many members of the Belfast community voiced frustration with the loss of a public entity.
Furthermore, there were concerns about an internet hub located in the building. The Hutchinson center contains a Networkmaine internet connectivity hub that powers the internet for local entities including public schools. There were concerns about a private owner’s maintenance of this critical community infrastructure.
In the past two weeks, UMaine revoked its bid to Calvary Church Belfast. In a public statement, the University claimed proper procedure was not followed during the bidding process. However, members of the church have been publicly vocal about their perception of religious discrimination. About 30 members of the church came to the BoT meeting on Sept. 16 to express their frustrations. The BoT has no say in the sale of the Hutchinson Center.
UMaine expects to re-open the RFP bidding process on Sept. 26. At that point, all the previous bidders are invited to resubmit their bids. Greg Huston, pastor of Calvary Chapel Belfast, publicly stated that the church will be pursuing legal action against UMaine. In a Sept.17 interview with The Maine Wire, Huston said, “We are pursuing litigation. If we were an LGBTQ+ group, this would never have happened.”
