WALDOBORO — The Town of Waldoboro is trying again to spark interest in salvaging and relocating an historic old home, the Hoffses House, from its current location on the Friendship Road. Otherwise, it is bound for demolition.

“This Request for Proposal (RFP) asks for offers to purchase, remove, and relocate the main house, the back house, the barn, and their respective foundations (the Personal Property) located on the Hoffses House (the House),” reads the official municipal notice. “Dismantlement and relocation are preferred to be completed by June 30, 2024.  The Town of Waldoboro (the “Town”) will evaluate all timely submitted proposals and select the one that best meets the requirements of this RFP.”

Built in the mid-19th Century, the Greek Revival Style house and its ancillary structures are to be moved, or demolished.  A previous RFP to dismantle and relocate the house was published on Oct. 2, 2023. No companies bid to relocate the structures. 

The Hoffses Homestead is historically significant because it was once the landing area for a barge that connected one side of the Medomak River to the other. Prior to that, it was believed to be a tavern. The property fell under town ownership in 2020.

The historic Hoffses home overlooks the Medomak River. In the 1950s, the manufacturer GTE purchased abutting land and started manufacturing light bulbs. For years, the company dumped spent solvents into the Medomak River, according to a timeline posted on the Waldoboro website. The site was put under a Maine Department of Environmental Protection consent order requiring GTE to remediate hazardous waste contamination. 

GTE sold its Sylvania brand, including the Waldoboro factory and land, to OSRAM. OSRAM/Sylvania, which continued to manufacture light bulbs until closing the factory in 2006. OSRAM/Sylvania became Ledvance in 2016. 

By 2020, Ledvance had not made progress on abatement or reclamation of either property and offered to donate both to the town. Waldoboro voters approved accepting the gift in the November 2020 election. 

At a Nov. 28, 2023 Select Board meeting, Waldoboro Town Manager Julie Keizer, Planning and Development Director Maxwell Johnstone, and the present Board members discussed options for an updated RFP. 

Select Board member Michael Thayer suggested the town specifically invite demolition contractors to bid on the house. 

“I’ve been very vocal about trying to preserve that house; I don’t believe it’s going to be salvageable in any meaningful way,” said Thayer of his years on the Sylvania Task Force Committee, which has been working toward a satisfying solution for the properties.

“We can’t make somebody move it,” said Select Board Chair Abden Simmons. The Board voted unanimously to post the second RFP. 

The Board directed Keizer to obtain from Maine’s Historic Preservation Commission a list of contractors who may want to dismantle and preserve the home and notify them of the RFP. 

Keizer viewed the house sometime prior to the Feb. 7, 2022 Sylvania Development Committee Meeting, where she reported it was in rough shape. It was later burgled. The house apparently has mold, lead, and asbestos, and both it and the land are under Maine DEP covenant severely restricting potential uses. 

At Special Town Meeting on Sep. 23, 2023, voters agreed to sell the house for relocation, or, failing that, demolition. 

Bids are due January 31, 2024. Waldoboro hopes the house will be gone by June 30, 2024.  

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