FAQ

By repurposing Willow River Elementary, we hope to keep the community building within the community for the community. The services we envision are rental space for small businesses and nonprofits, commercial kitchen rental in blocks of time, an inclusive indoor playground, daytime community education, drop-in daycare (need to stay on property and up to 2 hours- $8/child), community lounge, rental of  gymnasium/auditorium, drop-in open gym.

See the Wold Report. Most of this will not need to be done as a community center versus a school building.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Dfz5q5rRTUBaNAcHgLfYPqO0Iij9RUYq/edit

By renting out previous classroom spaces at a low cost for nonprofits/small businesses, membership fees to use drop-in gym/indoor playground, indoor playground, rental of other spaces like commercial kitchen/gym/auditorium at affordable costs. 

The district wrote a clause that neither Houlton nor Willow can be a school for 10 years in the sale terms.

There are multiple zoning needs that will need to be approved by the city, but the building will need to be purchased first.

Provide an intergenerational meeting space for ideas, ingenuity, and gathering. It would primarily serve as a landlord, run the playground, and coordinate the open gym times.

We are not looking to run this as a school building, and the school's was about $38,000 per year. Eventually, improvements for solar powered electricity could be made to further reduce the cost. 

Most businesses in buildings also pay a flat fee for utilities.