Citation Video Project Team Highlights Video
The Povich Building, originally known as the Harvey Block, sits on Bath’s Front Street, and has served a range of retail purposes since being built in 1845. The upper floors were damaged by fire in the 1860s and the structure was modified by Thomas Harward who purchased the building in 1866 and added another story featuring Italianate-style windows. The building’s most notable period was from 1916 to 1994, when it was the home of the Morris Povich and Sons clothing store. The Povich name still graces the building and is a testament to the significant Jewish population of Bath in its early years. The Povich family has a long history in the city, beginning in 1875. In addition to owning the popular store, Morris Povich helped found the Beth Israel Synagogue nearby. This shop was where generations of Morse High School graduates went to pick up their caps and gowns, and where many children from the Midcoast area were fitted for their Boy and Girl Scout uniforms. Despite its rich history serving the area, the structure was vacant for a number of years until it was purchased by the Windward Development Group in 2017. When taken over by the company, the site was in need of all new operating systems and some aesthetic updating.
This adaptive reuse project began with a unique partnership between Mike Terriault and Terry Geaghan of Bath Brewing Company and Sean Ireland of Windward Development. Their plan was to create a food and beverage destination with a community-centric feel. The partners’ shared vision was to embrace the best of historic downtown Bath as a working class, shipbuilding town, while also including contemporary and forward thinking architectural and food and beverage concepts that look to Bath’s future. Windward Development and Bath Brewing Company put together an aggressive and creative business plan to attract investment from Gorham Savings, Bath Savings, CEI, and several individual community investors. Main Street Bath and the City of Bath were very supportive from the inception to the completion of the project.
This project was a complete renovation and rehabilitation of the historic building that included marrying the historic context of place with modern necessities including life safety and ADA accessibility. The renovations most significantly included implementation of all new systems, such as electrical, plumbing, and H-V-A-C. Structurally, wall and floor replacement were necessary, and facade improvements were implemented, which required the renovation of doors and windows, as well as creating a sense of arrival in the entryway through interior design changes. Beyond the rehabilitation or replacement of existing elements, the project also included the construction of a 400-square-foot, five-barrel system brewery made to fit the look and character of the historic building, which overlooks the Kennebec River.
The results of the renovation have been transformational and have inspired other owners and businesses to further invest in the historic downtown district. Economically, the business is powerful; pre-COVID, the building’s business was averaging more than 1,300 guests a week, delivering welcome foot traffic to the downtown, and creating forty-two new jobs on just 3,000 square feet, and it has attracted talent from near and far to fill leadership positions. Even during the current pandemic, the restaurant is open seven days a week, helping the downtown district to continue to thrive.
This project represents a unique partnership that embraces local small-scale redevelopment that reflects the best of the past while at the same time reaches for the future—creating both a unique and relevant project. This project reflects a necessary part of preservation action, which is the adaptive reuse of historic buildings to further their benefit within an area and create longevity in changing times. By taking up residence in already existing structures, businesses are able to promote the conservation of such sites while also breathing new life into the communities they were always meant to serve.
Project Participants
Sean Ireland, Windward Development Group
Michael Therriault, Therriault & Therriualt / Bath Brewing Company
Terry Geaghan, Bath Brewing Company
Mike Hays, Grant Hays & Associates
Frank Grondin, Calendar Island Construction
Justin Fundaro, Calendar Island Construction
John Nelson, Nelson Metal Fabrication
Steve Reno, Reno's Excavation
Gorham Savings Bank
Bath Savings Bank
Coastal Enterprises, Inc.
