BRUNSWICK

Coastal Enterprises Inc. founder Ron Phillips admitted to being a little taken aback by the response of some Brunswick residents who were saddened to learn of the demolition of the town’s former recreation center last year.

“Little did we know this recreation center issue was going to emerge. It’s ironic, in that we’re community developers,” said Phillips, speaking Thursday to the Brunswick Downtown Association as a way of introducing CEI to the downtown, where CEI is consolidating its Wiscasset and Portland offices.

CEI is putting most of its staff “under one roof” at 28-30 Federal St. In 2013, CEI reached an agreement to obtain the property through the Brunswick Development Corporation, said Phillips.

The two buildings there, the former municipal offices and former recreation center, are undergoing demolition.

Phillips noted that CEI offices fielded a lot of calls from those who had strong sentimental attachments to the rec center.

Meanwhile, Phillips said that demolition is taking longer than expected, due in part, because there was “more hazardous material than we thought.”

CEI should be moving into its new, two-story, 21,780-square-foot office building in August 2015.

Town offices have since moved to the renovated McLellan Building on Union Street. Parks and Recreation has a new facility at Brunswick Landing.

Phillips founded CEI in 1977.

What had then been a three-person staff has grown to include 88 staff and 40 board and advisory volunteer board members.

It has moved $2.5 billion for financing and other assistance in developing small, medium, and micro businesses, natural resources sectors, and community facilities such as family and center-based child care, and affordable housing.

Businesses that have been aided by CEI to become successful include Delorme and Tom’s of Maine.

Today, the organization manages $980 million in capital.

What CEI does can be a little hard to explain.

“Maybe we’re an alternative bank — an alternative source of capital,” Phillips said.

Phillips said organizations such as CEI came out of the civil rights movement of the 1960s in order to help “people on the margins of society.”

To do so, CEI brings together public and private capital to invest in small business, housing, child care, and other services in order to help those who are disenfranchised.

CEI does occasionally wade into politics, as evidenced by its support of Question 3 on the state ballot this November. Question 3 asks voters to approve a $4 million bond administered by the Finance Authority of Maine to insure small business loans to spur job creation, revitalize downtowns and strengthen the rural economy.

The bond was vetoed by Gov. Paul LePage and overridden by wide margins in the Legislature.

“I think the governor was misinformed,” said Phillips. “He vetoed it because he thinks FAME has a lot of money and isn’t using it.”

Phillips said FAME has capital from a federal source that can’t be spent.

“The governor didn’t understand that. The Legislature did and overrode him, and hopefully the people of Maine will vote for that,” Phillips said.

Such borrowing has been important to local businesses, such as Rynel, which was eventually purchased by Mölnlycke Health Care, which, in turn, operates a facility out of Brunswick Landing.

jswinconeck@timesrecord.com

Talk topics

REC CENTER: Ron Phillips noted CEI offices fielded calls from those who had strong sentimental attachments to the torn down rec center.

DEMOLITION: Phillips said demolition is taking longer than expected, due in part, because there was “more hazardous material than we thought.”

QUESTION 3: CEI supports Question 3. It asks voters to approve a $4 million bond administered by FAME to insure small business loans to spur job creation and strengthen the rural economy. The bond was vetoed by Gov. Paul LePage and overridden by the Legislature. “I think the governor was misinformed,” said Phillips.