BIDDEFORD — In 2001, the organization Earn-a- Bike began meeting on the second floor of an old warehouse on Gooch Street. A construction heater was used to warm the place, but it had to be turned off when the group wanted to hear each other talk. When they had to go to the bathroom, the boys went into the woods; the girls used the facilities of the nearby sandwich store.

Fifteen years later, the nonprofit organization now known as the Community Bicycle Center is in a state-of-the art facility on Granite Street. It’s going stronger than ever, with three full-time and one part-time staff members, multiple programs for youth of all ages, and an ever-growing client base, according to organization founder and executive director, Andy Greif.

Because the organization is in such a strong position, both program-wise and financially, Greif said he feels certain the CBC, which has experienced troubling times in the past, will continue going strong long after he leaves.

And according to a statement released Wednesday, that will happen at the end of this year.

Greif said he’s just as surprised as anyone that he’s leaving the CBC.

“I always thought I would retire from here and come back as a dedicated volunteer,” he said.

However, the 60-year-old Greif and his wife Justine had been looking to move to an “intentional community,” and found such a place in Taos, New Mexico.

In their new home, the couple will not only have their own house lot, but will be part of a close-knit community with two common buildings, shared decision-making and other attributes that will be especially helpful as they grow older, said Greif.

While Greif is getting ready to move along, he leaves an amazing legacy in his place.

The CBC became part of the YMCA in Biddeford when the latter was on Main Street. Greif left, and the Y later closed down its Main Street location. With the help of the Biddeford Recreation Department, the YMCA bike assets were acquired, and in 2005, the Community Bicycle Center was born.

It set up shop in space donated by the city on Hill Street at St. Louis Field, where it remained for nearly 10 years. In that cramped location, which was convenient to Biddeford’s elementary and middle schools, hundreds of Biddeford youths learned to build and repair bikes, created bicycle art, made and drank bike smoothies, and much more.

With a small staff and a host of volunteers, Greif and the CBC changed lives, using bicycles to teach a variety of skills such as leadership, self-esteem, taking initiative, perseverance and many other life lessons.

When it was time to either move and grow or stagnate and possibly fold, Greif and his team did the seemingly impossible: They raised nearly half a million dollars to purchase and renovate a 4,800-square-foot facility on Granite Street, located on 6.4 acres that abuts Clifford Park.

Since the move to that space in September 2014, the organization has grown by leaps and bounds, Greif said.

There are new programs, such as the Kids Bike Factory, a job readiness program for older youth that trains participants how to fix high-end bikes for resale. But it also does more than that, he said, like “focusing on showing up to work on time, teaching how to present oneself and how to do things with integrity.”

The new programs are needed to meet the demand of the growing membership. Since last year, said Greif, the number of youths coming to the organization has grown 39 percent, from 300 to 420.

Not only are more children coming, he said, they are coming to the CBC at a younger age, visiting the center more frequently, and staying with the organization even as they grow older.

With all the growth that’s taking place, now may be a good time for a changing of the guard, said CBC board member Leo Menard.

“I think it’s going to be a good opportunity for the organization to have some fresh leadership,” he said. “Andy’s been there since the get-go, which is incredible. When we moved into this new center, everything changed.”

“Andy loves being with the kids,” Menard said – working with them one-on-one, going on bike rides, teaching them. “But we’ve grown so much, we need someone beating the drum.”

Greif has given the board of directors plenty of advance notice, and there should be enough time to find someone worthy to fill his shoes, said Menard.

— Associate Editor Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or [email protected].