Changes planned at the L.L. Bean corporate campus in Freeport include converting what is used primarily as a warehouse into offices. Taylor Abbott / The Forecaster
FREEPORT — An application for changes to L.L. Bean’s corporate offices that will allow the company to renovate warehouse space into offices with room for approximately 1,200 employees was approved by the Project Review Board.
The application received final approval July 24, pending a building permit from the code enforcement officer for the property at 1 Casco St. and any additional state permits.
According to Bean spokesman Mac McKeever, the project will be completed in several phases, and is expected to be done in 2024.
“We are planning a series of renovations on our corporate campus,” McKeever said in a July 23 email. “The project will include enhancements to the interior space of the corporate office building.”
Warehouse space in a building that already includes offices and a cafeteria will be converted to office space and the facade of the building will be changed. A patio may be included in the future.
Amendments to the site plan include potential traffic changes, work on water and sewer systems, and creating a small parking lot to add 41 spaces added to the more than 1,150 now on the campus.
According to Kylie Mason of South Portland-based engineering firm Sebago Technics, who presented the plan at the June 19 meeting of the Project Review Board, renovations would also include new green space and a new employee entrance. The outside of the building will be redone with glass and metal paneling, giving it less of a warehouse look.
“This will give us the opportunity to make several enrichments such as updated working spaces, newer technology, more natural light and increased outdoor work areas,” McKeever said, “enabling us to continue meeting the needs of our employees while maintaining our presence in the Freeport community.”
The building now accommodates about 900 people, and would have the potential to add an additional 300 employees when the project is complete, according to engineer Derek Caldwell of Sebago Technics.
Questions were raised by the town engineer regarding changes to traffic on Main Street, but according to Assistant Town Planner Caroline Pelletier, the application did not propose any significant changes.
The changes will generate an additional 107 trips to the building during the busiest travel times, according to Caldwell.
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