SCARBOROUGH—The Southern Maine Agency on Aging has put its Scarborough headquarters building up for sale for $2.5 million, according to CEO Megan Walton.
Walton said the agency was already considering whether the building still entirely met its needs when the coronavirus pandemic broke out and the agency closed the building at 136 Route 1, to all clients and most staff. After having staff working well at home for several months, Walton said the agency went ahead with plans to put the building up for sale.
“It kind of just accelerated our decision,” she said.
The agency offers a number of programs for senior citizens, including meals, Medicare counseling, exercise programs and support for family members. Some programs, such as meal deliveries, are continuing as usual, Walton said, but other programs that were often conducted in person prior to the pandemic have been able to continue virtually, which helped inform the agency’s decision to sell.
“All of the core services we offer, we’re continuing to do,” she said.
Another factor, she said, was how well the agency’s clients took to online services. Despite the misconception that the elderly have difficulty working with technology, Walton said the agency found just the opposite was true, that agency clients worked well with staff members despite the isolation caused by the pandemic.
“We’ve actually seen a very different response,” she said.
The agency already operates seven other locations in both York and Cumberland counties, the largest in Biddeford, where the agency offers care to patients with Alzheimer’s and related dementias. As to what will happen to the current headquarters following the sale, Walton said the agency is exploring three options: Moving the headquarters to another location, most likely in Biddeford, staying in the Scarborough building after the sale and leasing it from the new owners, or looking for another building entirely to lease office space. It’s hard to say which way the agency will go, she said, with the coronavirus pandemic still happening.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we did a combination of all three,” she said.
According to a listing from The Boulos Company, the building, was constructed in 1950. Walton said the nonprofit agency, which formed in 1973, was initially at a location in Portland before moving to Scarborough 17 years ago.
Sean Murphy 780-9094
Email: seanmurphy@theforecaster.net
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