SACO — Local downtown organization Saco Main Street is now dishing out more than economic development. The local economic development organization has opened an ice cream store at 209 Main St., called the Saco Scoop.
The grand opening for Saco Scoop is set for 10 a.m. on Saturday. Summer hours will be 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 9 p.m. on Sunday.
Saco Scoop is a new venture for Saco Main Street, a nonprofit organization that’s part of a national network dedicated to revitalizing downtowns.
Saco Main Street will be moving its office in back of the ice cream shop. The ice cream shop will support the staff, the product and the rent, with any money left over going to Saco Main Street, said Saco Main Street Director Rob Biggs.
Don and Jan McGarva, who owned the former Saco Bay Creamery, an ice cream shop downtown that closed last year, donated their equipment to the Saco Scoop, and Jan will be working at the Saco Scoop temporarily to help the new enterprise get off the ground.
“I really wanted to see an ice cream shop downtown,” said Jan. “Who doesn’t love ice cream?”
Saco Scoop will feature 32 flavors of Shain’s of Maine ice cream, made in Sanford. The store will also sell cotton candy, Thornton Academy T-shirts, and an assortment of Maine-made products.
The ice cream shop has indoor seating in front of large windows overlooking Main Street, with photographs, antiques and signs that honor the city’s past and the historic nature of the building. According to information on the city’s website, the building was built in 1837 as a hotel and stage coach terminal, and was one of only a few early Greek Revival hotel buildings to survive in the state.
There is outside seating next to the building at a small park nearby that was recently renovated by Saco Main Street with the help of local sponsors. There will be a window service where dog dishes of ice cream will be served.
Biggs said he’s exploring ways to broaden the usage of the ice cream shop in the winter, including renting it out for private parties and hosting live music.
“We’re trying to make it fun for kids and fun for adults,” Biggs said.
Biggs took great care not to replicate products that are featured in other downtown businesses. He said he consulted with CIA, a coffee shop that also sells ice cream before opening, and the owners of CIA gave him their blessing, as ice cream is a small part of their inventory.
Two locals who were particularly enthusiastic about the opening are Bill and Mary Johnson. Mary Johnson has a connection with the location, as two generations of her family ran Atkinson’s furniture store there. Mary said she thought the ice cream shop was a good shop for the Main Street store front, as the first floor of downtown buildings should have businesses that draw people off the street.
— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].
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