Photo / Tim Greenway
Brett Johnson and his dog Mateo at 66 Front Street in Bath
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Historic building on Bath's Front Street gets full makeover
Photo / Courtesy of Brett Johnson
The building at 66 Front St. in Bath is being rehabbed by Maine Street Mercantile and Mfg. Co.
One of Bath's most prominent retail buildings is undergoing a full rehab, which when completed this winter, will enable Maine Street Design Co. to relocate from its current shop just a few blocks away.
The building at 66 Front St. was built in 1894 and was most recently home to the House of Logan clothing shop; that business left this past spring. Over the years the space had also been occupied by Hallet’s Drug Store and a J.J. Newbury department store.
Maine Street Design Co. owner Brett Johnson believes the building — and the whole block — was designed by John Calvin Stevens, after fire destroyed the earlier construct.
The property is one of several that Benjamin St. John purchased from Sagadahock Real Estate Association when the Morse family began to divest of its downtown holdings, which at one point totaled 19 buildings.
St. John paid $1.3 million for the 26,229-square-foot retail and office building in 2021.
Johnson is renovating the 2,000-square-foot street level space, literally from floor to ceiling, replacing flooring, windows and the front entryway. He pulled down a dropped ceiling to uncover the original structure which had been hidden for decades. “It’s part of letting the building breathe again and be honest about its age,” Johnson said.
“We have left portions of the beams, brick and steel exposed,” Johnson added, “so the building can tell its own story.”
Johnson has intentionally repurposed elements from other local buildings, including flooring from a project down the street and lighting fixtures salvaged from a former church on Congress Avenue.
“It’s a way of keeping Bath’s material history in circulation rather than sending it to a landfill,” Johnson said.
Johnson is moving his 25-year-old design firm — and changing its name to Maine Street Mercantile & Mfg. Co. — from its current location in the Medanick Building at 160 Front.
“The Medanick space has served us well, but 66 Front allows the business to grow without losing its sense of intimacy," Johnson said. “It’s not about becoming bigger for its own sake — it’s about being more useful, more legible and more welcoming."
The new space will also allow Johnson to host workshops, demonstrations and small-format educational events, focused on materials, finishes, historic paint and wallpaper, “and the practical knowledge behind good design and building stewardship.”
The rehab team includes Johnson’s brother Chris Johnson, a master carpenter, boatbuilder and owner of Harpswell-based Northeast Composites, and Eric Gardner, also a master carpenter and builder.
Johnson said the project represents a significant capital investment — on the order of $100,000. He’ll be applying for the city's Fit-Up Grant to help offset a portion of the costs and to the American Express Main Street America grant. “In addition, we’ve secured historic review approvals to bring the storefront back into alignment with the building’s original architecture.
“With the support of a close-knit local trade community, the work has felt less like a typical build-out and more like a barn raising.”
The targeted opening date for the space is Feb. 1, 2026, with final staging and finishing occurring in January.
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