Courtesy / Henry/Snayd Family
Dan Henry and Margaret Snayd see Lewiston as a great market for real estate investment.
May 2, 2020
Sale of an industrial building that once served machinery needs of Lewiston’s textile mills
Courtesy / Maine Realty Advisors
An 89,000-square-foot industrial building at 3 Middle St. in Lewiston sold to a Medford, Mass., investor for $895,000.
An 89,000-square-foot industrial building in Lewiston more or less fell into the lap of a Medford, Mass., investor who originally hails from Maine.
GWD Properties LLC bought 3 Middle St. from Hall & Knight Realty LLC for $895,000.
Josh Soley of Maine Realty Advisors represented the buyer in the transaction. Tim Millett of Porta & Co. and Chris Paszyc of The Boulos Co. represented the seller. The sale closed Feb. 25.
The building, at the corner of Middle and West Bates streets, was erected in 1852 for the Lewiston Machine Co., according to “Historic Lewiston: Its Architectural Heritage,” a 1997 publication of the Lewiston Historical Commission.
At the time, the company served the machinery needs of Lewiston’s growing textile community. The style is primarily Greek Revival.
In the early 1900s, it was converted to become a woolen mill for the Avon Manufacturing Co., according to “Historic Lewiston: A self-guided tour of our history, architecture and culture,” a 2001 publication of the city of Lewiston’s Historic Preservation Review Board.
Later, the building housed hardware and plumbing and supply companies.
“It has a history of being a plumbing and HVAC supply company for many, many decades,” Soley said.
The building is an assemblage of spaces added on over the years, "laid out like a maze,” he said.
Today, the building is leased to Ferguson Plumbing Supply, he said.
Ferguson is a nationwide wholesaler of commercial and residential plumbing supplies, according to its website.
Native Mainer
The buyer behind GWD Properties LLC is Dan Henry. His business partner is his wife, Margaret Snayd. The purchase was financed through TD Bank, Henry said.
The off-market deal came about when Henry sold a commercial property at 170 Elm St. in Biddeford and needed to complete an exchange under section 1031 of the IRS tax code. A 1031 exchange allows an investor to defer paying capital gains taxes on the sale of real estate by buying a similar property.
Soley had been one of the brokers in the Biddeford deal, which occurred in 2018. Soley has also represented Dan Henry’s brother and sister-in-law, Jim and Rebecca Henry, in several deals throughout Maine. That includes the couple’s purchase this past January of downtown Lewiston’s tallest building, commonly called the Professional Building, at 145 Lisbon St.
Dan Henry said his connection to Soley came about through his brother. The brothers were born and raised in Brewer.
Henry sold his Biddeford property because a buyer came along and the time was right, he said.
Soley found 3 Middle St. for the 1031 exchange.
Long-term hold
“I love Lewiston,” said Henry. “I feel that Lewiston is a great up-and-coming market, so I’m really excited.”
Henry views the property as a long-term, cash-flow hold.
“I thought it was a great opportunity,” he said. “The tenant is amazing. Plus, it’s a beautiful location,” adjacent to the Androscoggin River.
Henry had viewed other properties, but nothing that impressed him.
“This kind of fell in my lap,” he said.
Henry is vice president of franchise sales and operations for a fitness franchise called Tough Mudder Bootcamp.
Real estate investment is a side gig.
“Jim got me into real estate a handful of years ago,” he said of his brother. “I have some purchases in New Hampshire. Growing up in Maine and being a Mainer at heart, owning property in Maine is a special thing. And I love Lewiston.”
Henry said he and Soley are on the lookout for other Maine holdings. Important criteria include cash flow and value-add opportunity.
No major renovations are planned at 3 Middle St., he said. However, he added, he’s entering the state of Maine’s Voluntary Response Action Program, which allows applicants to voluntarily investigate and clean up properties if needed.
Lewiston as business incubator
The acquisition is just part of a growing interest in Lewiston, where investment has grown in recent years for reasons that include properties that go for a fraction of what they would cost in Portland, plus a municipal culture that encourages economic growth and development, Soley wrote in his blog post, “The Revitalization of Downtown Lewiston.”
At Maine Realty Advisors, "we’ve been forced to venture outside of the Portland metropolitan area to find better returns for our clients,” he wrote. “Lewiston is a great place to incubate young companies. I see people being priced out of Portland and moving to Lewiston, not just residential tenants, but commercial offices, healthcare corporations, and large-scale retailers.
“We’re earning returns in Lewiston that we wouldn’t typically be able to get in Portland.”
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