A former Lewiston school that has been redeveloped to hold nearly four dozen apartments is on the market for just shy of $7 million.
The Jordan School on Wood Street in Lewiston has 45 apartments, including four studios and 26 one-bedroom units. The remaining 15 apartments have two bedrooms. The hulking brick building, built in the Italian-Renaissance style, offers more than 57,300 square feet of living space.
The property hit the market in July for $7.3 million, but the asking price was knocked down earlier this month to $6.9 million. The building last sold in May 2023 for $4.9 million, Zillow records show.
“I’ve had a lot of out of state activity on this property,” said Thomas Gadbois of F.O. Bailey Real Estate, the listing agent for the property. “It definitely demands a higher price than your average multi-unit building. It’s a lot of units in one building, which is very appealing to investors.”
Built in 1902, the building hosted Lewiston High School — the school’s second home — until 1931. It then became an elementary school until 1983 before it was converted to a multifamily residential property in 1988.
The building’s other features include high ceilings, large windows, designated parking for each unit and laundry facilities on two floors. Some units still hold evidence of its former life as a school. For example, one unit has an old stage in it, Gadbois said.
The property sits around the corner from Central Maine Medical Center and is less than a mile from Bates College.
The building is named after Lyman G. Jordan, who was the principal of Lewiston High School from 1874 to 1889 and served on the Lewiston Board of Education from 1872 to 1874 and again from 1890 to 1905. He later became a chemistry and biology professor at Bates College, according to the National Register of Historic Places.
The sellers have “put well over seven figures” to make a series of improvements to the building, including installing a new elevator system and replacing both the upper and lower roofs, according to the listing, Gadbois said.
“It’s probably one of the nicest multifamily buildings in Lewiston and is really turnkey for the next owner,” Gadbois said. “It’s hard to put a price on a property like this.”
Additionally, 38 of the 45 units have undergone substantial renovations in recent years, including receiving updated flooring, kitchens, bathrooms and appliances among other new finishes.
All but one of the building’s 45 apartments are occupied, and the last is undergoing renovations, Gadbois said.
“There’s a waiting list to get into this building,” Gadbois said. “It’s not your average property.”
The apartments range in size from roughly 500 square feet for a studio to 900 square feet for a two-bedroom unit, according to the seller. Rents go from roughly $1,400 to more than $1,800 depending on the size of the unit.
“It’s an asset that someone would be proud to own,” Gadbois said. “Everybody in the area knows what the Jordan School is.”