WATERVILLE — An auto body and collision repair business in existence for 50 years this month is constructing a new, 12,500-square-foot building on College Avenue across from Huhtamaki.
Maurice & Son Auto Body Inc. has outgrown its location at 25 West St., Fairfield, and that site will close once all the equipment and tools are moved to College Avenue in November, according to co-owner Mike Bard. The Maurice & Son location on U.S. Route 201 in Skowhegan will remain open, he said.
The Waterville Planning Board on May 15 voted 5-0 to approve final plans for the auto body repair shop, located at the intersection of College Avenue and Crossway Street. Scott Braley, president of Plymouth Engineering, of Plymouth, represented the project at that meeting.
“We’re thrilled to have an existing business grow and expand and add new employees,” Kimberly Lindlof, president and chief executive officer of the Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce, said Monday of the project. “It’s a wonderful sign that the economy’s growing. We will reach out to them to do a ribbon-cutting.”
The Bards purchased the 232A College Ave. site, which is about 9 acres, just south of the Huhtamaki parking lot on the west side of the avenue. The new, two-story steel building is being constructed between Motor Supply Co. at 232 College Ave. and Orthopedic Physical Therapy at 234 College Ave.
J.M. Brown General Contractor Inc., of Hermon, started construction in July. While the promised date of completion is December 15, the work has gone so smoothly it is expected to be done in early November, according to Bard. He said moving from the Fairfield location is expected to take about a week.
Bard’s father, Maurice Bard, now retired, started the business on West Street in Fairfield in 1967.
“My father always had a healthy staff here in Fairfield, usually between five and eight people depending on the economy,” Mike Bard said.
As the business grew, the Bards constructed more additions onto the Fairfield building.
“In 2008, I added 4,000 square feet,” Mike Bard said. “I figured that’s as much as we would need, but we just keep getting busier.”
In 2011, the Bards opened the Skowhegan location. Between the two sites, Maurice & Son employs 17 people. Bard expects to hire at least three more people after the College Avenue shop opens and employees get settled, he said.
Bard’s wife Michelle said the business celebrates 50 years this month. Both she and her husband said the new location will give the shop better visibility.
“It’s super exciting,” she said. “We wanted better exposure, and we thought it was the right time to do it.”
The shop does body work on vehicles that have been in accidents, as well as for damage such as scratches and rust using Axalta paint, according to Mike Bard.
“We are direct repair for quite a few insurance companies, so we have cars being sent here,” he said.
He said a lot of people have been asking workers at Motor Supply Inc. what is being built next door. The Bards plan to erect a 4-by-12-foot Maurice & Son banner soon at the site, he said.
Meanwhile, he plans to sell his 8,500-square-foot building on just under four acres on West Street in Fairfield after he vacates it, but initially may use it for storage, he said.
Amy Calder — 861-9247
Twitter: @AmyCalder17
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