Renovations are still ongoing at the Route 26 building.
By Gail Geraghty
Staff Writer

PARIS – The new life of the old Oxford County Fair expo building has begun.

Even though renovations at the Route 26 building are not quite complete, Monday was moving day for the Norway Career Center.

Staff at the career center were using their own labor and vehicles to move furniture and equipment from their former Main Street, Norway, location. The job training and education center, part of a statewide network, will occupy a suite of five offices on the first floor of the newly-renovated Western Maine University and Community College Center.

The career center, part of Western Maine Community Action, will share a computer room and classroom space in the 13,000-square-foot building with the University of Maine and Central Maine Technical Center.

The mood was jubilant. The staff was joking about how they’ll be giving directions to the public.

With Pine Grove Cemetery on one side and Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School on the other, “We’ll tell them it’s between the high school and the cemetery,” said Jim Trundy, program manager for Western Maine Community Action.

The location is fitting, the staff agreed, for a facility devoted to “the time in between youth and old age, when people have to work for a living,” added Diane Peet.

The career center will work closely with Nikki Abbott, representing the University of Maine, and Joanna Backman, representing CMTC, to help job seekers or those wanting to change careers to get the educational training they need.

The center’s phone number, 743-7763, will remain the same.

Abbott said she expects a new round of classes to begin in the new facility by May. The classes already in progress will continue to be held at the high school.

With the three organizations working in partnership, the facility will offer individual classes, interactive television courses, and two- and four-year college degrees. In addition, area businesses will be able to request job training classes tailored specifically to their employment needs.

Abbott said a grand opening celebration is planned for early May.