NORWAY – The Board of Selectmen unanimously agreed Thursday to confer with the town attorney on options for the damaged and vacant Opera House on Main Street.

Selectman Bruce Cook said Norway Downtown passed a resolution Thursday morning encouraging the town to condemn the building.

The recommendation mirrors that of Greg Paxton, executive director of Maine Preservation, who said last week that condemning the 1894 three-story brick building will allow it to be preserved. Paxton said owner Barry Mazzaglia of Londonderry, N.H., is attempting to sell the Opera House.

The building is being advertised for sale at $600,000 or for lease at $1,000 to $1,200 per month for 2,000 square feet.

Town Manager David Holt said Paxton’s talk was “helpful in moving the subject along” but also “a bit glib.”

“I think it’s time for the board to give it some thought and give us some direction as to what they’d like us to do,” Holt said.

He said he has heard recommendations that the town buy the building, but has also heard requests that the town not intervene in the issue.

“Whether you agree with that or not, I think it’s appropriate to recognize that there are people who do feel that way,” he said.

The manager also said he has talked with Mazzaglia about appraising the building and working out a sale for local buyers, but Mazzaglia is not interested.

Holt said Mazzaglia has requested that he be given low or no interest financing to help repair the building, as he does not have the ability to fund further improvements or necessary stabilization.

“I think what I’m hearing is that people want us to do something,” Cook said, “and not just sit here and wait for it to come down.”

The Opera House was damaged Sept. 21, 2007, after several roof trusses gave way under the weight of water pooling on the roof, breaking a sprinkler pipe and causing water to flood out two first-floor businesses.

The building was owned by the town from 1920 through the mid-1970s, then by a series of individuals since.

The town has an easement on the E. Howard clock in the building’s tower.

The Opera House is part of Norway’s National Historic District and appears on the town seal.

Holt also said he believes the 1855 Gingerbread House would be a good candidate for a tax credit available for preservation work, and could provide room for the local art groups and historical society.

The building is owned by C’s Inc. Chief financial officer Ed Snook has told selectmen that significant steps must be made toward moving the house by the end of the year or it will be demolished.