NORWAY — One of the three Higgins-Crooker Trust properties has been sold, one has been approved for sale by the Franklin County Probate Court and the sale of the third property is under review by the court, Trustee David Holt said Tuesday.

The historic James O. Crooker House on Deering Street has been sold for $55,000 to former Norway Library Director Ann Seikman and Roger H. Crockett of Hebron, Holt said.

The sale of the 100 Aker Wood Frame Shop building on Main Street to business owner Steve Traficonte for $45,000 has been approved by the Franklin County Probate Court, Holt said. Traficonte will continue to operate the business in the building, Holt said.

The court is also currently considering the  request to sell the L.M. Longley & Sons building for an undisclosed amount.

A portion of the proceeds from all three properties will be given to the Higgins-Crooker Trust to assist the needy in Norway.

The Higgins-Crooker Trust was established in 1923 as a fund to benefit the “worthy, aged people of Norway, Maine if needy.” It consists of the L.M. Longley & Son building at 419 Main St.; the 100 Aker Wood building, 413 Main St.; the house at 20 Deering St. and about $20,000 in several bank certificate of deposits. It has been losing money for years, Holt has said.

Holt said the swift action to dissolve the trust properties and protect the buildings has been positive.

“The Deering Street house will be brought back and contribute to the neighborhood in a positive way,” Holt said of the property that will be used as a single-family dwelling.

“The frame shop sale will allow a local store owner to stay and contribute to Main Street. The Longley sale should also be positive without leaving a building vacant or have it turned into something that detracts from the hard work of Norway Downtown,” Holt said. “All this will happen with more money for the worthy poor left than I had worried might remain if we tried to keep going much longer.”

The closing of the sale of the 100 Aker Wood Frame Shop, the final step in a real estate transaction, is underway, Holt said. During this time, the trust will sign the deed, which is being prepared, over to the buyer.

The court’s approval of the sale of the Longley building is expected to take a week or two, he said.

In November 2015, the Norway Board of Selectmen agreed to accept the assets from the Higgins-Crooker Trust Fund, as a condition to the dissolution of the decades-old trust fund in probate court.

The assets will be given to the town in the form of a charity for the benefit of the “worthy, aged people of Norway, Maine, if needy,” according to the trust. Once the trust is dissolved, Holt and fellow Trustee Tom Denison will be relieved of their obligations to the trust.

While the financial details of the two Main Street buildings’ effect on the trust are not available yet, Holt said about $20,000 of the proceeds from the 20 Deering St. property are expected to be left for the “needy and poor” of the town, as required by the Higgins-Crooker Trust.

The trust had signed a contract with Maine Preservation on the Deering Street property, which provided Maine Preservation with an easement on the property allowing it to oversee the property’s restoration so that it is done to historic standards. The trustees have not signed a contract with the organization for the other two buildings.

Of the $55,000 selling price, Holt said a realtor received $3,000; Maine Preservation gets $25,000; the attorney handling the probate court gets about $5,000, plus there were other closing fees. The trustees do not get paid for their work.

Bree A. LaCasse, real estate manager for Maine Preservation in Yarmouth, said Maine Preservation received a $25,000 easement stewardship contribution from the sale proceeds to cover management of the preservation part of the sale, oversight of the rehabilitation agreement in the near term and the stewardship of the easement in perpetuity.

“Maine Preservation is required by its board of trustees to place the easement contribution into a legal defense fund should Maine Preservation have to defend or enforce the easement in court at any point in the future to preserve the building, since we have a legal responsibility in perpetuity,” she said.

LaCasse said part of the easement stewardship contribution covers staff time spent on coordinating with the new buyers to establish and record the preservation easement and rehabilitation agreement and services provided by the group’s field service advisor who will work closely with the new owners on their rehab work over the next few years.

It also includes expenses incurred in reviewing plans for exterior and interior rehab, making recommendations on cost effective and durable rehab practices, and making referrals to skilled craftsman specializing in preservation.

LaCasse said Maine Preservation will also monitor the easement in perpetuity by visiting the property annually to ensure it is being maintained and that any additional work is conducted in accordance with the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation, national standards used by tens of thousands of projects across the country.

Under the rehabilitation agreement between the new owners and Maine Preservation, the rehabilitation work must be started within two years and include prevention of water infiltration, structural repairs and completion of exterior painting among other items.

ldixon@sunmediagroup.net

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