NORWAY – Local and state officials will meet Thursday in the first of a series of meetings designed to preserve and promote the town’s historic downtown district.

The session, set for July 24, will include a slide show presentation by Kirk Mohney of the Maine Preservation Commission and a speech by Greg Paxton, executive director of Maine Preservation, who will talk about taking Norway’s past into the future. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Norway Grange, on Whitman Street, and is free and open to the public. Parking is available in the municipal parking lot behind the Fare Share.

“I’ll be talking about the economic value of historic buildings and the fact that they play a key catalyst role in revitalizations (of main streets) across the country,” said Paxton, who was hired three months ago as executive director of the Portland-based group. He is the former president and CEO of the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, one of the country’s two largest statewide preservation organizations, which he led for 25 years.

Paxton said Maine Preservation plays a variety of roles. “We can help provide advice on financing projects and options for rehabilitation. We provide experiences that have happened elsewhere and we work in conjunction with the Main Street Program,” he said referring to the organization that works to bring life back to the country’s main streets.

Paxton said he has been vacationing in Maine for years and lived in the Northeast for about 15 years but has not yet been to Norway. He said he is looking forward to his first visit and has heard a lot about the town. He will take a tour of the downtown prior to Thursday’s night meeting.

Mohney, assistant director of the Augusta-based organization, said his speech will be based on the historic district in Norway, which is primarily focused on Main Street. “I’ll be showing the evolution of Main Street as we see it physically and more predominantly in the buildings that are there,” he said Friday.

“The buildings from the 19th century, some before the fire and a great number built after the fire,” said Mohney referring to the 1894 fire that destroyed the eastern section of town. “Main Street represents real cross section of types of buildings that define downtowns that we see throughout Maine. Norway’s architecture is distinctive to Norway. We want to celebrate those buildings and bring attention to them.”

Norway Downtown President Andrea Burns said she is encouraging people to turn out for the important meeting.

“The Planning Board even (revised) its meeting in order to attend,” Burns said. Norway Downtown, the town of Norway, Norway Historical Society and Memorial Library are presenting and supporting the event.

Burns said discussion will focus on Main Street assets.

The town has three significantly important historic buildings on Main Street that are threatened, including the Opera House, considered by many to be the heart of the downtown with its distinctive and newly restored clock tower.

The building, except for the clock and tower that belong to Norway, is up for sale by its private New Hampshire owner.

The Odd Fellows Building, whose ownership has reverted to Northeast Bank, is a three-story building built in two stages, the first floor in 1894 and the top two in 1911. It is also for sale.

A third distinctive building known as the Gingerbread House, owned by C’s Inc., a holding company for newspaper company Sun Media, has been offered to the town and the Historical Society for free as long as they can move it off site and make significant progress by the end of the year. The decaying two-story home was built in 1855.

Many of the other downtown buildings have been renovated and occupied by new businesses this year, Burns said.