LEWISTON-AUBURN ECONOMIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Paul Badeau
Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council
784-0161
May 11, 2005
(LEWISTON) — Several companies, organizations, and individuals were recognized with an Economic Achievement Award at the recent Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council Annual Dinner and Business Forum on May 10 at Bates College. The awards were bestowed by each city’s respective city council and mayor to honor job creation, investment, and contributions to the city’s economic vitality.
From the City of Lewiston, Central Distributors, The Hartford Agency, and Gendron & Gendron (the Gendron family) were recognized. In Auburn, Central Maine Orthopaedics, Eastern Fire Protection, and Jim Pittman were honored. A special joint city award was presented to the Androscoggin County Chamber of Commerce.
Central Distributors
Shortly after prohibition ended, in 1934, Albert Barriault founded Central Distributors. Central Distributors supplied 300 retailers in seven counties with then-popular brands of beer.
That tradition continues. Central Distributors’ flagship beer brand is Coors, but they also sell a wide variety of imports and micro-brews wholesale from Heineken, Corona, Becks, Bar Harbor Brewing Company, Pete’s Brewing Company, Labatts, Smuttynose and others. Their product offerings have grown to include wine, olive oil, soft drinks, and water.
Brothers Ron and Dennis Barriault are the third generation of Barriaults at the helm of the business. For the last several years, the company has achieved double-digit growth through expanded product offerings, acquisitions and increased market penetration. With the ability to distribute statewide, wine is leading the charge on the company’s growth. Central distributes for 120 wine vendors. The company employs 100 people, and has a $3.6 million payroll.
Central Distributors moved to its current location in Foss Road Business Park in 1987. To increase capacity and better serve their clients, construction of a $1.2 million, 31,400-square-foot warehouse expansion is underway. When complete this summer, the company will have 91,000 square feet of warehouse and office space on Foss Road.
The Hartford Agency
The Hartford Agency is a rapidly growing, locally owned insurance agency that serves both a local and a national clientele. Lucas and Justin Hartford are the third generation of Hartfords to own and run the family business. In 2004, the agency relocated from Main Street in Lewiston to a new location at 10 Falcon Road in the Fairgrounds Business Park.
The brothers invested $900,000 to transform the former ICT call center into well appointed, technologically advanced Class A office space. Entrepreneurial zeal seems to run in the family. The agency was founded in 1935 as the Cobb Winslow Insurance Agency. Oscar Hartford, Lucas and Justin’s grandfather, bought the business in the 1950s. The name was changed to the Hartford Agency in 1971. In 1973, Richard Hartford, Lucas and Justin’s father, joined in the ownership. The agency sold life, health, property, casualty and business insurance. They served a regional marketplace.
In the mid 1980s, the firm saw and seized a market opportunity. Campgrounds were having difficulty securing liability insurance. The Hartford Agency formed an offshore captive insurance agency that began providing liability insurance to campgrounds. Today, the agency provides insurance to 1,500 campgrounds located throughout the United States. About 60 percent of the agency’s revenue comes from this niche.
For the last three years, the independent agency has experienced annual growth of 15 percent. In 2000, the company employed 30 people. Today they employ 40 people. The campground/RV park side of the business is expanding to include white water rafting and canoe livery companies.
The Gendron Family
The Gendron Family is a name that is synonymous with development in Lewiston. Family members are significant real estate owners, developers and contractors. They have been active for more than 20 years developing residential, retail, commercial and industrial projects in Lewiston and throughout Maine.
In years past, the Gendrons invested in Lewiston when others didn’t. As happy in the cab of a D-8 as behind a desk, Dolard, David, and now John Gendron have played a role in building both the physical landscape and the infrastructure of the City. Gendron & Gendron, the largest of several Gendron family-owned businesses, employs 45 people.
The $60 million Wal*Mart Distribution Center would not have moved forward were it not for the sale of Gendron-owned land to Wal*Mart and the Gendrons’ willingness to work with the City on the relocation of Alfred A. Plourde Parkway. The City broadened its economic development capacity by partnering with Dave Gendron on the development of a new seven-lot business park located off of Alfred A. Plourde Parkway.
The Gendrons began building an expandable, 34,000-square-foot building in the new business park this past winter. Two more spec buildings are in the planning stages, as is a second phase to the business park.
Central Maine Orthopaedics
Central Maine Orthopaedics, P.A. was founded in 1986, when Dr. Wayne A. Moody, M.D. and three staff were among the first occupants of what was then Auburn’s newest office building at Two Great Falls Plaza. At that time, CMO was similar to the other half-dozen or more orthopaedic practices in the Central Maine region. Physicians tended to be in solo practice, seeing patient in their private offices and performing all surgeries at the local community hospitals.
Paul Cain, M.D. joined the practice in the second year of operation, and together with Dr. Moody, laid the foundation for building a successful physician group practice. Currently, CMO consists of 11 orthopaedists and approximately 85 clinical and administrative staff. Two new surgeons will join the practice in the summer of 2005.
By the late 1990s, CMO had outgrown its original location. The practice’s physicians made the decision to build an “orthopaedic center� on Minot Avenue in Auburn. The planning for the new 42,000 square-foot facility called for a collaborative approach to consolidating orthopaedic services in one location. The facility now houses a state-of-the-art physical therapy program operated by HealthSouth, an MRI service run by Central Maine Imaging and a clinical laboratory satellite of St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center.
The focal point of CMO’s facility is its ambulatory surgery center. Advances in medical technology and pain management have made same-day outpatient surgery the standard of care for orthopaedic services in most regions of the country and Maine. In constructing its orthopaedic center CMO incorporated an ambulatory surgery center into its program, bringing to Lewiston/Auburn area residents the type of service found in other metropolitan areas.
Eastern Fire Protection
In 1941, Eastern Fire Protection began operating as a fire sprinkler systems contractor based in Lewiston. The company was sold and became a division of High Point Sprinkler Company out of High Point, North Carolina, in 1970. During High Point’s ownership, John Haynes eventually became the operations manager. When High Point decided to sell the Lewiston division in 1976, John was forced to make a decision: relocate the family out of state to another High Point division or negotiate the purchase of High Point’s Lewiston assets. Personal assets were put up for collateral and Eastern Fire Protection was reborn.
Eastern Fire continued to do business out of the original office and production plant located at 17 Bridge Street in Lewiston until 1981, when the operations were relocated to 170 Kitty Hawk Avenue in Auburn. Eastern Fire became the first business to operate out of the new Airport Industrial Park. A new 22,000-square-foot office and production facility was built and Eastern Fire continues to operate from that building today.
In 1995, a decision was made to separate Eastern Fire Protection into two companies. The first would remain as Eastern Fire Protection and would continue to design and install all types of water-based fire sprinkler systems. The second would be named Eastern Sprinkler Services and would pursue the periodic service and testing required for fire sprinkler systems. A limited liability corporation, ECS, LLC would now own both companies.
Today the combined Eastern Companies are the largest fire sprinkler systems contracting and service group based in Maine with over 2,000 service contracts and 190 new installations annually. Currently, there are 85 full-time employees, with 70 working out of the Auburn facility and 15 working out of a branch office located in Bangor. Services are provided throughout all of Maine and parts of New Hampshire.
Jim Pittman
Born and raised in Maine, Jim Pittman has been a life-long resident of this great state. After graduating from Edward Little High School, Jim could hardly wait to enter the business world. He soon opened his auto dealership located by the Great Falls in Auburn. He later moved the operation to 1056 Center Street, which could be called his first commercial real estate venture. In 1978, Jim purchased property at 1097 Center Street, where the sales operation continues today.
In 1980, Jim started an independent car rental agency which was affectionately known as Rent-A-Relic and today is known simply as Rent-it of Maine, Inc. In 1988, another change in the overall operation took place, resulting in the birth of Rent-it, Inc., a company specializing in the rental of construction equipment.
Despite the success of these businesses, Jim’s real passion has been commercial real estate development encompassing a large portion of upper Center Street, along with properties in Lewiston, Minot and Norway. The most recent development is the new Lamey-Wellehan store located on Turner Street in Auburn.
Androscoggin County Chamber
Since 2000, the Androscoggin County Chamber’s membership has increased 40 percent. With 1,225 members, it is the second largest Chamber in the state. This phenomenal growth is attributable to the leadership of Chip Morrison, the vision of the Chamber’s Board of Directors, and the dedication of the Chamber staff.
The Chamber does more than host feel-good breakfast and after-hours events. Members of the Business Advocacy Committee seek to engage the membership in developing a “What We Stand For� policy statement. The Committee tracks bills of interest to the membership through the legislature and advocates with legislators based on the “What We Stand For� principles.
In support of youth, raising aspirations and improving the quality of the work force, the Education Committee provided $37,000 in college scholarships (money raised by the membership) last year. They also hosted the Chamber’s second annual job fair and the sixth career fair for all area high school sophomores.
The Chamber’s Regional Image Committee is working to spread the news about the renaissance taking place in the Twin Cities, along with advocating for such projects as developing a convention center in Lewiston’s Bates Mill #5.
As a testament to the Chamber’s popularity, any company or organization wishing to host one of the popular monthly “Business After Hours� events will have to wait until 2011 when there is an opening.
