Rockland’s City Council is scheduled to vote Monday on a tax deal with the owner of a former nursing home who said he hopes to have the mixed-use complex open within two years.
Richard Rockwell made a presentation Monday evening to councilors about the development, which received final approval in May 2025 from the Planning Board.
The plan approved for the Knox Center is to renovate the interior of the 71,500-square-foot former nursing home into 17 studio apartments, of which 11 will have kitchenettes and possibly kitchenettes for the remaining six; 10 one-bedroom apartments, two with full kitchens and eight with kitchenettes; five two-bedroom apartments with kitchens; two hotel-style rooms for guests of residents; communal kitchens; and 14 artist studios — 11 with bathrooms and three without, although there will be bathrooms in the wing where those studios are located.
There will also be nearly 6,300 square feet of coworking and maker spaces; nearly 1,000 square feet of retail space; and 5,900 square feet for restaurants. The complex will also have a theater, fitness center, laundry facilities, and storage space for residents. Rockwell said March 2 that he also plans on a daycare facility to benefit single parents.
When Rockwell, through Knox Center LLC, purchased the Knox Center in August 2023 it converted the property from tax exempt to taxable. The property, located in downtown Rockland on White Street, is valued at $4.3 million and the annual taxes paid are $71,000.
Under the proposed tax increment financing district proposal to be voted on by the council, over the next 15 years half of any additional taxes generated by the redevelopment would be returned to the owner. The owner would still pay the full taxes on the base value of $2.4 million assessed in 2024, prior to last year’s revaluation. The tax schedule would have 90% in additional taxes returned to the owner in the first three to four years of the agreement and then decreasing over the years to 10% in the final years of the deal.
This would save the developer an estimated $367,000 over the next 15 years.
The application submitted for Rockland Commons estimated the cost of the project at $2.5 million.
The overall term of the tax increment financing district would be 30 years but the city would retain all additional taxes in the final 15 years of the deal. The benefit of a TIF for the city is that any additional valuation generated from the redevelopment of the Knox Center would not count toward the city’s state valuation. This would reduce the city’s overall state valuation, which is how school and county taxes are distributed, meaning the city would pay less to Regional School Unit 13 and Knox County than if there was no TIF.
The city would take in an estimated $1 million in additional taxes over the 30 years.
Rockwell said final engineering for the redevelopment will be completed in the next few days. Inside demolition has already started and reconstruction will begin in the next few months.
“So much of the work I have done in Rockland over the past 20 years has been to recognize what exists and try to revaluate buildings that have lost their purpose so that their new purpose could serve more relevantly and more in alignment with a community whose needs have changed,” Rockwell said.
He said that years ago office buildings were in demand, but now coworking spaces are a better idea.
Rockland Commons will serve the growing population of 55 and older residents and help them integrate into the commercial downtown without the need for them having motor vehicles.
Mayor Adam Lachman praised Rockwell’s “continued commitment to Rockland of trying to find solutions for the city.”
Councilor Nate Davis said he would abstain from the discussion and may seek to abstain from voting next week because Rockwell has expressed interest in installing some of his art in Rockland Commons. Councilor Penny York said she appreciated Davis raising the issue but she did not consider this a conflict of interest.
This story appears through a media partnership with Midcoast Villager.
