The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland has purchased a small shopping
plaza with the intent of using it as an investment property.
Diocese
spokesman Dave Guthro said the $2.75 million purchase in December
represents the first time the diocese has bought a property in Maine
with the intention of using it for profit.
The Portland Press
Herald says the property, anchored by a Rite Aid drug store,
includes a grocery store, a laundromat and a retail space that is
currently vacant.
The property on Congress Street is located
roughly between the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception and Cathedral
School, and St. Peter's Church, cited as the first Italian Catholic
Church in Maine.