GORHAM – Strewn with litter, clothes, sneakers, old furniture and left behind TVs, a dilapidated former fraternity house in Gorham was opened Tuesday to allow prospective buyers a look inside.

The town of Gorham is soliciting bids on the property in Gorham Village at 27 Preble St., which it seized earlier this summer for delinquent taxes. The building had been the home of Gamma Omega of Phi Kappa Sigma, an off-campus fraternity at the University of Southern. Maine. The town has set a minimum bid for the property at $35,000.

Gorham Code Enforcement Officer Dave Twomey was on hand Tuesday while potential bidders toured the house. Twomey described the house as “pretty beaten up inside.The interior has been abused,” he said.

A town inspection of the property earlier this summer revealed multiple code violations and other concerns. The violations must be corrected before being occupied, the town said.

Student behavior in the Preble Street neighborhood has been a troubling issue for years. The town will place a restriction on a quit-claim deed prohibiting future ownership or use of the property by a fraternity or sorority.

“From what we know, it seems to be structurally sound,” Town Manager David Cole said Tuesday. “The property has some good underlying value.”

Gorham Fire Department has the keys to the house and opened it for tours Tuesday. The property attracted interest.

“I’ve seen four groups come in,” Gorham firefighter Dean Belanger, who unlocked the building at noon, said about 1:15 p.m.

Twomey said those touring the property were asking questions about possible uses. Twomey said any use of the house other than as a single-family home would have to go to the Gorham Planning Board. Bidders should contact the town for information about any potential allowable uses of the property.

Dan Foley, who owns property on Preble Street, was among those touring the house Tuesday.

“I would like to make this a two-unit house,” he said.

However a two-unit there with its lot size would require a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals, according to Twomey, but is a possibility.

Foley, who rents apartments to college students, believes he would have neighborhood support for his idea.

“People are behind me,” Foley said.

Gorham firefighter Dean Belanger takes a look at the interior of a former fraternity house after opening it up Tuesday for potential bidders. Staff photo by Robert Lowell