The University of Southern Maine has agreed to transfer ownership of the stately Stone House to the Wolfe’s Neck Farm Foundation.

David Herring, the executive director of Wolfe’s Neck Farm, was expected to announced the development this week during a District 2 Town Council workshop, held at Wolfe’s Neck Farm’s Mallett Barn. The meeting was Tuesday night, after the Tri-Town Weekly publication deadline.

Ownership of the Stone House, located on Wolfe’s Neck Road and bequeathed by Eleanor Houston Smith to the university in 1970, has been discussed for more than a year. USM officials had decided that upkeep of the building was too much, especially in light of budget cuts. The university used the historic brick house twice a year – in January and July – for its two-week Stonecoast Creative Writing Program, a graduate program. It was last used for that purpose in January, Herring said.

Herring emphasized that the transaction, yet to occur, is a transfer of ownership and not a sale. USM and Wolfe’s Neck Farm Foundation came to an agreement on the transfer during “the last couple of months,” Herring said Friday.

“We will own it and they will no longer have stewardship or responsibility,” Herring said. “There will be no money involved.”

Chris Quint, a public relations official for USM, also was scheduled to be present at the District 2 workshop. Quint said Friday that the transfer of ownership makes sense for both parties.

“The USM system is looking at its footprint, and what comes with that is a large maintenance cost, and that building was one of those,” Quint said. “It was best for everyone. Everyone is happy with where we’ve landed.”

Quint said that the Stonecoast Creating Writing Program was conducted at Bowdoin College last month. USM or a partner will run the program in the future, he said.

The 10,000-square-foot Stone House sits on a 4-acre lot with deeded water views of the Harraseeket River and Casco Bay. Renowned Maine architect John Calvin Stevens designed the Stone House in 1917.

Herring said that the Wolfe’s Neck Farm Foundation has “a couple of key objectives” regarding future use of the building.

Preservation is one, he said. The foundation wants to make sure the building is owned and operated by someone who will see to that.

Secondly, the foundation wants to see that Stone House will be used “in a cohesive manner with the community and the neighborhood.” Herring had that consideration in mind when he chose to address the Town Council.

“We want community involvement,” Herring said. “The Smiths included in the conditions that it be up to the Wolfe’s Neck Farm Foundation to find proper use. We need to be good neighbors. We could just go ahead and market and sell this to whoever wants to buy it, but we want a more thoughtful approach.”

That said, Herring does not think the Stone House will be in Wolfe’s Neck Farm hands on a long-term basis.

“We’re holding onto the building, which will cost money, but we want to do this right,” he said.

The 10,000-square-foot Stone House sits on a 4-acre lot with deeded water views of the Harraseeket River and Casco Bay.Courtesy photo