VAN BUREN, Maine — Van Buren’s new CONNECT space, where people can host meetings and classes both in-person and virtually, is already connecting with people across the state after opening just two months ago.
Town officials during a recent council meeting commented that a June class hosted at the center had people logged on from every corner of the state.
“I was impressed with the locations that people were signing in from,” Town Manager Luke Dyer said. “It really shows the potential of that space.”
The late June class had nine participants, but Dyer said he anticipates that these classes will start to fill up once the town can fully promote everything the space has to offer.
“This has opened up avenues to us that we’ve never had before,” said town secretary Paul Nadeau. “I was really impressed with the number of students that came from the Portland area, and I think they were kind of amazed that the town of Van Buren — northern Maine — who they think is off the edge of the map, had the wherewithal and technology to conduct this class.”
The class, hosted by AARP and New Ventures Maine, focused on helping people over fifty learn how to find self-employment opportunities.
Dyer said the facility has an Owl Labs camera system, which automatically follows whomever is speaking. He said he also ordered a large whiteboard and device that will allow the camera to switch between the board and presenter when a magnetic placard is flipped.
Looking ahead, Dyer said the town will help the Rivertown Community Arts Center in Fort Kent set up a similar system to allow for online connectivity. The nonprofit arts center opened less than a year ago and provides access to art supplies and materials while hosting programs and classes for both children and adults.
“Sometimes we’ll have people here offering classes that they’ll be watching on their end, and sometimes they’ll be presenting on their end,” Dyer said.
He said the classes won’t just be about painting, but could include a range of topics such as how someone can turn their art into a business.
The town is applying for roughly $2.2 million in federal funding to work on updating and renovating this space into a maker’s market for small businesses. Business owners could pay a fee to temporarily be located at the market, similar to how businesses are set up at farmer’s markets, instead of having to buy their own property to have a physical space to sell their goods.
The fee paid for by businesses would offset the building’s utility costs so there is no taxpayer burden.
Officials last week said that while the town has had setbacks in the past, it is good to see another success.
“Technology-wise, this is a big win-win for the town of Van Buren,” Nadeau said.
