CARIBOU, Maine — Caribou City Council tabled a resolution to accept the former Sitel building on 63 Sweden St. and its adjacent parking lots during a Nov. 12 meeting, as it is “still evaluating options for and potential users in the building,” according to City Manager Dennis Marker.
Sitel has offered to give the building, property and parking lots to the city for free provided that the city considers all current credit enhancement agreements between the city “satisfied.”
This agreement required Sitel to repay $25,000 in tax reimbursements over a five-year period, beginning in 2020, if they did not have 100 employees on the site. The building and property have been assessed at $1,363,900 with surrounding land assessed at $20,000 in addition to $195,900 in personal property.
Sitel had been in Caribou from 2015 to late 2019, and provided the city with a total of $178,269.65 during that time.
Council discussed the possibility of using the now vacant building as a location for a new fire station during an Oct. 28 meeting, however no motions were made regarding the building during this meeting.
Sitel in Caribou officially closed its doors on Oct. 31, due to “recent business changes,” according to Sitel Group Global Communications Director Rebecca Sanders, who added that there are currently no plans to open another Sitel building in Maine.
The council, during the Nov. 12 meeting, also discussed Sitel during an executive session, but no motions were made to take action, according to Marker.
