LEWISTON – It was once called the Ellis Island of Lewiston.

During the turn of the century, the Grand Trunk Depot welcomed thousands of Canadian immigrants as they arrived in Lewiston in search of good jobs and better lives.

More than 100 years later, the Lincoln Street building is getting a much needed face-lift.

The building’s new owner, the Lewiston-Auburn Railroad Co., has hired contractors to wash the brick, repair the original windows, remove the boards and put in real doors.

“We felt we had an obligation to spruce up the building and make it presentable,” said Lucien Gosselin, president of the Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council, which oversees the railroad company.

The goal is to preserve the historic landmark in its original form. For now, the renovations are purely cosmetic.

The long-term plan for the building, which has been vacant for decades, is still undetermined.

The hope is to one day turn it back into a depot – for commuters traveling back and forth to Portland and Bath Iron Works or for tourists who could stop in Lewiston on their way to the Maine coast or Canada.

Two years ago, LAEGC received a $2 million grant from the Maine Department of Transportation to preserve a 2,000-foot corridor that runs along the old Lower Lewiston railroad line.

The line is no longer in use, but MDOT has discussed restoring it. Doing so would make it possible to provide commuter train service from Lewiston to various destinations, including Montreal, Portland and Brunswick.

Although the discussions to provide such a service have only been preliminary, the Lewiston-Auburn Railroad Co., through LAEGC, is getting ready for it by using the $2 million grant to buy the old depot and several other properties along the corridor.

The other properties include the vacant lot across from FX Marcotte Furniture, a vacant lot on the corner of Cedar and Lincoln streets, another lot on Lincoln Street next to the old fire station, and residential properties in Little Canada.

The L-A Economic Growth Council and MDOT officials believed it was important to set aside the land in order to leave leavtheir options open.

After the Lewiston-Auburn Railroad Co. bought the old depot, it decided to begin working with an architect to restore it, in part because it is seen by so many people who go to Railroad Park for the area’s summer festivals.

“The building is very unsightly,” Gosselin said. “The area is being used more and more, and there we stand right in the middle.”