September 21, 2024
Business

Portland waterfront plans eyed

PORTLAND – City officials are reviewing two competing plans to develop the Maine State Pier with a hotel, restaurants, offices, a waterfront park and docking space for cruise ships and other vessels.

The plans, which were unveiled Thursday, are being backed by some big names in Maine business and politics. Each proposal calls for spending about $90 million.

One of the proposals comes from The Olympia Cos., which is based in Portland and headed by Kevin Mahaney, who won a silver medal for sailing at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

The other developer is Ocean Properties Ltd. of Portsmouth, N.H., whose team includes former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell and Robert Baldacci, brother of Maine Gov. John Baldacci.

The 85-year-old Maine State Pier is owned by the city, but it has become a financial liability and is in need of repair. The pier and a large shed, formerly occupied by Bath Iron Works and Cianbro Corp., sit near the intersection of Franklin Arterial and Commercial Street.

The City Council rezoned the property last year to allow commercial development with an emphasis on marine uses and public access. Councilors put out a request for proposals in October, with a deadline of 3 p.m. Thursday.

The Olympia Cos.’ proposal includes a 175-room hotel, a four-story office building, marine terminals, a 2-acre park, and an assortment of restaurants, shops, artist studios and a museum.

The Ocean Properties’ plan also includes a hotel, an office building, a public market and public park, and a similar mix of other commercial uses.

“The amounts of investment that both are talking about is a tremendous amount of money,” said Jim Cloutier, one of the three city councilors who will make a recommendation to the full council. “The scale on these projects is actually quite a bit larger than what I anticipated. It looks like both of these teams like to swing for the fences.”

The proposals will be reviewed by city staff in the next few weeks before the City Council’s Community Development Committee holds a public meeting March 20.

The committee will select a winner, which will then be reviewed by the full council and the planning board. Construction likely would not begin until late 2008, with completion expected in 2010, Cloutier said.

Because the city will retain ownership of the 7-acre parcel, both developers have proposed complex, long-term lease arrangements. They also requested tax-increment financing packages from the city, to help offset initial development costs and the public amenities.


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