Cold Storage Facility Redev | 40 West Commercial Street | Portland

Oh wow awesome! Golfing trip and beach! A fun time and great area but also makes you appreciate home even more.
 
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Building is going up really fast, does anyone have any pics especially from resident expert photographer?
 
^Nice, I love the shot under the bridge! Glad to see this coming along. In addition to bringing home new baby recently we moved last fall from the West End to Deering Center so I'm missing my frequent meanders around Commercial Street.
 
I remember, when they first built the expanded facility, the developers wanted to imprint the concrete walls along the intermodal ramp with historical scenes, but I think it was the Public Art Commission that said they wanted to go with a more abstract theme for that area (??) . Hence, what they did do which, if you are stopped at the light, you can maybe discern is a tangle of railroad tracks. Those of us who learned to drive when Commercial St. was really Commercial St. might appreciate it, but I don't know that anyone else will get it.

You know what abstraction really works for me? The Sprague tanks in South Portland. Driving across the Veteran's Bridge, your mind completes the puzzle and you can see the sailboats, and they may even look like they're moving.
 
Dr. StrangeHat said:
So, is it blocking everyone's view of the harbor? 😂
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I remember before the IMT was set up, some commenters were saying that they needed to prioritize public access to the water. My thought was, "What? It's been a railroad yard for 60+ years and was a coal gas plant before that. You start taking your children down there to visit the water and your grandchildren are going to have 3 heads."
 
markhb said:
You start taking your children down there to visit the water and your grandchildren are going to have 3 heads.
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I'd love to have three heads - that would mean three brains, right? That's a lot of mouths to feed, but I assume there's only one stomach? I'd just dedicate one head to eating and the other two to thinking - imagine the efficiency!
 
markhb said:
I remember before the IMT was set up, some commenters were saying that they needed to prioritize public access to the water. My thought was, "What? It's been a railroad yard for 60+ years and was a coal gas plant before that. You start taking your children down there to visit the water and your grandchildren are going to have 3 heads."
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I also recall people balking about this development because it would block their views of the water when they commute to Portland. The old speak about "entitlement" to views was raised and so on, and you know how that battle goes.

So I checked out said view several times by car to see this precious view they spoke of. It was the tanks at Turner Island and the underbelly of the Bridge. Their view was much "better" coming across the Veteran's Bridge and descending West Commercial past Sprague & Merrill's. Sure, you could see "bits" of South Portland, but nothing astounding. It's not like you were looking at Peaks Island via ferry and get this lovely view of cottages nestled on hillsides.

And so I thought to myself: What a shitty view.

It's literally a really shitty and ugly view of the harbor.

And as I've driven past this development - it was kind of like: Woah, look at that! It is big and imposing. But ... not in a bad way. And ... it's honestly better than what was there. Throw on a cool mural and people will be rubber-necking for decades creating fender benders. The people will get used to it. They won't remember what was there. They won't even care. This is a working port, and this would be THE side of the port to build something like this. Not the Old Port or East End. There's plenty of access to the water far nicer and safe than this area. This is a small industrial corner of the harbor. It's not like the proposal was going to turn it into the Philadelphia Navy Yard or something.
 
DanielPWM19 said:
It's not like the proposal was going to turn it into the Philadelphia Navy Yard or something.
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Shhh... be careful, someone could get an idea to move the SS United States here.

I don't know about inbound commuting, I thought much of the hubbub was coming from the Tate/Tyng area.
 
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