General Portland Discussion

Sounds like they bought the Inn on Carleton, which is a shame cause that was a lot cheaper.
 
In fact, the Google search for Inn on Carleton already shows "Blind Tiger Portland - Carleton Street"
 
I know there was some talk awhile back about Portland Police HQ moving because the building is old and/or inadequate - does anyone know if that's still on the table? What a great lot for redevelopment if they tore down the PPD building and renovated or replaced the garage.
 
The garage largely serves the courthouse and was built as part of the expansion of that building (and is owned by the county), so I'm not sure that that would be removed. I do agree that, although I've only been in there a couple of times, it seems dated, starting with the staircase in front (perhaps the least monumental staircase ever built on a public building) that must really impact accessibility. It's just a strange building, but we need to put a police headquarters somewhere, and I'm guessing they would want to stay downtown.

Does anyone else remember when the little Piccolo building was On-The-Go Bagel and Darryl would bicycle around in the morning making deliveries?
 
Planned Skowhegan investments will top $650 million

MaineBiz has a nice article tallying up projects in Skowhegan:
  • Sappi Mill upgrades ($418M)
  • New elementary school ($75M!!!)
  • New Balance plant upgrades ($65M)
  • Spinning Mill redevelopment ($10M-$15M)
  • Maine Gains expansion ($15M)
  • Dirigo Solar ($11M)
  • Skowhegan Solar LLC ($10.5M)
  • Broadband grant ($10.5M)
  • Skowhegan River Park development ($10M)
  • Public Safety building ($8M)
 
Took a walk this afternoon and was really struck by how astonishingly sh*tty "Phase 1" of the Congress Square rebuild looks...

I hope this embarrassment gets fixed ASAP and that Gordon Contracting never gets their hands on another project in Portland.
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In theory, the asphalt is only there because they're going to have to dig it up again for more utility work but (1) that's just even more embarrassing and (2) even considering that, absolutely everything around it looks terrible.

The city is not excelling at doing things right. Andrews Square looks better but even then, the benches aren't installed - months and months later.
 
Wasn't the city already considering legal action against the contractor? I think that was about how far behind they are not about the quality of the work. But if the work also ends up being bad...
 
Not bad, it will add a little color and visual interest to the rear elevation. I would have located the stairwell in the blank walled portion near the center but there are probably limitations due to the elevator shaft and increased costs to cut through the brick. The current plan is to have floors 2-7 converted to residential with the top floors remaining office space.
 
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I agree that the stairway would be better father from the corner (corners being the most-valuable leasable space and offering the most interior light), and could hopefully be just as cost-efficient on the one of the other two existing window stacks on that wall.
 
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Looking at plans for the 511 Congress office-residential conversion shows the difficulties that can be faced when trying to convert office floorplates to residential use. They're planning for almost every 1 bedroom unit to have windowless bedrooms. Not terrible but not ideal....
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Looking at the basement level....they're planning to add some interesting resident amenities including bike storage, a meeting room, a dog wash station and a "golf simulator"

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Can anyone familiar with building codes explain why residential would require a new stairwell in addition to the two this building already has? I don't understand why they can't move the hallway so that instead of between units 315 and 316, it runs between 318 and the utility room to provide access to the second stair (although I guess they'd have to replace the two small corner units with a bigger corner unit in that scenario).
 
Proposed Housing in Portland:

Parking lot next to Miss Portland Diner could pave way to affordable housing

The space is about 31,000 square feet, roughly the shape of a long, narrow triangle alongside Interstate 295. The lot has been used as a park-and-ride stop and serves the diner with parking and delivery access. Other Marginal Way businesses and apartment-dwellers also make use of the spots. The site is perhaps an unusual choice for housing: shallow in depth and tapering to a point at the eastern end. City officials say the dimensions may prove challenging for architects and engineers. But as Portland continues to battle an affordable housing crisis with limited space available, creativity is key."

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cneal said:
Can anyone familiar with building codes explain why residential would require a new stairwell in addition to the two this building already has? I don't understand why they can't move the hallway so that instead of between units 315 and 316, it runs between 318 and the utility room to provide access to the second stair (although I guess they'd have to replace the two small corner units with a bigger corner unit in that scenario).
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I'm not familiar with the building, was it formally a commercial use and now residential? If so the egress/ travel distances most likely played a role in the need for a stair at a location that shortens egress distances. It is strange that the original second stair only allows egress from that one unit. They should still allow it to be utilized by the public.
 
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