Portland Bayside

Corey said:
Looks like we are getting a new suburban strip mall (including a Dunkin Donuts and Chipotle) on Marginal Way where the Century Tire business was located. Here's the CBRE promotional PDF for "Century Plaza."
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Just when you think that it can't get any worse.........:confused:

WTF is going on in Portland these days???
 
Oh, this is priceless...

http://www.pressherald.com/2014/12/30/developer-plans-retail-mall-in-portlands-bayside-neighborhood/

One of the co-founders of Keep Portland Livable, which was formed to change or halt development of the “midtown” project in Bayside, said the Century Plaza proposal raises some concerns.

Peter Monro, a landscape architect whose business is located in Bayside, said Monday night that although he was unfamiliar with the Century Plaza project, “you are basically creating a strip mall on Marginal Way that doesn’t create good, high-paying jobs.”

If workers don’t get paid well, they will be unable to afford rental or permanent housing in the city, Monro said, meaning only the wealthiest individuals and families could afford to live in Portland. His group wants the city to lure more research and development companies and educational institutions, which he says will be able to pay higher, livable wages.
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Really Pete? You just spent over a year fighting tooth and nail against skyward development in Bayside, and you're surprised a developer decided to take the easy route? This is probably more your fault than anyone else's fault, you #@%ing jacka$$.
 
The Federated Companies' proposal to build ‘midtown’ in Bayside is still advancing, albeit in a scaled down form. This is an excellent fit for Portland, capable of defining a critical gateway to the City’s center in a positive way for years to come. Many residents feel similarly, despite past concerns, because of the numerous compromises which have been made along the way to reach a workable project that is best for the community. It is important to emphasize this because the project is approaching a critical juncture in the review process by the City. Introduction of a critical mass of housing at this site will have an extremely positive impact on Bayside’s future, and is likely to spur further positive urban grown at nearby sites (as opposed to strip mall style suburban development that has plagued the area in recent years). As such, we should all consider supporting the project formally at the Planning Board workshop scheduled for January 13th at City Hall.

DON'T BE SHY. The Planning Board is composed of regular people just like you and me, and you should not be intimidated to speak in front of it. These are your neighbors, and they hold the key to Portland's future in their hands. They need to hear your voice.

The Planning Board may take action on the plan later in the month based upon that meeting’s outcome. Our voice and that of others who play an important role shaping the goals and aspirations of the City should help positively reinforce the need for smart growth infill projects like this at a time of urban renaissance both locally and across the globe.

If you’re able to support the project verbally at the meeting, consider simply briefly stating you are aware of the revisions and support them, which will maintain positive and productive focus on all remaining issues of importance during what is a packed agenda. Otherwise, we should support this project in writing in advance of the meeting via email to BAB@portlandmaine.gov.

Let's make this happen in 2015!
 
Have they updated the design at all? I tried sifting through the various PDF documents posted on the planning board site (which are huge and thus painfully slow to load), and I didn't see any updated renderings. I'm reluctantly OK with this project moving forward as a scaled-down version as long as they've improved the aesthetics. I liked the aesthetics of what was originally proposed (I wasn't just blinded by the proposed height), but I felt the new designs of the scaled-down version were critically lacking on any originality and just plain bleh. I also hated that the freaking parking garage was the tallest structure. If it has to be scaled down, then it would be nice if they could vary the heights of each building between 5 and 7 or 8 stories, with the parking garage at 5 stories.
 
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On one hand portland needs a lot more housing and affordable housing at that. Their is avesta housing but avesta excludes a lot of people from being able to live in those units due to their requirements and demand.
Also most of all the new building's being built in portland are condos and condos that the average person can't even come close to affording. All these new units being built are between $500,000 to $800,00! Not to mention some aren't all that impressive at all, maybe for $250,000.
I don't see why federal just doesn't go ahead with the original plans, can't believe they bowed down to this pathetic group. I imagine keep portland livable's case is not strong at all and would be dealt with quickly enough that they could proceed with the housing market still hot.
This new design is just god awful and it is very hard to support, what a waste of a great piece of real estate in portland. I'm curious to see the new design but i'm not holding my breath, i imagine the updated design will be like bay house, just good enough but barely good enough.
It's a tough call I guess I would rather have it built then have some strip mall put in it's place, there doesn't seem to be developers knocking down the door for that area?
 
Federated is finally showing their frustration.

http://www.pressherald.com/2015/01/13/developer-wants-jan-27-midtown-ok/

I don't blame them one bit for being frustrated and being forced to throw out an ultimatum like this. This has been insanely frustrating to watch unfold as an outsider. I can't imagine what it has been like for these guys.

Does anyone know if they've updated the design at all or if it's the same thing they marched out in October?
 
Bear in mind that the older proposal also won its approvals from the planning board.

So sure, it's got planning board approval, with significant conditions, as it did before. But some twit with a bloated ego and too much time on his hands could still come out and sue this version.

Peter Monro and Tim Paradis have lost a tremendous amount of respect among their peers in the architecture and design communities with how they've handled this whole fiasco, and with the bland cheapness of the outcome.

Peter Monro's defining achievement as an architect – what they write about in his obituary in 10 or 20 years – will now be a collection of unremarkable, cheaply-built buildings under the shadow of a towering parking garage.

Everyone who took the time to hear these guys out – their peers in the architecture and design communities, Bayside neighborhood activists, the planning board, bike/ped advocates, the editorial writers at the Press Herald – had come to the conclusion that these guys are full of it and had preferred the original proposal over this one. Had a judge actually heard the case, they would almost certainly have come to the same conclusion.

But, because lawyers were able to run down the clock, it became expedient for the developers to do a cheaper, wood-framed project all in one phase while interest rates are still low, instead of doing a phased project with more attractive materials. Peter Monro and Tim Paradis never successfully convinced anyone that they were right – they merely annoyed everyone into giving up and settling for mediocrity.
 
Ha! Too funny! Once again the tallest building in the immediate area is a parking garage! This trend is for real now! (Old Port parking garage, eastern waterfront parking garage)
 
Portland, Maine......home of ugly skyscraper parking garages!

This will definitely not be looked upon as a "golden age" of architecture in Portland!
 
I'm thinking about reserving a parking spot on the top floor of the soon-to-be-built Bayside parking garage. I'll have the best views in the neighborhood!!!
 
Another wall going up!

I feel bad for Portland right now.....I really do.
 
Fence is up around century tire and machines are ready to smash it down. Woo hoo strip mall! Chipotle and friends
 
As was mentioned in the Portland Development thread, MiDTOWN is on again. (I got that particular capitalization from the city press release, so I assume that's the preferred form now.)

"We are pleased with the recent progress that has been made under the direction of the new city manager and with the assistance of city staff, who have dedicated many hours over the course of the last five years to assist in moving this project forward," Federated CEO Jonathan Cox said in a written statement. "We are hopeful this trend of positive momentum continues as we prepare to start construction of this project."
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I don't want to divert this thread into electoral politics, but it occurs to me that the sort of leadership that Jon Jennings has apparently shown on this is what the elected mayor position was supposed to bring to the table, particularly in cases when the city manager has more of a nuts-and-bolts, day-to-day management style (Joe Gray and Mark Rees as contrasted with Bob Ganley).
 
Looking forward to some action at the Midtown (MIDTOWN) site!

The view towards the Bangor Savings Bank site:

ynkxAPp.jpg


Bangor Savings on left, strip mall to the right:

tE5ZMvb.jpg
 
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