Portland, ME - New Construction Continued

[Cosakita18]

Update on some projects around town...
AC Hotel: Site work is underway
Free Street Condo project: Site work has started.
Center Street Hotel(Jim Brady) groundbreaking next month.
Thompson's Point- Hotel should be starting next month, Children's museum should start soon.
There has been an application submitted for 70 Thames Street, no info yet but is in Portland's planning self CSS site.
Another is 754 Congress Street, looks like a hotel project on the gas station site.
Mercy has submitted plans for expansion at the fore river complex.

70 Thames? wound't that be the water side of the street? I heard talk of condos on the empty ground east of WEX.

Free St. is apartments, not condos. I just walked past there this morning and I didn't notice any activity.

 

[portlandneedsnewarena]

Update on some projects around town...
AC Hotel: Site work is underway
Free Street Condo project: Site work has started.
Center Street Hotel(Jim Brady) groundbreaking next month.
Thompson's Point- Hotel should be starting next month, Children's museum should start soon.
There has been an application submitted for 70 Thames Street, no info yet but is in Portland's planning self CSS site.
Another is 754 Congress Street, looks like a hotel project on the gas station site.
Mercy has submitted plans for expansion at the fore river complex.

Also, the plans are out from the GC for the Westerlea View Lofts project on Chestnut Street. It's a 7 story building with a footprint of approx 11,150 sq. feet. So that should be starting within the next couple of months.

 

[TC_zoid]

Personally I think Portland needs both housing and hotels. My parents where looking at hotels to stay at for my graduation from USM and the hotels on the peninsula were all incredibly expensive which shows there is a ton of demand for hotel rooms as well as more housing.

Exactly. I can't believe I'm saying this again, but the ONLY solution to lower cost hotel rooms and housing is a lot more of it! Otherwise, you get into rent control and other quasi-socialism programs. The wealthy in Portland like Portland's current situation, because it keeps their rental properties and home values high. (They killed the Federated project.) I suppose you could put the new homeless shelter in the middle of the Old Port, spilling out into Commercial Street, then that would create a scenario for less tourists and people wanting to live here, so housing and hotel pricing would come down. Portland is in a wonderful predicament -- don't ruin it. Everyone wants to come here.

 

[Cosakita18]

Exactly. I can't believe I'm saying this again, but the ONLY solution to lower cost hotel rooms and housing is a lot more of it! Otherwise, you get into rent control and other quasi-socialism programs. The wealthy in Portland like Portland's current situation, because it keeps their rental properties and home values high. (They killed the Federated project.) I suppose you could put the new homeless shelter in the middle of the Old Port, spilling out into Commercial Street, then that would create a scenario for less tourists and people wanting to live here, so housing and hotel pricing would come down. Portland is in a wonderful predicament -- don't ruin it. Everyone wants to come here.

Public attitudes in Portland are changing against development like never before, because a large majority of residents are fed up with the housing crisis and the ever growing presence of tourism. I know from experience that, for many people, frustration is turning to anger, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see a very strong backlash on election day within the next few years.Look at Bayside village, the displacement of hundreds of low income families to make way for market rate units has sparked a HUGE backlash (and yes I absolutely believe we need hundreds of market rate units too, but this isn't the way to get them)

Developers are held accountable to the city that they are in, and I do think there is a point where we need to examine the long term socioeconomic impact of development in the city. If we want to avoid NIMBYISM , developers need to engage with their community and create projects that have broad support. Otherwise the resentment and backlash will only grow

 

[TC_zoid]

Public attitudes don't really matter in a free market economy, that's what's great about it. If I have a condo or apartment (and Airbnb), and a lot of people want it, it's going to the highest bidder. How are you going to stop that? We are all like that, wanting the highest price for our property. If you don't start building taller than 4-6 stories, Portland will become a little San Francisco, as they are both situated on a peninsula (if its not there already). Unless, you build a mass trans line like the Green Line (above ground and a pleasant way to travel) in Boston, which goes all the way out to pricey Brookline, Newton, and Wellesley, spreading out the residents. As analogy, Westbrook will never be pricey, because you will never see something like the Green Line built (in our lifetimes, anyway).

 

[PWMFlyer]

The socialist and progressives in Portland need a lesson in finance and accounting. Land is very expensive on the Peninsula period. No developer wants to do a project for free, which everyone thinks there is an tree of money that keeps giving. People just need to come to the realization(which is hard for some) that living outside the city limits is okay. Look at the apartment project on Spring Street in Westbrook, Haigis Parkway project, Scarborough Downs, etc. The variable margin is very thin on constructing apartments in Portland unless the buildings are over 10+. Planners need to encourage transit development, where a project is located on a bus or rail line. For Example, Saco Island. I know of several developers who will not build in Portland due to the costs. They are looking at SoPo, Scarborough, Westbrook to build mega apartment complexes. The only problem, these complexes are not on a transit bus lines...

 

[markhb]

Update on some projects around town...
AC Hotel: Site work is underway
Free Street Condo project: Site work has started.
Center Street Hotel(Jim Brady) groundbreaking next month.
Thompson's Point- Hotel should be starting next month, Children's museum should start soon.
There has been an application submitted for 70 Thames Street, no info yet but is in Portland's planning self CSS site.
Another is 754 Congress Street, looks like a hotel project on the gas station site.
Mercy has submitted plans for expansion at the fore river complex.

70 Thames? wound't that be the water side of the street? I heard talk of condos on the empty ground east of WEX.

Free St. is apartments, not condos. I just walked past there this morning and I didn't notice any activity.

Thames is numbered W-E starting at the intersection with India, so even numbers are land-side. The condos are 20 Thames.

PWMFlyer, what about the AC Hotel? Or are you referring to one of the remaining open lots on that block (one on India next to the GT building, the other on Fore between the hotel and pump station)?

Thompson's Point amazes me, first because it took them how long to realize that a 19th century railroad yard might be contaminated, second because what about everyone who has been sitting on the grass watching concerts? And my prediction from long ago was right: the first thing they actually built new was the Suburban Propane complex on Riverside St. (which appears to be nearly done).

 

[PWMFlyer]

The Aloft hotel not AC...too many hotels now a days..lol...
The Furman Block groundbreaking ceremony is happening this Wednesday at 1pm at 178 Kennebec Street

 

[PWMFlyer]

 

[cneal]

The 70 Thames project looks like it's just a subdivision application – no construction. Click on the "more info" tab:

CSS

Citizen Self Service web site

egweb.portlandmaine.gov

Note that there's no change proposed in total building square footage, parking spaces, or building footprints.

Still, this is in the vicinity of a talked-about land swap that could create a new north-south street connection between Thames and Fore Streets, so it'll be interesting to see what the subdivision plan proposes.

 

[PWMFlyer]

One of Portland's few remaining downtown infill lots goes under the shovel

Photo / William Hall Developers broke ground last week on a six-story mixed-use building at 40 Free St. in downtown Portland, next to the offices of Mainebiz.
One of the increasingly rare infill lots in downtown Portland is now under development, as workers broke ground last week for construction of a six-story mixed-use building at 40 Free St.
Plans call for the 50,000-square-foot structure to include 51 one- and two-bedroom apartments, a parking garage within the building, and five retail units on the ground floor.
The project is on a 17,000-square-foot lot purchased in 2017 by J.B. Brown & Sons for $1.5 million. The lot, currently used for parking, is adjacent to the offices of Mainebiz.
The Portland Planning Board approved a site plan for the project earlier this year, but building permits are still under review. Construction is expected to be complete in 2020.

The new project is just yards from where another developer, North River LLC, in planning to expand the Portland Square complex.
North River bought Portland Square for $66 million in 2015, considered at the time the city’s biggest real estate transaction, and recently submitted a master plan to the city for expanding that property. The plan adds 325,000 square feet of office, retail and residential development to what is now 6.5 acres of parking lots bounded by Cross, Cotton, Fore and Spring streets.
The project includes a 135-room hotel, under the Canopy by Hilton brand, being developed by Jim Brady's Fathom Cos. The hotel plan was approved by the Portland Planning Board in July.

 

[Corey]

Looking forward to watching the new building on Free Street and Kennebec Street rise. Here's a quick shot of 100 Fore Street from the other day:

 

[Sommarnatt]

One of the increasingly rare infill lots in downtown Portland is now under development, as workers broke ground last week for construction of a six-story mixed-use building at 40 Free St.

RIP 'cheap' evening parking lot. I see the garage across the street went up to $5/hr from $3.50/hr almost in concert with this development. Although it is good to see this lot being put to better use than surface parking.

 

[Max]

Portland waterfront lands another major employer as Sun Life announces move

Sun Life U.S., the domestic arm of a Canadian financial services firm, says it will relocate its 500 employees in Scarborough and South Portland to a new building on the former Portland Co. site.

www.pressherald.com

Kind of a bummer that Sun Life will move into a 4-story building on the waterfront rather than be an anchor tenant for a significant new downtown office tower.

That said, I was thinking the other day that probably at no other time in recent history have there been more 6+ story buildings under construction in Portland at one time. Just off the top of my head:

1. 40 Free Street, apartments, 6 floors
2. Verdante condos, 6 floors
3. Hobson's Landing condos, 6 floors
4. Aloft Hotel, 6 floors (breaking ground soon, I believe)
5. 58 Boyd Street, apartments, 6 floors
6. 178 Kennebec Street, apartments, 7 floors
7. Covetrus headquarters, office, 6 floors
8. Cambria/Shipyard 'brewtel,' hotel, 6 floors
9. Canopy Hotel on Commercial Street, 6 floors, (breaking ground soon, I believe)
10. Maine Med parking garage on St. John Street, 10 floors (?)

Other proposals that are 6 floors plus:

1. 170 Fore Street, office, 7 floors
2. 208 Fore Street, condos, 7 floors
3. 83 Middle Street, senior housing, 6 floors
4. Several glass 8-10 story buildings in the original Portland Foreside master development plan
5. The whole Portland Square redevelopment thing

I'm sure I'm forgetting a few other things that have been floated too. Exciting stuff!

 

[cneal]

Maine Med's Congress Street expansion is about to get started, too. Heavy machinery has been on the corner of Congress and Gilman taking down trees and relocating utility poles to prep for the demolition of the old parking garage.

 

[PortlandArch]

The reason there are a lot of 6-story buildings relates to the way in which the structures are designed. Above that height there are structural changes in the building that can very often come with a big price ticket. So you'll generally see taller buildings when the amenities pay for it (where rents etc. are correspondingly inflated due to better views), or where there is literally nowhere else to build (my opinion only). In Maine, 6 stories still gets you quite the view (and I'm not sure there's a market sufficient to offset the higher costs for the better views above that), and there's still plenty of vacant lots to construct on elsewhere (notwithstanding the impressive infill that has occurred in recent years).

I would like to see a few tall and slender buildings, but remember a lot of great cities consist of 6-7 story buildings (European cities are a good example, but also places like Charleston, SC).

I've seen preliminary designs for a new 20+ story building in the central business district (near Monument Square) but I do not know what the timeline is for submission, or if the plans have changed since I saw them months ago. I also am not in a position to divulge information that was not public at the time I saw it. But there could be some height in store for Portland yet. And to clarify I am not referring to the proposal by One Canal Plaza. This is different.

 

[Max]

The reason there are a lot of 6-story buildings relates to the way in which the structures are designed. Above that height there are structural changes in the building that can very often come with a big price ticket. So you'll generally see taller buildings when the amenities pay for it (where rents etc. are correspondingly inflated due to better views), or where there is literally nowhere else to build (my opinion only). In Maine, 6 stories still gets you quite the view (and I'm not sure there's a market sufficient to offset the higher costs for the better views above that), and there's still plenty of vacant lots to construct on elsewhere (notwithstanding the impressive infill that has occurred in recent years).

My sense is developers are building out to the max of their cost/benefit analysis, whether that's based on building costs or supply/demand, etc. Also, with most of these developments, I think they're basically building close to the maximum height allowed by zoning.

I would like to see a few tall and slender buildings, but remember a lot of great cities consist of 6-7 story buildings (European cities are a good example, but also places like Charleston, SC).

I think these 6-7 story buildings are really going to add a feeling of density to the city and improve the streetscape in many places.

I've seen preliminary designs for a new 20+ story building in the central business district (near Monument Square) but I do not know what the timeline is for submission, or if the plans have changed since I saw them months ago. I also am not in a position to divulge information that was not public at the time I saw it. But there could be some height in store for Portland yet. And to clarify I am not referring to the proposal by One Canal Plaza. This is different.

Very interesting! Hope to hear more about this.

 

[PWMFlyer]

 

[Cosakita18]

View attachment 284

Nice to see a more detailed rendering of Portland foreside too. Gives a much better sense of how this is all going to fit together.

This leaves a VERY prime piece of land between the WEX and SunLife buildings, I wouldn't be surprised if we see something coming there soon.

I've also heard that METRO is planning to extend routes 2 and 4 into the eastern waterfront area, and create a mini-transit hub along Thames st.

Also : "A planned hotel was postponed in favor of the office project"

now THAT is something you don't hear often in Portland.

 

[PortlandArch]

I think it's great that there is a corporate office user relocating here, but at the same time I can't help but notice that this building does not look ideally situated for reuse in the future should that tenant bail later on. It looks rather suburban. Not complaining, just cautiously supporting.

Regarding the "prime" piece of land between this and WEX, that could actually backfire and lead to pricing that's too high for anyone to be interested. Oddly the "prime" lots seem to move slower than those that are close but not right in the middle of the action (which sellers are willing to let go for more reasonable numbers). What the lot is worth today may not be what it's worth in a couple of years (the soonest anyone could monetize it), so offering at today's rate is a risky financial proposition. Hopefully something works out there though.