Potential Soccer Stadium | Portland peninsula

Good luck! (And allow me to say that I personally really appreciate your and your team's engagement and openness on this forum!)
 
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Will love to see this happen. But I think the sidelines stands need to be bigger. The end of the field stands are horrible views--eliminate those. It looks like 8-9 thousand capacity? 20 thousand is smarter because Portland keeps growing as a city. You know, plan for the future.
 
TC_zoid said:
Will love to see this happen. But I think the sidelines stands need to be bigger. The end of the field stands are horrible views--eliminate those. It looks like 8-9 thousand capacity? 20 thousand is smarter because Portland keeps growing as a city. You know, plan for the future.
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While a larger capacity (20k) would help attract bigger name acts for concerts and festivals, 8-10k is about the right size for a minor league soccer team. I really think both proposals look great. The Preble street one definitely does better for showing off Portland's water front (all you Bostonians yes Portland embraces their waterfront unlike the hub). Both stadium proposals look like they could be expanded by adding an upper deck. Would love to UMaine football play a few home games here, especially if the CAA goes full D1. But that really is a pipe dream for me.
 
From the presentation itself, the seating requirements for League One are 3500+ seats, and another bit seems to indicate they're looking at no more than 6000. Reading the "New Soccer Stadium for Boston" thread, there seems to be a consensus that these teams are better off playing in a full, smaller stadium than in a large one that's mostly empty (ref: the Revs playing in Gillette with the upper decks closed).

Personally, I'd prefer the Back Cove site if they can figure out how to accommodate motorists who wish to attend games, because I'm not a fan of repurposing Fitzpatrick away from the high schools (and going there would also necessitate moving the track somewhere off-peninsula, also per the presentation).
 
Although it will never happen, a retractable roof would be a big plus as the facility will only be used 7-8 months out of the year. The versatility of this for youth programs would be fantastic. With all of the new money coming into Portland (business and individuals), it is possible to find with some effort. I would connect Shamrock Sports to this idea. They brought the PBA and PGA into town last month for tournaments. Soccer has a world-wide appeal, and so most of the professional players for this new facility will be foreign born. I went to the state championship game at Fitzpatrick a while back, and Lewiston's entire team was born outside the U.S. (they easily won the game). Create a tournament that is marketed outside the U.S. It's not hard, just takes some work. Shamrock needs to be involved in this. Brian Corcoran gets things done. Think small and you get small. Think big and you get bigger.
 
The City of Portland also has a long term vision for the FETH(Fitzy, Expo, Troubh, Hadlock) complex. Troubh is looking to expand to 2 sheets of Ice. Possible talks with New Balance about a rec center. A parking garage was talked about at one point in the parking lot next to Fitzy. This would be open 24hrs to service the surrounding area during a storm. Would Football be eliminated and moved to Deering. Talks about combining programs have been discussed. I am concerned about the lack of parking in the Preble Street location. Parking in Hannaford? The small lot ? Use the garage from intermed?
 
Actually build the Midtown garage on Somerset we promised the Feds? If that's not totally bound up in the Federated lawsuit it could be a possibility. Ocean Gateway garage was underutilized for years until the neighborhood exploded.
 
PWMFlyer said:
The City of Portland also has a long term vision for the FETH(Fitzy, Expo, Troubh, Hadlock) complex. Troubh is looking to expand to 2 sheets of Ice. Possible talks with New Balance about a rec center. A parking garage was talked about at one point in the parking lot next to Fitzy. This would be open 24hrs to service the surrounding area during a storm. Would Football be eliminated and moved to Deering. Talks about combining programs have been discussed. I am concerned about the lack of parking in the Preble Street location. Parking in Hannaford? The small lot ? Use the garage from intermed?
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There you go. You got it. Shamrock negotiates with New Balance for a facility with several buildings, including the soccer stadium. New Balance is approximately 100 miles south, and would probably welcome participation for a project in Maine. Their futuristic track facility opens in Allston this fall.
 
Without reviewing anything in detail, my initial feeling is Fitzpatrick. The parking on Preble could be a pain, but more than that I'd just like that area to stay relatively wild. And I like the idea of it being a part of the FETH complex, especially if they can get the garage in there. However, if Preble ends up the only viable option I'd rather have it there than not at all.
 
PWMFlyer said:
The City of Portland also has a long term vision for the FETH(Fitzy, Expo, Troubh, Hadlock) complex. Troubh is looking to expand to 2 sheets of Ice. Possible talks with New Balance about a rec center. A parking garage was talked about at one point in the parking lot next to Fitzy. This would be open 24hrs to service the surrounding area during a storm. Would Football be eliminated and moved to Deering. Talks about combining programs have been discussed. I am concerned about the lack of parking in the Preble Street location. Parking in Hannaford? The small lot ? Use the garage from intermed?
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Football Stays at Fitzy in this scenario - There are ways to work on field lines for games. ~C
 
Looks like you all found the info! Was going to give a heads up after tomorrow night's meeting if it wasn't up. I can provide more insight after the meeting on here - answer your questions. Pretty wild but super exciting! ~C
 
Redfern said:
Football Stays at Fitzy in this scenario - There are ways to work on field lines for games. ~C
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I don't think professional soccer can be played on a field with markings for football (artificial surface). I think football needs to be moved to Memorial. Don't get me wrong, I love football, but soccer is the future because it's far more inclusive with both sexes. So, it should be soccer and track. But then, will the track interfere with the regulation sized soccer field?
 
TC_zoid said:
But then, will the track interfere with the regulation sized soccer field?
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Per the proposal, yes; the proposal includes suggestions for moving the track off-peninsula, either to Payson Park or Dougherty Field.
 
Please city, don't mix the football and soccer lines. What would result is that the new soccer field will not be taken seriously for national tournaments. Soccer needs a dedicated stadium. If not, you are looked at as inferior. A new soccer facility at Fitzpatrick could also be used by USM, which is building a massive dorm, student center, performing arts center, business graduate school, and new law school. It's about time for Portland to grow its sports as the location is prime with its easy access to Boston (the train). I still love the idea of New Balance figuring into this equation, as their futuristic new indoor track facility in Boston is the right size for a soccer one in Portland. The giant "New Balance" logo at the top would be seen by all the traffic on 295.
 
Dr. StrangeHat said:
So, where do I collect my prize for being the first one to guess Back Cove Park? :ROFLMAO:
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I'd vote for Kennedy Park. The pre-game and post game social activity in the surrounding area would be dynamic (breweries, etc.) Plus, most of the immigrants that live in this area grew up with soccer, so you have a fan base up close. If you watch the brilliant HBO doc on the Brooklyn Dodgers, that team and facility resulted in the disparate neighborhoods coming together (Irish, Italian, Polish, Jewish). The fans all wore the same colors and so it becomes unifying, cheering for the same team. The Back Cove idea would be surrounded, walled in by 295, Back Cove, Preble Street, and Hannaford Grocery. So leave Fitzpatrick like it is, but build up the stands.
 
TC_zoid said:
I'd vote for Kennedy Park. The pre-game and post game social activity in the surrounding area would be dynamic (breweries, etc.) Plus, most of the immigrants that live in this area grew up with soccer, so you have a fan base up close. If you watch the brilliant HBO doc on the Brooklyn Dodgers, that team and facility resulted in the disparate neighborhoods coming together (Irish, Italian, Polish, Jewish). The fans all wore the same colors and so it becomes unifying, cheering for the same team. The Back Cove idea would be surrounded, walled in by 295, Back Cove, Preble Street, and Hannaford Grocery. So leave Fitzpatrick like it is, but build up the stands.
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Kennedy Park is too small....they just put in Futsal Court too....thought about it!
 
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