U.S. Customs House in Portland

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John_French

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I understand the Customs House on Fore Street will be empty by the end of next week, and for the time being will remain in the GSA custody, but may go up for sale after a time. The heating costs, and lack of parking was a major issue for the last agency to use the building (ICE), and they are moving out next week.
 
Would make for a great Ruth Chris steakhouse but alas we don't have the population. They should make it a bad ass banquet hall or some sort of visitor center. Patrick will take it over as his house when he becomes mayor.
 
Ha, too funny! Thank goodness we have historic preservation now.
 
The Custom House is such a powerful building in that area--its order and granite is such a contrast to the buildings (equally charming) around it. I'm not sure there's any demand for more museum space, but it seems like it would be an ideal location for some sort of museum/interpretative center about the area specifically, the maritime history or Portland in general. It's a big building, though, so even if there is a demand, it seems like there would be plenty of room for some sort of retail or dining. I just hope the whole thing doesn't become offices or something--it seems like too much of a natural focal point to not have any public access.

As a side note, it's interesting to see how architecturally different the Portland and Portsmouth custom houses are: Portland is a more massive, highly decorated, French-inspired building, whereas Portsmouth is a smaller, more vertical (even without a tower), restrained Federalist style building that almost looks modern in its relative simplicity. Yet they were built only 50 miles and 12 years apart. I think both are beautiful buildings, but with the physical prominence and big windows, the one in Portland is even better suited to new public use.
 
It's one of my favorite buildings in Portland, I hope they do something creative with it. Ruth's Chris has done a good job of using some nice historic buildings (Boston's old City Hall for example... it has far more character than the Ruth's Chris in Providence which is in a modern high rise). Still, I don't know if I love Ruth's Chris there. I also don't like the visitor center idea... I feel like the building is too prominent for that type of use. I know you want something to get a visitor's eye, but it can be put to so much better use.

I would think it would be a nice place for year-round food stands/stalls. Similar I guess to what's in Quincy Market, but a bit smaller and perhaps with emphasis on more local cuisines and ingredients. Think LA or SF style food trucks, but with a permanent home. It has access from both Commercial and Fore Streets which would keep a lot of foot traffic coming. I'm not sure what the interior of the building looks like, but I assume the first floor is fairly open given the type of structure it is. Obviously that's important. You could put seating on the second floor and there's definitely enough sidewalk space on both sides for seasonal outdoor seating. It would be great if they could allow beer and wine to be served as well given how many local brewers there are.

I had a lot of friends in Portland that were somehow involved in the restaurant industry (sous chef, pastry chef, etc). Most of them couldn't afford a restaurant space (or couldn't organize it), so permanent stands/stalls would allow people like that an opportunity to get a start for far less in terms of overhead and startup costs (and staffing). It would be a good way for talented people to get started and a good way to give them instant exposure.
 
Lrfox said:
It's one of my favorite buildings in Portland, I hope they do something creative with it. Ruth's Chris has done a good job of using some nice historic buildings (Boston's old City Hall for example... it has far more character than the Ruth's Chris in Providence which is in a modern high rise). Still, I don't know if I love Ruth's Chris there. I also don't like the visitor center idea... I feel like the building is too prominent for that type of use. I know you want something to get a visitor's eye, but it can be put to so much better use.

I would think it would be a nice place for year-round food stands/stalls. Similar I guess to what's in Quincy Market, but a bit smaller and perhaps with emphasis on more local cuisines and ingredients. Think LA or SF style food trucks, but with a permanent home. It has access from both Commercial and Fore Streets which would keep a lot of foot traffic coming. I'm not sure what the interior of the building looks like, but I assume the first floor is fairly open given the type of structure it is. Obviously that's important. You could put seating on the second floor and there's definitely enough sidewalk space on both sides for seasonal outdoor seating. It would be great if they could allow beer and wine to be served as well given how many local brewers there are.

I had a lot of friends in Portland that were somehow involved in the restaurant industry (sous chef, pastry chef, etc). Most of them couldn't afford a restaurant space (or couldn't organize it), so permanent stands/stalls would allow people like that an opportunity to get a start for far less in terms of overhead and startup costs (and staffing). It would be a good way for talented people to get started and a good way to give them instant exposure.
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That sounds like a great idea. Portland is increasingly known for its food culture, so I think something like that--and better than Quincy Hall: no Starbucks or typical mall vendors, please--that would give small cooks and restaurants a chance would be great, while also making the building completely open to the public in a way that a high-end steakhouse never would be.
 
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I've said it before here and on my photo blog many times, but I'll repeat that this is my favorite building in Portland as well. I've never been inside the building, so I hope that whatever it becomes will allow me to get a peek inside. Since it is a pretty large building, maybe there is the potential that it will have several uses.


may252b2011252bportland.jpg
 
Corey said:
I've said it before here and on my photo blog many times, but I'll repeat that this is my favorite building in Portland as well. I've never been inside the building, so I hope that whatever it becomes will allow me to get a peek inside. Since it is a pretty large building, maybe there is the potential that it will have several uses.
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Here is a link as to the inside as it once was and as I remember it as well: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=340734995990933&set=a.329444590453307.79083.124967760900992&type=3&theater
 
Here is a recent MaineBiz article about the Custom House. They report that the new tenants will be government-related. One will be the federal Mediation and Conciliation Agency and the other two agencies are yet to be disclosed. Interestingly, the Customs and Border Protection agency left because of concerns about "the agency's safety standards in protecting against the threat of terrorist attacks" and is now located on Gannett Drive in South Portland. Kind of an odd place for a "port office."


And a kind of related observation - I see that the Cumberland County Registry of Deeds is now located across the street from the Custom House on the ground floor of the Custom House Parking Garage.
 
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