USM’s Marginal Way parking lot may be turned into office space as the city of Portland considers proposals from land developers willing to fork over up to $1 million for the Bayside land which USM currently leases. City leaders expect to meet by the end of this month to choose one of four proposals, two of which include new housing for USM.
The four competing developers made their presentations on April 2. The University submitted letters expressing interest in the two proposals, according to Jack Lufkin of the city’s economic committee.
“We’re very interested in seeing that area developed,” said Lufkin. “It’s still working its way through the process, but we want to move as quickly as possible.”
The city’s community development and planning committees will choose a proposal, which will then have to pass through the city council before any development can take place. The earliest this could happen is next month.
While it is possible for a developer to buy out that land and start building within the coming months, Lufkin said it is unlikely that any USM parking would be taken away prior to January 2004. That’s when USM’s new garage on Bedford Street is expected to be ready.
The proposals are part of the Bayside project which is meant to make Portland’s gateway more attractive. The project is coordinated with the state’s move to extend passenger rail service along Interstate 295. The city plans to build a second train stop next to the sought-after parking lot; the existing one is on outer Congress Street next to the Concord Trailways bus station.
Portland City housing and community development committees graded the four proposals on a scoring system with a possible 100 points. The highest and lowest ranked proposals included USM apartment housing. The highest was Olympia Equity Investors, with 83.5 points. They offered $750,000 for the land to turn into 10,000 square feet of office and retail space and up to 250 apartments for USM students. This proposal leaves parking intact, with the addition of a 600-space parking garage.
The lowest-ranked proposal with 72 points offered a down payment on the $900,000 lease. Peregrine Group and Capstone Development Corporation presented plans for a building that would house 116 apartments, accommodating approximately 400 students. Most of the apartments in this proposal are four-bedroom, two-bathroom units. There would also be 250 ground-level parking spots.
The three acres of Bayside land are in the heart of a commercially-booming area, including its newest addition, the Wild Oats Organic Market. City leaders consider a variety of factors that would impact the surrounding area with each proposal, such as the price offered, whether the proposal would be financially practical in the long run, and what its impact will be on the immediate neighborhood.
Whatever proposal the city chooses, USM does not have to give up the space until the lease expires. “There is a lot of interest in that property, but [project developers] would have to buy out our lease if they want to develop the site sooner,” said John Rasmussen, building construction engineer at USM’s Department of Facilities Management.
PARKING GARAGE UPDATE
John Rasmussen, building construction engineer at the Department of Facilities Management, said he expects the new parking garage on Bedford Street to be open at the end of this year. He said rumors about the first level of the garage opening for the 2003 fall semester are untrue. Rasmussen said no part of the garage can be used until it is completely finished. “There are insurance concerns with using a partially finished structure.”
The new garage will house about 1,150 cars, said Dewey Ferguson, parking and transportation manager in the USM Police Department. He said the garage will have five decks with 50 additional spaces of ordinary parking.
The project manager of Granger Northern, the contractor for the garage, also said the opening is scheduled for the end of 2003 but stopped short of commenting on anything else surrounding the completion of the garage.
The opening of the garage will come long before any development takes place at the Marginal Way parking lot, recouping hundreds of much-needed spaces.