By Carol McCracken  (Post # 2,629)

Four (4) applications were opened yesterday afternoon at city hall in response to an RFP for real estate broker services to sell city-owned property located in the Bayside section of Portland. The four companies, all located in Portland, responding to the RFP were:  Tranzon Auction Properties, CBRE/Boulos Company, Malone Commercial Brokers and The Dunham Group. The RFP was dated October 25, 2016 and a deadline was given of Tuesday, November 8th at noon by which time the applications needed to be filed with the Purchasing Department at City Hall.

Four (4) parcels of land were listed in the Economic Development Department’s document:  They include:  56 Parris Street, 82 Hanover Street and 158 Kennebec Street; 65 Hanover Street and 52 Alder Street; and lastly 44 Hanover Street and Parris and Lancaster Streets. Public works departments located in these buildings have moved out to city-owned buildings on Canco Road. The above properties are considered valuable for development.

Additionally listed were 181 Forest Avenue, 178 Kennebec Street and 55 Portland Street and Hanover and Parris Streets as property that “may be considered for sale with broker assistance.”

A committee will meet in the coming weeks to select a winner based on the criteria in the RFP.  The upcoming holidays will most likely slow the selection process down.

In another matter, an RFP for a Fort Gorges Preservation Plan has been extended until Wednesday, November 23 at 3:30 pm. The deadline was to have closed on November 17, but was extended until next week. The City is seeking “quotes from qualified consultant teams to prepare a preservation plan for Fort Gorges, Portland Harbor.  The selected team will document existing conditions, identify current accessibility and condition issues including structural deficiencies, recommend specific measures to address these deficiencies and outline a phased and prioritized program of work that can be implemented over time as funding is secured.”

Some attending the annual District Meeting for District 2 last night at Reiche School expressed frustration at the lack of public knowledge of City properties for sale.  Please see previous post herein for information on this.

For additional information on this, please email Matthew Fitzgerald at:  MFF@portlandmaine.gov or fax to (207) 874-8652.