City Council

MARK DION (MAYOR) SARAH MICHNIEWICZ (1) PIOUS ALI (A/L) WESLEY PELLETIER (2) APRIL FOURNIER (A/L) REGINA L. PHILLIPS (3) BENJAMIN GRANT (A/L) ANNA BULLETT (4) KATE SYKES (5) CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP Midtown Properties June 29, 2026 at 5:00 PM in Council Chambers REMOTE PARTICIPATION: The City Council will conduct this meeting from Council Chambers, located on the second floor of City Hall. The public may attend the meeting in person, however space in Council Chambers is limited. A recording will be available in the Agenda Center following the meeting. AGENDA ITEMS: Introduction (Dena) Review of Request for Proposal (Boulos) Councilor Feedback/Q&A (Mayor Dion) EXECUTIVE SESSION: Pursuant to 1 M.R.S.A 405(6)(C) and 5 M.R.S.A. 13119-A, the Council may go into executive session to provide staff direction on proposed RFP. ADJOURNMENT: 1 Page 1  One Portland Square, Suite 400 Portland, ME 04101 207.772.1333 Request for Proposal Development Partner – Bayside Properties Presented by: Nate Stevens, SIOR, Managing Partner, Designated Broker and John Finegan, Broker Page 2 Section 1: Introduction The City of Portland Maine (“Seller”) is requesting Proposals to purchase or lease City- owned properties identified as 0 Elm St, 75 Somerset St, 59 Somerset St, and 25 Somerset, and further identified in the matrix below (“Parcels”). The available land is part of a 3.45± tract that abuts the Bayside Trail, which is not part of the land to be sold. The Boulos Company is issuing this Request for Proposals (“RFP”) for the development of the Parcels in a manner that will be beneficial to the community. The Seller will use this RFP process to consider the opportunity to enter into a development agreement, land lease, or sale contract for the Parcels to one or several selected submitter(s). All responses to this RFP must be submitted directly to The Boulos Company. The Seller has a preference to sell each Parcel to a unique developer. However, as the Seller is also concerned with how the development of all Parcels as a whole will work in harmony, it may make sense to sell multiple Parcels to a single developer, specifically 59 Somerset Street and 25 Somerset Street because they are abutting parcels of similar geometry. Submitters are encouraged to engage with The Boulos Company throughout this process for guidance as needed. Description of the Parcels Address Map Lot Block Acres Color on Map 0 Elm Street 34 D 1 0.459 Red 22 A 22 Purple 75 Somerset Street 1.490 34 D 3 Purple 59 Somerset Street 25 B 3 1.064 Yellow 25 Somerset Street 25 B 2 0.486 Green Page 3 Proposal submission structure Proposals should include a self-grading section which includes a narrative describing alignment with the criteria of the Scoring Rubric. Proposals are encouraged to give as much detail as possible on the following topics: • Identify which Parcel(s) the Proposal is for • Ownership structure: sale, land lease, or other • Financial structure of the development (demonstrate financial ability to develop and complete the project) o Sale/rental price of the housing units; o Cost of construction inputs; and o How financing will work • Visuals of the proposed development • Conceptual floorplans of the housing units • Parking counts • Narrative on the greenspace and enhancement of the Bayside Trail Page 4  • Timeline for the development (Estimates for the length of a transaction, site plan approvals, and construction) • The project team and partner expertise (demonstrate capacity to assemble a team that can successfully finance, develop, and manage the proposed project) • Contact information of the submitter Section 2: Vision Community Input In preparation for this RFP, the City Council sought input from members of the public on what they would like to see developed on the Parcels. Survey results can be found here. Raw data can be made available upon request. Nearly 1,400 individuals provided input through a digital survey; others shared feedback during two in-person community feedback sessions. The community engagement process for the Midtown properties identified a clear vision centered on mixed-used development. Residents consistently prioritized multi-unit housing as the preferred primary land use across the parcels, reflecting a strong interest in additional residential development. This preference was accompanied by significant support for integrated open space and recreational areas that complement the existing trail network. Overall, the findings indicate broad support for a balanced approach to redevelopment that incorporates residential as the primary use with commercial, green space, and community uses as secondary priorities. Housing affordability and sustainable design are also key priorities. Commenters also repeatedly flagged two site-specific considerations: flood-zone resilience and pedestrian safety across Franklin Arterial. Council Input **This is a placeholder until the 6/29/26 meeting** Based on conversations with several individual councilors, as well as on feedback shared by councilors in public meetings, a common theme is interest in ensuring that development outcomes are neighborhood- and community-centric. For example, public greenspace – whether it’s enhancement and investment in the nearby Bayside Trail, or development of a standalone park – that allows for passive and/or active recreation has been noted by several councilors, as has an interest in mixed-income housing above retail space that primarily serves the individuals and families who live nearby. Page 5 Ensuring that developments incorporate resilient features that are responsive to climate change and flooding has also been noted by several councilors. Housing: Affordability: Greenspace: Price: Parking: Mixed-Use: Site Cohesion and Integration Because this offering encompasses four distinct Parcels, the Seller will evaluate Proposals not only on their individual merit, but on their potential to function as part of a cohesive master plan. The Seller's thinking on how the Parcels should work together as a whole will naturally evolve as Proposals are received and the overall picture takes shape. Section 3: Priorities Based on the desired uses expressed in the Vision section, this Priorities section describes qualitative features that will be viewed favorably when assessing multiple Proposals. “Alignment with the Priorities” is a scored section of the Scoring Rubric. What follows is not a checklist. It is an attempt to describe, in human terms, what a successful Proposal for the Parcels should feel like. I. Housing The clearest signal from the community survey is that Portland needs homes. Nearly four out of five respondents ranked housing in their top three priorities. Nearly two-thirds named it first. The comments from residents returned to this theme again and again: attainable, affordable, diverse housing. Proposal(s) should demonstrate how it would advance the City's goals of creating a diverse, inclusive, and economically vibrant neighborhood by providing a variety of housing opportunities that serve households with varying incomes, ages, household sizes, and needs. For example, strong Proposals may include: • A combination of rental and homeownership opportunities; • A combination of affordable, workforce, and/or market-rate housing; • Innovative housing models that expand housing choice and support long-term affordability; Page 6  • Diversity in dwelling size and bedroom counts. II. Green Space Portland residents want to live near integrated, accessible green space recreation. After Housing, Recreation Area was the second highest first-place answer in the community survey, and was framed not as a natural companion to housing. The ideal Proposal(s) integrate green space into the development, use it to promote pedestrian accessibility, and enhance the abutting Bayside Trail. To promote and enhance visual and physical access to open space and the Bayside Trail, and to encourage active public use and engagement within the neighborhood, strong development Proposals may incorporate the following elements: • Development Proposals should be designed to directly engage with and integrate the Bayside Trail. Buildings, open spaces, and site amenities should be oriented to maximize visibility of, access to, and activity along the trail, creating a safe, attractive, and welcoming public environment. • Proposals should incorporate a substantial amount of landscaped open space adjacent to the Bayside Trail. Such open spaces should be designed to encourage public use and activation of the trail corridor and may include plazas, parks, outdoor seating areas, gathering spaces, recreational amenities, and other features that support social interaction, enhance the public realm, and integrate open space within the trail. • Preference will be given to Proposals that incorporate active ground-floor uses and trail-oriented amenities, such as outdoor dining, retail frontage, retail display areas, community gathering spaces, cultural programming, or similar features that contribute to a vibrant and engaging trail experience. • Open space areas should incorporate innovative stormwater management and green infrastructure strategies, including, but not limited to, rain gardens, bioswales, permeable paving, constructed wetlands, and other low-impact development techniques. Proposals should demonstrate how these features are integrated into the site design to improve environmental performance, enhance resilience, support ecological functions, and contribute to the quality and character of open space and the public realm. • Proposals should incorporate public access areas that provide clear, safe, and convenient connections to the Bayside Trail and to Somerset Street, to the extent feasible. Designs should prioritize pedestrian accessibility, wayfinding, and seamless integration with the surrounding street and trail network. • Where parking areas, service functions, blank walls, or other inactive uses are located adjacent to the trail and publicly accessible open spaces, landscape Page 7  screening and buffering should be provided to minimize visual impacts and maintain an attractive trail and open space environment. III. Mixed Use Nearly half of all respondents described their vision as a "mixed-use district" — a place of layered life, where the street holds community-oriented services and retail at eye level, homes above, and a park around the corner. But the community was equally clear about what it does not mean. It does not mean a commercial center with housing attached. It does not mean office towers with a gesture toward the street. Fewer than 5% of respondents wanted a commercial center at all; office space was ranked in the bottom two by two-thirds of survey responses. The ideal Proposal does not mistake activation for commercialization; it brings retail and dining into the picture as amenity. It adds cultural space — an arts venue, and a flexible gathering room — as evidence that this will be a neighborhood. Strong Proposals will reflect the following: • Orientation of commercial uses toward Somerset Street to support active and pedestrian-friendly street frontage. • Incorporation of building frontages and active ground-floor uses oriented toward the Bayside Trail, including but not limited to outdoor dining, retail display areas, commercial, retail, community, and other publicly engaging uses, to create a welcoming, safe, and vibrant environment along the trail corridor. IV. Parking The development of these Parcels, along with several other developments underway in the area, will meaningfully increase the residential population in the coming years — and with it, demand for parking. At the same time, community survey respondents ranked parking among the lowest priorities for these sites. Consistent with that feedback, any parking provided should be ancillary to the primary development. The geometry of the Parcels may also present practical constraints on podium-style parking structures, and the fact that the Parcels are in a flood zone may make below-grade parking difficult, further reinforcing a restrained approach. Limiting on-site parking also serves an affordability objective. Market-rate and luxury housing typically requires dedicated parking to command its price point; developments with minimal parking are better positioned to deliver affordable and attainable units. Page 8 That said, the Seller recognizes that some parking is functionally necessary. A strong Proposal will integrate parking thoughtfully within the structure — in service of residents and visitors, not as a surface lot that consumes valuable land or a garage that walls off the street. Proposals that incorporate coordinated parking solutions — such as shared or joint-use facilities, agreements with existing parking garages, or interconnections with abutting properties and adjacent developments — will be viewed favorably. The Parcels sit within walking distance of three grocery stores, dozens of cafes, breweries, and restaurants, as well as schools, offices, and parks. Many future residents may be able to meet most daily needs without a car, and this development could itself serve as a catalyst for expanded public transit service. Even so, some residents and businesses will require parking, and Proposals should include an adequate supply to meet that genuine need. Section 4: Scoring Rubric Category Notes Points Factors to consider include the number of new units, how Housing it contributes to serving households of various sizes and income levels, etc. 20 Affordability How well does the Proposal achieve long-term affordability/attainability? 15 Developer Experience Does the submitter have proven success developing this type of construction? 15 Price What is the price of the offer to purchase the land? 10 Does the Proposal fit with the qualitative description of Alignment with Priorities what the public and Seller want to see on the Parcels, as described in the Priorities section? 30 Can the submitter demonstrate how their proposed Financial Viability development is financially viable? Is the delivery realistic given construction inputs? 10 Total 100 Partial points are possible. Page 9 Section 5: Timeline *Subject to change Page 10