Land Bank Commission

City of Portland Land Bank Commission Agenda The Land Bank Commission is responsible for identifying and protecting open space resources with the city of Portland. The Commission seeks to preserve a balance between development and conservation of open space important for wildlife, ecological, environmental, scenic or outdoor recreational values. Commission Members: Alaina Chormann, Daniel Herzlinger, Jon Kachmar, Joshua Barber, Michael Carey, Michael Scrameyer, Robert Foster, and Simon Thompson. City Staff: Ethan Hipple (Parks, Recreation, and Facilities Director), Doug Roncarati (Public Works- Stormwater Coordinator), Jessica Teesdale (PRF Sr. Executive Assistant) November 12, 2025 5:00 PM On the second Wednesday of the month at 5:00 pm, the Portland Land Bank Commission will hold a meeting at Parks, Recreation, and Facilities, 212 Canco Rd., Suite A conference room. The Land Bank Commission will conduct this meeting in-person. Public comments may only be submitted in person or in writing. To submit written public comment on an agenda item, email landbank@portlandmaine.gov. Submissions must be received by 12:00 pm the day before the Land Bank Commission meeting to guarantee their inclusion in the agenda packet. All submissions must include the person's name and legal address. To help ensure your comment is submitted for the correct item, please include the name of the agenda item (see below). To view this meeting please visit the Livestream link: https://portlandme.portal.civicclerk.com/event/7484/media I. Call to Order II. Citizen Comment Period III. Agenda Items i. Acceptance of Meeting Minutes: September 10, 2025 ii. New Business a. Secretary's Report • Annual Report b. Treasurer's Report • Allocations iii. Old Business iv. Communications and Parcel Updates a. Projects Review • Davis Pines Page 1 City of Portland Land Bank Commission Agenda The Land Bank Commission is responsible for identifying and protecting open space resources with the city of Portland. The Commission seeks to preserve a balance between development and conservation of open space important for wildlife, ecological, environmental, scenic or outdoor recreational values. • Hope Ave. • Murray Street • Redlon • Rocky Hill • Stroudwater Boat Launch • Stroudwater Pedestrian Bridge • 0 Gray Rd. b. Parks Division Report c. Land Bank Commission Report v. Commissioner requests for Agenda Items IV. Adjournment Page 2 City of Portland | Parks, Recreation and Facilities Management Ethan Hipple, Director Alex Marshall, Director of Parks Division Land Bank Commission September 10, 2025 Meeting Minutes This meeting was recorded and is available to watch on the Agendas and Meetings Portal here: https://portlandme.portal.civicclerk.com/event/7482/media Present Commission Members: Alaina Chormann, Daniel Herzlinger, Jon Kachmar, Joshua Barber, Michael Carey, Michael Scrameyer, and Robert Foster Not Present: Staff: Alex Marshall (Parks Division Director), Doug Roncarati (Public Works- Stormwater Coordinator, Jessica Teesdale (PRF Sr. Executive Assistant), Amber Brooks (Principal Financial Officer) Call to Order: J. Kachmar called the meeting to order at 5:00 pm General Citizen Comment Period- George Rheault East Bayside Emailed comments-George Rheault, John Bowen, Louise Little, David Cowie Agenda Items Acceptance of Meeting Minutes: August 13, 2025-Motion to accept meeting minutes: The motion was made by D. Herzlinger and seconded by M. Carey. Motion passed 6 yes votes, 1 abstention New Business Secretary's Report- D. Herzlinger reports that he has been in contact with the previous secretary, and he will provide an update on the Annual Report at the next meeting. Treasurer's Report-R. Foster is coordinating with the previous treasurer and will be prepared with a financial report at the next meeting. Old Business Sumner Court proposal- 212 Canco Road, Suite A, Portland, Maine 04103 | parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov Page 3 Discussion and Motion Regarding the Proposed Sale of Sumner Court Property: Update on Sumner Court Property Proposal J. Kachmar provided an update on the request to sell the property at Sumner Court. This included a recap of the recent site visit and a discussion of the procedural next steps. Departmental Support- E. Hipple communicated to J. Kachmar that the proposal to sell the property does not have the support of the department heads from the Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department, Public Works, and Planning and Urban Development. Motion to Postpone Indefinitely R. Foster made a motion to postpone indefinitely the decision on the Sumner Court property. J. Kachmar, A. Marshall, and D. Roncarati provided clarification on the meaning and implications of an indefinite postponement. The motion was seconded by M. Carey. Vote- The motion to postpone indefinitely passed with a vote of 7-0. The proposal is postponed indefinitely, meaning no further action will be taken on this matter by the commission at this time. Communications and Updates Parks Division Report- A. Marshall provided updates and answered commission questions on the following projects: ●​ Preble field ribbon cutting ●​ Lincoln Park Fence ●​ Stroudwater Bridge bid proposal ●​ Maine Conservation Corps to spend 9 days at Riverton Trolley Park ●​ Dougherty Field renovation project Parks Commission Report-R. Foster provided an update on the September 4, 2025, Parks Commission meeting. ●​ Back Cove Music Festival ●​ 2027 CIP project selection process Murray St.-D. Herzlinger provides an update on the letters of interest that were sent to the property owners. J. Kachmar will work with D. Herzlinger on what the next steps need to be taken. Land Bank Community Outreach and PR- M. Carey opens the discussion about how the commission can better communicate the need to balance the need for conservation land while also promoting development on land that is appropriate to do so. Collaborate with Planning and Urban Development more towards the common cause. Redlon- M. Carey reported that the owner of the Barry parcels has not responded to the letter of inquiry. The allocations list should be reviewed and could be a topic for a future agenda. 212 Canco Road, Suite A, Portland, Maine 04103 | parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov Page 4 Commissioner Requests for Agenda Items ●​ Allocations list review ●​ Project list review ●​ Low Impact Development ordinance ●​ Davis Farm Rd. Adjournment 212 Canco Road, Suite A, Portland, Maine 04103 | parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov Page 5 ​ ​ CITY OF PORTLAND​ CITY OF PORTLAND ​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department ​ Ethan Hipple, Director​ Alex Marshall, Parks Director Memorandum TO: Parks Commission and Land Bank Commission FROM: Alex Marshall, Parks Director, Parks, Recreation and Facilities Department SUBJECT: Parks Division Update DATE: August/September/October 2025 Parks Division Staffing ●​ Total Budgeted positions in Parks Division: 43 ●​ Vacancies: ○​ Arborist ○​ Parks Maintainer ○​ Contracted Project Manager Citywide Unhoused Report At this time, there are 33 encampments citywide, which is 12 fewer than this time in 2024 and 243 fewer than that of 2023. Of the 33 active tent sites, 3 of them are located on City property. Overall, in 2025, City Staff (primarily Rangers) have tagged and removed 632 tents citywide. Park Rangers continue to tag and remove between 5 and 20 tents from City land each week and conduct a thorough clean-up afterward with the help of other Parks staff or contractors. There continues to be a steady capacity available at the Homeless Services Center. Annual Ft Gorges Maintenance On September 18th staff from the Parks Division took a trip out to Ft. Gorges with the help of Rippleffect and their beach landing vessel. Overgrown vegetation and invasives were removed to allow for easier accessibility and viewing from various locations throughout the park. The Friends of Ft. Gorges also joined us to help with the project. Riverton Trolley Park & Maine Outdoor Film Festival Also on September 18th was an afternoon and evening event at the transforming Riverton Trolley Park through a collaboration with the Parks Conservancy. There was a tutorial on mountain bike riding with The Greater Portland New England Mountain Biking Association, a park history walk with former City Arborist Jeff Tarling and a short film showing in the ballfield with the Maine Outdoor Film Festival. It was a wonderful way to activate and shine a spotlight on this beautiful space. Resurfaced Riverton Courts The Riverton Courts are now open with 6 new surfaced and dedicated Pickleball courts and 1 multiuse tennis court. The soft opening was highlighted on September 19th when we invited members of the daily Deering Oaks pickleball group over to play in Riverton and show the Parks Director how it is really done. 212 Canco Road, Suite A • Portland, Maine 04103 Page 6 • www.portlandmaine.gov parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov ​ ​ CITY OF PORTLAND​ CITY OF PORTLAND ​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department ​ Ethan Hipple, Director​ Alex Marshall, Parks Director Preble Field & Fitness Course Open The long awaited Preble Field and Fitness Course are now open after a ribbon cutting ceremony on September 5th. Members of the community, city staff, the project team and the mayor all joined in the celebration of how impactful this new stormwater infrastructure will be for the city and how beautiful this reconstructed recreation facility is. The underground tanks hold 3.5 Million gallons of combined sewer/stormwater during each storm which is important as it will all be treated by the water treatment plant as capacity allows instead of being discharged into the ocean due to that limited treatment capacity. The playing field will be programmed for use in the Spring of 2026 while the fitness course is open for fun and exercise. Forestry Fall Planting & Co-Op Program The Forestry Team planted a total of 166 trees this Spring and Fall as part of their annual tree planting program. The focus in 2025 was in the low tree equity score neighborhoods and surrounding areas such as continued efforts in Bayside. Additionally, of these 166 trees, there were 35 co-op trees planted across the city. The 166 trees were watered with the previous 300 trees planted in 2024. Annual Meadow Mowing Each season the parks team identifies and promotes ‘no mow’ or ‘low mow’ areas within the parks. These areas are typically established in underutilized spaces that would be better served to promote pollinator habitat and activity. In order to keep these meadows flush with natives and desired vegetation, we need to mow them annually so that woody plants and invasives do not overrun them. This schedule starts around the end of September and runs through October/November as there is an incredible amount of ground to cover before snowfall. Some locations see a mowing in the late Spring after insects have left the space. Annual Tulip Planting The City Horticulture Team has removed all annual flower displays, prepped those beds for tulips and planted the Spring tulip display for 2026. With upwards of 10,000 tulips in the ground this year we are eagerly awaiting the beauty they bring each Spring. Some of these spaces include Fessenden Park, Deering Oaks and the Western Prom. The Horticulture Team also partnered with the Yellow Tulip Project to have a new Hope Garden prepped and planted with 1,000 yellow tulips at the Deering Avenue entrance to Deering Oaks. Monument Square Game Equipment We hope folks were able to stop by Monument Square over the month of October to utilize some of the new game equipment that was placed out there. A Ping Pong Table, a Bean Bag Toss set, giant Connect Four, and a Foosball Table were the highlights of this activation. The items have been stored away for the Winter so look for them to re-appear in the Spring of 2026. 212 Canco Road, Suite A • Portland, Maine 04103 Page 7 • www.portlandmaine.gov parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov ​ ​ CITY OF PORTLAND​ CITY OF PORTLAND ​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department ​ Ethan Hipple, Director​ Alex Marshall, Parks Director Maine Mural Festival A local muralist who goes by the name The Color Wizard, initiated the first year of the Maine Mural Festival which took place down in Bayside along the Bayside Trail. This festival brought in 25 professional graffiti artists from all over New England to showcase some of their work on the exterior building walls along the Bayside Trail between Cove and Diamond Streets. The artwork spans 20,000 sq/ft of primed walls and is truly impressive to see. Lincoln Park Fence Celebration On November 3rd, City Staff and the Friends of Lincoln Park hosted a celebration of the completion of 50% of the Lincoln Park Fence restoration. Special guests included the contracted Conservator, the Mayor, The District Councilor and others. It was a beautiful day to shine a light on this accomplishment. A huge Thank You goes out to the Friends Group who carried the financial weight of the Pearl Street section by raising over $100,000 of the $180,000 project. Trott Littlejohn Fitness Station Installed on Peaks Island​ The Friends of Trott Littlejohn Park and city Playgrounds Staff worked to install a new fitness station near the Peaks Island Community Garden. It was a great partnership that resulted in a wonderful new piece of exercise equipment for folks to use out on the island. Park Projects and Department Updates Staff are working on the following Park Improvement projects: ●​ Deering Oaks Park ADA Walkway improvements: Phase 3, providing ADA access to the wading ravine, was completed in the Summer of 2023. Phase 4, which is the sidewalk along Tennis Court Drive, is going out to bid later this Summer for a potential Fall 2025 or Spring 2026 construction. ●​ Riverton Preserve: Recreation improvement plans are in progress and will consist primarily of a trail network with other improvements. This project is intended to fulfill LWCF conversion requirements, and final approval of the improvement plan rests with the state and National Park Service, which has a public engagement process. ●​ Lower Western Prom Park Improvements: This project has been bid out and did not receive a bid within the allocated budget, so it will be revised and re-advertised in the coming months. ●​ Longfellow Elementary School Playground: Playground Equipment has been selected. The project went out to bid in the Spring of 2025 only to receive one bid substantially over the budget for the project. Portland School Staff and Park Project Managers are working through the next steps to keep this project going. ●​ Portland Harbor Common: Ground breaking will be happening in November ●​ Stroudwater Bridge: Bids have been received and the contract is being finalized. ●​ Public Restrooms: So far, the city has installed 15 new public restrooms citywide over the past 3 212 Canco Road, Suite A • Portland, Maine 04103 Page 8 • www.portlandmaine.gov parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov ​ ​ CITY OF PORTLAND​ CITY OF PORTLAND ​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department​ Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department ​ Ethan Hipple, Director​ Alex Marshall, Parks Director years. Recent modifications were done to the units at The Eastern Promenade, Commercial St/Fish Pier, and Fox Field to include a vault for increased storage capacity. 4 more public restrooms are on the way with one at Lower Western Promenade, 1 at the Spring and High street parking lot, and 2 at the Eastern Promenade near the existing bathhouse. 212 Canco Road, Suite A • Portland, Maine 04103 Page 9 • www.portlandmaine.gov parkscommission@portlandmaine.gov