Sen. Susan Collins sponsors Historic Tax Credit Improvement Act of 2017

The Press Hotel, Irvin Serrano Photography

Sen. Susan Collins and five other senators  have introduced the Historic Tax Credit Improvement Act of 2017 (S.425). The bill would increase the historic tax credit (HTC) for certain small projects, allow credit transfers for certain small projects, lower the expenditure threshold to qualify for the HTC from 100 percent to 50 percent of the adjusted basis, reduce the depreciable basis adjustment for HTC property, and modify certain tax-exempt property rules. Several members of the House of Representatives introduced a companion bill in their chamber.

For more than three decades, the federal Historic Tax Credit (HTC) has successfully implemented a national policy of preserving our historic resources. It is the most significant investment the federal government makes toward the preservation of our historic buildings. Despite a proven track record of stimulating economic growth and preserving our architectural heritage, however, the historic tax credit faces an uncertain future. As pressure builds to reform the nation’s tax code, several influential tax reform proposals recommend a repeal of this essential credit. We appreciate Sen. Collins' sponsorship of this bill and her support for the redevelopment of Maine's historic resources.

Please join us in thanking Sen. Collins by email or with a thank you note or postcard via mail at One Canal Plaza, Suite 802, Portland, ME 04101. 

Thank you Senator Collins for sponsoring the Historic Tax Credit Improvement Act  (S.425) and for your continued support of  a program that has proven to be a cost-effective driver of economic development and job creation while conserving our nation's historic places. 

More information on the Federal Historic Tax Credit is available here.

Greater Portland Landmarks letter to Senator Collins is available here.

Help Shape the Future of Portland

The draft of Portland's Comprehensive Plan is now available and the City is accepting comments for the next 30 days. While Landmarks has largely focused its comments to date on the historic preservation chapter, we encourage you to read the entire draft and provide comment to the city staff at portlandsplan@portlandmaine.gov  

The latest draft plan is based on work that began in 2015 and included a process of extensive public engagement, including attendance at farmers' markets, fairs, middle and high school classes, neighborhood group meetings, and many other events to learn what people in Portland hope for the next 10 years. In all, city staff have attended well over 40 events this year, hearing from hundreds of people, as well as countless others who stopped by at large events.  Landmarks' Advocacy Committee met with city staff last month and members and staff have participated in public workshops and other events throughout the process.

Portland is Equitable, Sustainable, Dynamic, Secure, Authentic, and Connected

Landmarks' believes that Portland's historic character is a critical element in our city's authentic sense of place and therefore is important to conserve and enhance as we chart Portland's future. The conservation of our built environment is also critical to helping move our city forward as a more sustainable place to live and work.  Our historic buildings support businesses large and small and provide a diversity of housing options for Portland's residents. Through support of the City's Historic Preservation program, cultural organizations that promote the City's history, and the many businesses that contribute to Portland's heritage tourism industry, Portland in 2030 can be equitable, sustainable, dynamic, secure, authentic, and connected.

New height overlay zoning proposed to protect the vista from Fort Sumner Park

Postcard view of Fort Sumner Park around the turn of the 20th century.

Portland's Planning Board will consider whether or not to protect existing public views to Back Cove and Mount Washington from Fort Sumner Park this Tuesday night. The purpose of the overlay is "to protect the public interest by limiting the impact of development on the quintessential views of natural resources." According to a report compiled by city staff, the vista from Fort Sumner Park has been identified for its value as a panorama for over 100 years. In the City's Downtown Height Study completed in 1989, it was singled out for its views of the city skyline and water and as a vista to receive "special attention".  The proposed overlay would limit the height of buildings in the R-6 zone below the park to the level of the park's viewing platform and would impact only six parcels. 

Greater Portland Landmarks supports the proposed amendment because it will protect the essential reason for the park and fort's location on this site while research can be undertaken to document the site's historic and cultural significance. The Friends of Fort Sumner Park have requested local landmark designation and are working to research the site, raise awareness of its significance, and advocate for its preservation. While the park has had a long history as a military and a recreational site, little remains above ground to tell the story of the original Fort Sumner and the late 19th century design of the park. Additional study of the park through archaeological investigations would expand local knowledge of the fort, its passageway and waterfront battery, and its 19th century park design.  

Upon further research, local designation of the park as a historic site may be appropriate. The vista out over the western side of Portland would be a major character-defining feature for both its period of significance as a fort and as a park.  If the vista were to be lost, it would severely impact the future possibility of the park's designation as a historic landscape.

New Institutional Zoning would facilitate Maine Medical Center Transformation

Proposed new MMC entrance on Congress Street

Maine Medical Center is planning an expansion to transform the hospital along Congress Street and build new private patient rooms. Currently some empty beds in semi-private rooms cannot be utilized due to gender or disease, which inhibits the hospital's ability to provide care to all patients in a timely manner. The plans will likely be reviewed under a new Institutional Overlay Zone that is under development by the City of Portland Planning Staff. Information on Maine Medical Center's draft Institutional Development Plan and the city's draft framework for the new zoning is available at the links below.

City of Portland Draft Institutional Overlay Zone

MMC's Draft Institutional Development Plan

MMC's website dedicated to its transformation plan

Portland's Historic Preservation Program

With development booming in Portland, the Historic Preservation Program was very busy in 2016. City staff members have compiled a look back at some recently approved and completed projects in the city's historic districts. The projects range from the very small installation of screening for a new heat pump to large developments like the new residential building on the site of the old Joe's Smoke Shop. 

2016 Historic Preservation Program Annual Review

Greater Portland Landmarks attends every meeting of the Portland Historic Preservation Board and comments on many of the applications reviewed by the full board. 2017 is already off to a busy start with proposed new buildings on the lot occupied by the Grand Trunk Railroad building at the corner of Thames and India Streets and the former Rufus Deering parcel on Commercial Street.

The Giant Walking Serviceman sign on Route 302 is found to be eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places

The recently restored Hawkes Plaza sign is more commonly known as the Walking Man Sign, although his legs don't actually move, just his arms.

The Maine Historic Preservation Commission has determined that the recently restored Hawkes Plaza Sign on Route 302 at Duck Pond Corner in Westbrook is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places for its significance within the areas of art and commerce. 

The sign was built by Al Hawkes after he returned home from the Korean War to advertise his TV and radio business. The sign became a local landmark for travelers along busy Route 302 and is commonly referred to as the Giant Walking Serviceman or Walking Man sign. The sign has three hundred and eighty-five lightbulbs and a mechanical motor that drives the serviceman’s arm back and forth as it carries a box of TV parts.  Completed in 1962, the sign was turned off in 1989.  It was recently restored to working order by restaurateur Bill Umbel, owner of the new Lenny's Pub in the building occupied by Al Hawke's former TV and radio business.

Greater Portland Landmarks worked with the Westbrook Historical Society and neighbors to gain recognition for the sign now threatened by a Maine Department of Transportation proposal for a roundabout at Duck Pond Corner. The determination by the state of the sign's significance is an important step to preserving the sign for drivers to enjoy as they pass by for years to come. So next time you head west on Route 302, stop into Lenny's, take a picture with the Walking Man, and thank Bill for restoring this important piece of Westbrook's history! For more information on the history of Duck Pond and Al Hawkes:

This Place Matters: Duck Pond Corner 

Iconic Hawkes Plaza Repairman Lives Again in Westbrook Bangor Daily News

Westbrook Historical Society's History of Duck Pond