The City of South Portland is weighing its options for the future of the former Mahoney Middle School and other municipally-owned properties, including city hall, the library, and the former Hamlin School.
Under the plan advanced by the South Portland Housing Authority, Mahoney would be converted into apartments, and the space currently occupied by a football field would be used to construct a new city hall and police station.
The property on which the city hall is now located, as well as the former Hamlin School lot, would also be utilized for various types of housing, including apartments and condos, with the possibility of single-family homes and townhouses.
Town Manager Scott Morelli, on the other hand, has recommended using the Mahoney lot to house all of the city’s municipal services, including the local library and police station.
Similar to the plan advanced by the South Portland Housing Authority, the Town Manager’s proposal would also see the development of affordable housing on the city hall and Hamlin School lots, as well as on property where the library is currently located.
South Portland Housing Authority’s Proposal
During an April 16 Council meeting, the South Portland Housing Authority laid out a three-part plan for developing the municipally-owned Mahoney, city hall, and Hamlin School lots.
In total, Maine Housing suggests that there is the potential to construct as many as 170 new housing units that would be “affordable at various income levels.”
Units located at Mahoney would like be entirely comprised of affordable housing, possibly in addition to some at the city hall lot.
There would also be the potential to have “missing middle” or workforce housing at both city hall and Hamlin School, as well as market rate housing.
Mahoney School Property
Pat Carroll of Carroll Associates Landscape Architects described, in detail, the Housing Authority’s plan for redeveloping the Mahoney Middle School property.
The school building itself would be renovated into an apartment building, and an addition would be constructed off the back to provide space for additional units. In total, this would result in the creation of 64 apartments, with 40 located in the original school building and 24 in the addition.
The existing 82 parking spaces located in the back of the building would be reserved for residents.
In the area currently being utilized as a football field, a new city hall and police station would be constructed, each with additional, dedicated parking spots.
95 spaces would be provided for the city hall and 75 for the police station, resulting in a total of 287 parking spots on the property.
Under this proposal, some open space would be preserved on the lot for landscaping.
Carroll referred to this plan as an “urban solution” that meets the city’s needs while also providing additional housing opportunities.
This plan would also see the renovation and preservation of Mahoney’s gym and auditorium for public use.
City Hall Property
Rebecca Bagley of CWS Architects then shared the Housing Authority’s proposal for the current city hall lot, explaining that because it is a more urban location it would be acceptable to construct a higher density housing development.
Under the Housing Authority’s proposal, this lot would become home to a five-story structure containing 60 apartments and 11 condos.
These 60 apartments are set to all be one-bedroom units that would likely be occupied by senior citizens.
Parking for both the apartments and condos would be located under the building on the first floor.
All housing units would be located on the upper floors of this building, while the remaining first floor real estate would either be used as public retail space or for resident common spaces.
Hamlin School Property
Carroll then returned to the podium at the April 16 meeting to describe the options available for developing the former Hamlin School property.
Several times, Carroll mentioned the fact that this lot is currently home to the city’s community gardens, emphasizing that under each of the proposed scenarios, steps could be taken to ensure their preservation.
Carroll also noted that any of the following options would require the city to designate a Contract Zone, as developments of the sort proposed are not generally permissible in that area.
In South Portland, Contract Zoning allows the City Council to “impose, by agreement with the property owner or otherwise, certain conditions or restrictions not generally applicable to other properties similarly zoned” as a result of the “the unusual nature or unique location of the development proposed.”
First Option for Hamlin Lot
The first of the three proposals advanced by the Housing Authority for the Hamlin property would see the construction of a three-story apartment building located at the corner of the lot by the intersection.
This, in turn, would preserve the community gardens and leave available the vast majority of the property’s open space.
Under this plan, roughly 55 parking spaces would be created, in addition to some spots specifically designated for the gardens.
Second Option for Hamlin Lot
The second plan for developing the Hamlin lot recommends constructing a combination of townhouses and single-family homes.
Although the community gardens would be removed under this plan as it is currently designed, Carroll explained that this could be changed if so desired.
Eight single-family lots would form a ring around the outside of the property, while 13 townhouse condos would be built at the center.
Third Option for Hamlin Lot
The last of the three options proposed for the Hamlin School property was to construct 29 townhouses on the lot and reserve the remainder of the land as open space.
Town Manager Scott Morelli’s Proposal
During his presentation to the City Council, Town Manager Morelli focused primarily on his vision for the Mahoney property, as this is the primary point of divergence between the two proposals.
Morelli also placed a great emphasis on the “dated and derelict” nature of the city’s current facilities, centering the necessity of either replacing or renovating them as soon as possible.
Regardless of what is done with the former Mahoney Middle School, Morelli said, the city “must invest tens of millions into these properties in the near future,” suggesting that they are “going to be spending money one way or the other.”
Consequently, Morelli argued, using Mahoney for housing would make things complicated in comparison to consolidating all city services onto the property and investing in housing elsewhere.
Morelli structured his presentation to the Council around four benefits he saw to pursuing this proposal: (1) preserving green space, (2) creating community space by retaining Mahoney’s gym and auditorium, (3) allowing citizens to have “one stop shopping” for city services, and (4) increasing the number of housing units that can be constructed on municipally-owned land.
Although Morelli did not directly challenge the plans advanced by the Housing Authority for the other municipally-owned properties, he did recommend issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) to allow the city to consider all possibilities for the development of these parcels.
Morelli went on to explain that the revenue generated by the sale of the land at city hall, Hamlin School, and the local library would help to offset the costs associated with renovating Mahoney and constructing the necessary additions.
Under the vision for Mahoney advanced by Morelli, the majority of city operations would be relocated to the school building, with a separate facility constructed for the police department and an addition off the back of the existing school building for the library.
In addition to city offices, the former Mahoney Middle School would also have the potential to house both a daycare and a cafeteria for city employees.
Similar to the recommendations of the Housing Authority, Morelli’s proposal would also see the renovation of the school’s gym and auditorium for use by the public.
Morelli went on to explain that the ample parking available on-site for city services during business hours would be available for any events or gatherings that would be held in these spaces after hours or on the weekend.
Under this proposal, the city would also be looking to sell the land on which the library is currently located, allowing for the generation of additional revenue that could be used to offset the costs associated with city’s plans for Mahoney.
According to Morelli, the library lot would also allow for a greater number of housing units to be built in comparison to Mahoney, meaning that the total amount of housing created as a result of his plan would likely be greater than that of the proposal advanced by the Housing Authority.
Morelli’s plan also includes the creation of a soccer field on the property that would be available for use by both the SoPo Strikers soccer team and neighborhood kids.
Morelli explained toward the end of his remarks on April 16 that a decision must be made soon with respect to Mahoney’s future so that progress can be made toward the next phase of whichever plan is ultimately adopted.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="27720 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=27720">3 Comments
…illegal aliens need housing, how dare you consider another city hall or PD building!!?
I went to SP Junior High School what is now called Mahoney. It was jamb packed with kids. Of course white Americans are aborting and contracepting themselves out of existence so we might as well house illegal aliens in them.
Save your money!