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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 13 F E B R UA R Y 1 0 , 2 0 2 0 S O U T H E R N M A I N E pedestrian footbridge linking the Amtrak Downeaster train station with Saco Island and the future Pearl Street district, and using existing infrastructure to boost regional transit links with Portland and Boston. "ere's nothing new that needs to be built," Eng notes. "All we need to do is to build the connections." Sidewalk cafés, retail On the construction side, Brady and Eng have sketched out a riverfront dining spot Brady says is being negotiated with Scarborough's Nonesuch River Brewing. It's flanked by a residential building and an office building with ground-level retail. Another sketch shows an office building with ground-level retail along a European-style shared pedestrian, vehicle and bike street akin to a so-called Dutch "woonerf," or living street, like Munjoy Heights on Munjoy Hill. "What we really want to create along Pearl Street, to the extent possible, are sidewalk cafés and interesting small retail," says Eng. "ere's a ton of this creative economic activity in Biddeford already, but it's hard to access." On the traffic side, Brady says the idea is to make sure that cars drive slowly so that pedestrians and cyclists feel comfortable. Brady emphasizes that the plans are fluid and that they'll take their time to get it right, adding: "Obviously we'd love the opportunity to develop it as quickly as possible, but realistically, it'll take us a while to market the site and to land the right tenants and also put together some residential development." Brady says they're in talks with residential property developers, including Nathan Szanton of Portland's Szanton Co., about building rental housing on the site and will soon be start talking to brokers about retail and office users. Szanton, whose property portfolio includes the Lofts at Saco Falls and the Mill at Saco Falls in Biddeford, is looking at Pearl Street with great interest. "As neighbors already of that area," he says, "we're really excited about what they're doing. It has the potential to really enhance the Biddeford mill district and the downtown, and make it more of an amenity for the city." C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » There's a lot of benefits that lead me to believe that Biddeford is long- term going to be a great economic engine here in the state. — Jim Brady Fathom Cos. Aerial rendering of the planned Pearl Street Riverfront District, on the former MERC site in downtown Biddeford. F O C U S R E N D E R I N G / C O U R T E S Y O F FAT H O M C O S. An overview of Biddeford development in 2020 M athew Eddy, Biddeford's planning and devel- opment director, estimates that not including the 3 Lincoln St. project, there will be $85 million in development this year. That breaks down into the following: Lincoln Mill ($40M) Riverdam Mill ($20M) City parking garage ($22M) RiverWalk ($3M) Eddy describes the planned Pearl Street Riverfront District and riverfront city park as a critical downtown hub, adding: "It is our intention to then connect this critical hub to the rest of the Biddeford network, up the hills to many neighborhoods that develop along the mills, starting in the 1840s, and to the Eastern trail system as well."