Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I N O. X I X A U G U S T 1 0 , 2 0 2 0 34 B Y G R E G L E V I N S K Y B Y G R E G L E V I N S K Y itchell, who was hired in 2008, works closely with business peo- ple throughout the region. Mainebiz caught up with Mitchell to discuss the economic response to the pandemic. Mainebiz: Do people seem to be going with smaller ventures? Greg Mitchell: e focus during the pandemic has been on business reten- tion. City Council approved a street closure plan to support outside retail and dining due to state social distanc- ing requirements. e city issued 141 temporary permits to expand busi- nesses outdoors. MB: What changes have you seen in development plans since the pandemic started? GM: ere has not been any slow down in active construction projects through- out the city. e city allowed for active construction projects to proceed pro- vided safety protocols were in place. ere has been an increase in the number of requests to the city to finan- cially support affordable and workforce housing projects. If all pending housing projects are approved, the number of affordable and workforce housing units total 471 new construction units plus 100 renovated units. Also, the city is evaluat- ing a change to the development pro- gram for one of the former city-owned Bayside properties, which was sold to Tom Watson to support upwards of an additional 171 market rate and affordable rental housing units. is year and next we could see the number of housing units come closer to meeting demand. MB: How have applications been affected by the pandemic? GM: ere is a high number of new projects under city development regu- latory review during the pandemic. e real test will be if the pandemic will slow the number of projects which move forward to construction. MB: What kinds of longer term effects do you see from the pandemic? GM: e Portland economy is very diversified because of our mix of manu- facturing, health care, restaurants, hotels, retail, education institutions, financial and legal services. Future economic growth bright spots include the Roux Institute at Northeastern, which will support tal- ent recruitment and workforce develop- ment. ere's new office construction for WEX and Maine Medical Center and Mercy are undergoing major rede- velopments. I do see some shifts occur- ring in retail and restaurants due to the loss of business during the pandemic. MB: Is the city being asked to provide more incentives to developers and businesses? GM: City Council approved three new commercial loan and grant programs, which are administered under the Portland Development Corp., to support small to mid-size businesses during the pandemic. Portland Development Corp. approved 19 microenterprise grants ($2,500 each) and one COVID-19 BAP- Rehire grant ($5,000) for small busi- nesses. Staff is finalizing grant and loan documents for the four grants and one loan that were already approved by the Portland Development Corp. at its pre- vious meeting. Among approved grantee businesses 28% are racially, ethnically or linguistically diverse. O N T H E R E C O R D As the city of Portland pushes on during the coronavirus pandemic, economic development director Greg Mitchell always gets the first glimpse of how the city responds. P H O T O / J I M N E U G E R M Greg Mitchell Greg Mitchell, economic development , economic development director for the city of director for the city of Portland Portland, says , says business retention has been a priority business retention has been a priority during the pandemic. during the pandemic. I do see some shifts occurring in retail and restaurants due to the loss of business during the pandemic.

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