Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 17 J U LY 2 8 , 2 0 2 5 R E A L E S TAT E / C O N S T R U C T I O N / E N G I N E E R I N G additional businesses to announce plans to close or relocate," she says. "Ultimately, this can create a self- reinforcing 'urban doom loop' where disinvestment begets more disinvest- ment and even once profitable build- ings become unmarketable." e city of Portland has already taken some steps to prettify the area, including a proposed commercial vacancy ordi- nance to encourage property owners to fill empty spaces with art installations or face fines of up to $7,500. Greg Watson, the city's economic development chief, says that while the measure is not meant to be punitive, it offers a "simple solution" to storefronts covered in brown paper displaying "obvious signs of disinvestment." e ordinance, set to be discussed by the City Council next month and voted on in September, is coming up against resistance from critics in the real estate world. "It will force landlords to take the first deal that comes along versus waiting for the right tenant," warns Moulton, of the Dunham Group. "It will ultimately hurt values as putting government controls on the free market always fails. It sends a terrible message to investors looking to move money to Portland." e city's mayor, a former county sheriff elected on a tough-on-crime platform in November 2023, says during an interview in his office that police are "committed to provide the services they can and arrest people for notorious conduct." e city is looking for ways to boost the police presence, including a planned com- munity outpost on Congress Street — coincidentally in a building the chamber moved out of in 2023 which according to Hentzel was partly due to safety concerns. Police spokesman Brad Nadeau says that there are more patrols in the area. Nonprofits stepping up Complementing the city's efforts is a new cadre of six cleanup "ambas- sadors" employed by Portland Downtown, a nonprofit underwrit- ten by property owners. In the first six days of patrolling the so-called Downtown Improvement District in early July, they cleaned 87 trash cans and removed graffiti from 31 — recording 418 tasks in a dashboard that Executive Director Cary Tyson shared with Mainebiz. e program has funding for one year but expects to continue, perhaps expanding to include coverage from 6 a.m. until midnight or later, Tyson says. While there's no "silver bullet" that will fix all of the city's problems, "we're putting our money where our mouth is and hiring these folks to get out there and do the good work that needs to be done," he says as his staff settles into its spacious new office that will include a public restroom and private area for nursing moms. e organization has also teamed up with local nonprofit Mechanics' Hall to start an Arts District Solutions Group to tackle the downtown crisis. Like the city in its proposed ordinance, the group aims to turn empty store- fronts into temporary art galleries – and aims to raise $15,000 to ensure the artists are paid. "is isn't a call for blame, it's a call for bold and coordinated action rooted in compassion, in public health and a shared vision for Portland's future," says Annie Leahy, executive director of Mechanics' Hall, housed in an eponymous historic building on Congress Street. "I think there's time to get it right, but we need leadership, we need coordination and we need a clear plan." Neighborhood's new blood Even as some downtown restaurants have gone out of business, partly as casualties of the pandemic, new ones are popping up. ey include Benny's, an Italian eatery inspired by owner Josh Sobel's Philadelphia roots. While he picked Congress Street for its high foot traffic across the street from Renys, Sobel — who also owns a sandwich shop on Washington Avenue called Ramona's — says he's not look- ing forward to having a vacant space when the downtown store closes. "I wish there was something we could do, but we're a new business and our margins are really thin," he says. At some point, he'd like to get involved in chari- table causes to help the homeless. A few blocks away on Monument Square, James Shaffer is getting ready to open Bub's Home Kitchen on the second story of the Public Market. e Public Market's food hall was, before the pandemic, a bustling lunch spot, but it too has fewer tenants. Targeting an early August debut, Bub's will serve pre- made take-home comfort foods, from chicken soup to baked rigatoni with tomato-rich marinara sauce. Shaffer, who moved to Maine in 2019, previously ran a restaurant in Baltimore with his father. Now he's signed a four-year lease to get a foot- hold in the Public Market. e rest of the upper level is empty — offering space for his startup to grow as he aims to become a regional wholesaler. He's counting on the return-to-office trend to drive business at lunchtime. "It's still a great downtown and I want to be part of its revitalization," he says. Renee Cordes, Mainebiz deputy editor, can be reached at rcordes @ mainebiz.biz It's still a great downtown and I want to be part of its revitalization. — James Shaffer Bub's Home Kitchen P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY Portland Downtown Ambassador Lukau Ndombasi cleans Monument Square in Portland F O C U S

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