Westbrook has found a new developer for Saccarappa Park, nearly three months after a previous developer failed to negotiate financing for a seven-story structure on the downtown park.

Flannery Properties is proposing a variation of a design that owner Tim Flannery presented to the city last spring in response to a request for proposals.

Flannery met Nov. 9 with the Saccarappa Park Redevelopment Committee established by Mayor Bruce Chuluda, which includes city councilors and local business people. Flannery presented the committee with a design for a four-story structure incorporating retail space on the first floor, office space on the second and third, and 10 to 12 apartment or condominium units on the fourth.

Flannery told the committee he was willing and ready to move forward with negotiations, and the committee agreed. Flannery is now expected to present the city with more formal plans for the project, including a construction timetable, a marketing plan and proof of financial viability.

The meeting was the result of renewed talks by the city with Flannery following the dissolution recently of an agreement with Cape Elizabeth developer Cape Builders and Remodeling to build on the site. The city admitted in recent weeks that Cape Builders owner Norman Richman was unable to get financing for the project.

This latest round is the fourth attempt by the city in recent years to develop Saccarappa Park. Previous attempts included an offer by a group led by Ken Lefebvre, which the city rejected, and a second public request that failed to yield any viable proposals. A request for proposals this spring yielded four viable options, including the Cape Builders proposal.

City Administrator Jerre Bryant said the Saccarappa Park Redevelopment Committee chose the Cape Builders proposal in the spring as the best of four submitted. The Westbrook Housing Authority and T&T Development of South Portland also offered proposals to the city, along with Flannery Properties.

Bryant said Richman initially gave a strong impression that he would be able to complete the project. When the committee turned the proposal over to city staff to determine whether the developer had the expertise and financing to complete the project, the deal fell through. The city asked him by letter on Aug. 18 to provide written proof of financing, which he did not.

Carson said the city had difficulty reaching Richman after choosing the developer for the project. The phone number listed on the proposal for Cape Builders and in the phone book has been disconnected for months. Repeated attempts to reach Richman for this and previous stories were also unsuccessful.

After Richman failed to respond to its letter, the city approached Flannery and Westbrook Housing Authority to see if they were still interested in developing the park. The city scheduled a meeting with Flannery for Nov. 9 to discuss a revised proposal from the developer.

Before that meeting, the city was tightlipped about the proposal. However, at the meeting, Erik Carson, Economic and Community Development director, said the reason the city was unwilling to talk about Flannery’s proposal prior to the meeting was that he wanted to discuss the matter with Flannery and the committee before revealing it to the public.

When asked why the city hadn’t revealed until recent weeks that the Cape Builders project had fallen through in mid-August, Bryant said the revelation would have compromised the city’s bargaining position with Flannery and the Westbrook Housing Authority.

At the Nov. 9 redevelopment committee meeting, Carson said he thought the reason Cape Builders project couldn’t get financing was because of its large scale. It called for five floors of condominiums, which would require upwards of 75 parking spaces. Because the city was also looking to keep at least 30 percent of the park as open space, Cape Builders planned to build an underground parking lot to accommodate most of those spaces. To build the parking lot, the developer would have had to move a Portland Water District sewer main that runs beneath the park, which Carson said would have added about $750,000 to the project.

Carson said the extra cost of moving the sewer main, coupled with a soft condominium market at the moment, could have prevented Richman from getting financing. Bryant agreed, saying he thought the size of the building might have been too aggressive for investors.

The latest Flannery Properties proposal is a compromise for the city that would include a residential space as well as retail and office space. Because it would require fewer parking spaces, it most likely wouldn’t require moving the sewer main, said Carson. Instead, Flannery would approach Portland Water District for approval to build parking spaces over the sewer main, something he is expected to do soon.

Flannery Properties has a long history in Westbrook. The company is responsible for the redevelopment of the Dana Warp Mill and the construction of the One Riverfront Plaza office building. Flannery still owns the Dana Warp Mill, although he sold the One Riverfront Plaza building in November 2005, a year and a half after completing construction.

As part of a deal made with the city at the end of 2005 over extra parking spaces at the One Riverfront Plaza building, Flannery agreed to invest $1 million in Westbrook’s downtown over five years. According Bryant, Flannery has yet to fulfill the agreement, and the development of Saccarappa Park would do that if construction were at least $1 million.