PORTLAND — The Travelodge Motel on Brighton Avenue is being torn down and replaced by a Hampton Inn.

The $5.3 million project is being developed by Kamlesh Patel of Portland Hotels Inc. He expects the Hampton Inn & Suites to be completed by 2019, he said Monday.

The Travelodge, at 1210 Brighton Ave., sits near the municipal line between Portland and Westbrook. In recent years it has been the site of arrests for drug sales, assaults, sex trafficking and prostitution.

Demolition of the building began in mid-November and Patel said the laying of the foundation of the new hotel has begun. The architect of the project is David Lloyd of Archetype Architects and the engineer is Thomas Greer of Pinkham and Greer.

The 86-unit Hampton Inn will be four stories tall and just over 56,000 square feet, compared to the 44,000-square-foot Travelodge. The property will have 120 parking spaces, up six from the current lot, and the pad from a former gas station on the lot will be removed. The existing Denny’s restaurant next to the Travelodge will remain and is included in the project site plan. 

Patel’s project was first proposed in April 2015 and received final approval from the Portland Planning Board last April.

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Westbrook City Administrator Jerre Bryant said he’s happy to see a change being made on the property. 

“I think the new project will definitely be a positive addition for the gateway to the city,” he said. “While it’s in Portland, it’s part of the gateway to Westbrook so an improvement is a positive.”

The property line at Denny’s is also the municipal boundary between Portland and Westbrook.

Bryant said he’s not certain how long the Travelodge, and the other motels that came before it, has existed at 1210 Brighton Ave., but that’s it been there “as long as I can remember.” 

Patel didn’t wish to provide a timeline for the project aside from its projected completion year. 

David Harry contributed to this report. Kate Gardner can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 125 or kgardner@theforecaster.net. Follow her on Twitter: @katevgardner.

The Travelodge Motel on Brighton Avenue at the Portland-Westbrook border is being torn down, to be replaced by a Hampton Inn & Suites.

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