BIDDEFORD — People in Biddeford interested in the design of a new park on Pearl Street have one more chance to be involved in the design process.

After a public planning process for the park in 2020 and 2021, Biddeford’s Downtown Development Commission is conducting an online survey to collect feedback on the future use of Pearl Point Park.

The survey asks questions like whether the park should be quiet or lively, familiar or unique, what sort of riverfront access should be available, whether there should be a second pedestrian bridge across the Saco River, how events should be staged in the park and a host of others.

In December 2019, Biddeford City Council approved funding to develop a concept plan for the park, which will be located along the Saco River on the site of the former Maine Energy Recovery Company incinerator. The park will connect to the Biddeford Riverwalk.

The survey will be open for responses until 11 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28. The online link is:  http://metroquestsurvey.com/e7d2b.

“In this stage of the public planning process, we are drilling down to the more specific details of how people will use the park and how they want the atmosphere to feel while they are there,” said Mathew Eddy, the City Planning and Development director and staff liaison to the Downtown Development Commission. “We also have heard a lot of suggestions about what amenities should be included in the design and want to know which are the highest priority items to include in the limited space.”

The Downtown Development Commission will review the survey results this winter and make any adjustments  before seeking an engineer for the project, city leaders said.

At their Dec. 21 meeting, the City Council unanimously approved the Preliminary Concept Plan submitted by 3-Lincoln LLC for the redevelopment of the MERC site. In addition to the public park area and the new car parking garage, the development will include five new mixed-use buildings.

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