The management of Thompson’s Point is in the process of adding a permanent concessions building and a dock to the arts and entertainment development on Portland’s Fore River and hopes to break ground on a hotel there this year.

The work is taking place partly because Thompson’s Point’s schedule of summer concerts – presented by the State Theatre in Portland – will begin slightly later than usual. Last year, the concert venue had a show featuring the duo Sylvan Esso on May 26, but this year the first concert scheduled is on July 3, featuring Robert Plant and Alison Krauss.

“This year the touring schedule wasn’t really starting until late June anyway, so we decided that, in this short time before event season starts, we’ll get this work started,” said Chris Thompson, one of the developers of the property.

Thompson also said that construction is scheduled to start this year on a 148-room hotel on the site, which has been part of the plan for the development since it was first announced more than a decade ago. Thompson said the hotel will be “part of the Marriott brand family.”

Thompson’s Point is an arts, retail and entertainment development on the Fore River that includes several event venues and food- and arts-related businesses. The Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine is also located at Thompson’s Point.

Work is underway now on a bar and concession building that would provide food and beverages during Thompson’s Point events all year long, including large concerts and smaller events in the summer and ice skating in the winter, said Thompson. The building would combine three shipping containers, each 8 feet wide by 40 feet long.

The work happening now is mostly for utilities and site preparation, and the building itself probably won’t be open until after the summer concert season but in time for the Thompson’s Point ice rink to open for skating, Thompson said. There will also be a smaller permanent bathroom building next to the concession structure.

Also this spring, work may begin on building a dock on the Fore River, so that people can kayak or canoe to the development, Thompson said. A long aluminum ramp will lead from a platform on shore to a float in the water, where people can dock, Thompson said. But most of that work will likely take place after the summer concert season, to be used next year.

Thompson’s Point began hosting major touring music acts on its large riverside field in 2015. Some 16 shows presented by the State Theatre are scheduled for Thompson’s Point this year so far, including Goose on July 6, Rebelution on July 8, Fleet Foxes on July 11, Cake on July 16, Maggie Rogers on July 31 and Aug. 1, Guster on Aug. 12-13 and Dispatch on Aug. 19.

The new concession building will supplement the food trucks and mobile bars and concessions at big concerts, and will also be open during other events and activities at Thompson’s Point. It also may stay open to provide food and drink for people who are using the field or out for a stroll when there are not events, Thompson said.

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