State plans to close part of Portland park and ride lot where homeless people are camping

Tents sit on the edge of the park-and-ride lot off Marginal Way on Tuesday. The Maine Department of Transportation is temporarily closing a section of the Portland park-and-ride starting Aug. 3 for safety reasons related to a homeless encampment there. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

The state says it plans to temporarily close a section of a Portland park-and-ride lot near where homeless residents have set up an encampment along Interstate 295.

The Maine Department of Transportation said part of the lot on Marginal Way will be shut down Thursday, Aug. 3, as a “temporary measure aimed at mitigating the safety risks associated with the encampments of unhoused individuals in Portland.”

The MDOT said 84 spaces on the northern side of the lot will be closed to park-and-ride users, though it’s not clear for how long. An additional 94 spaces in the southern section of the lot closest to Franklin Street will be reserved for commuters.

The transportation department said the city has been notified of the plan, and that notices to park-and-ride users began going out Thursday. It’s not clear whether users were offered alternative parking. MDOT’s park and ride lot is on Marginal Way between Franklin and Diamond streets.

Jessica Grondin, city spokesperson, was asked via text Tuesday evening whether the partial closure is the first step in relocating the homeless encampment on Marginal Way.

Grondin referred all questions about it to MDOT.

On Tuesday evening, there were more than 30 tents set up on the perimeter of the park-and-ride lot. In addition to the bright orange signs that warn part of the closure Aug. 3, the state has erected a large, flashing billboard at the rear of the lot carrying the same message.

The MDOT said it will temporarily divide the Marginal Way park-and-ride lot into two areas to accommodate the “competing uses.” A barrier will be installed and the state will update parking signage.

“We have notified the City of Portland of this plan,” the statement said. “Notification of park and ride users began on Thursday. Closure of the lot on Aug. 3rd will be necessary to make these modifications.”

A temporary sign informs users that the park-and-ride parking lot on Marginal Way will be temporarily closed Thursday so barriers can be set up separating a homeless encampment from the rest of the commuter lot. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

When asked how long the closure would last the state did not respond Tuesday evening.

“MaineDOT, in coordination with Maine State Police, will continue to monitor and clear the state-owned land along I-295 in order to preserve public safety,” the MDOT said. The agency did not provide details on what would be cleared along I-295.

In May, citing health and safety concerns, the city decided to clear out a homeless encampment on Bayside Trail. More than 80 tents were moved and many people who had been living there relocated to Marginal Way. The Bayside Trail encampment stretched from Trader Joe’s to Franklin Street.

The Bayside Trail encampment was a large and visible sign of the homelessness crisis in Portland. Many of the people living there dispersed to other, smaller encampments around the city after it was shut down. In June, the city said it believed that people are living in at least 130 tents at several locations around the city. Another large encampment has been established along the Fore River Parkway.

Portland established an Encampment Crisis Response Team in June. On its website, the team says it is working on a plan “to resolve the Fore River encampment by September 6 by finding and offering shelter and housing options” to the people camping there.

The response team said it set a deadline of Sept. 6 so that it can turn its focus to other encampments in the city. The website did not say anything about the Marginal Way encampment.