Letter: PMA’s proposed new building not conducive to a shared environment

There’s a lot to be said in favor of expanding the Portland Museum of Art. I am also aware PMA purchased 142 Free St., knowing it was in a historic district. However, my concern is the design itself. Aside from breaking Portland’s historic preservation laws, this design could add harm to our environment.

A city-block wide glass wall 5 stories high is a beacon for bird collisions. Cornell Lab magazine, Living Bird, (winter 2024) states that scientists estimate up to 1 billion birds die each year after colliding with windows in the United States and Canada. Architects currently are to prevent bird strikes through attention to the design of glass buildings. Birds need strong clues on/around glass to warn an object is actually there. I have not seen that in the current renderings.

This glass structure will require heat in Maine winters and cooling in summers. The Environmental Protection Agency calls glass designs “urban heat islands.” Heat absorbed from the sun during days dissipates at night causing temperatures around city buildings to rise. Any precipitation contacting its walls heads down to the Fore River. Friends of Casco Bay’s website states that over the course of a decade, the Gulf of Maine warmed faster than 99% of the world’s oceans. PMA’s new building might well contribute to this dangerous warming trend.

I suggest looking to the future and how PMA’s design can be made better for all the right reasons. Perhaps PMA’s mission should also include a nod to our shared environment?

Eugenia O’Brien
Portland