The city is moving forward with a plan to transform the former Mahoney Middle School into a campus that will include City Hall, the public library and a new police station.

The South Portland City Council voted this week to move ahead with transforming the former Mahoney Middle School into a city hall campus that will include a new public library and police station, rather than converting it into affordable housing.

But residents upset about higher tax bills following a recent revaluation are pushing back on the proposal and question why the city is looking at a $74 million project at a time when some taxpayers are worried about losing their homes.

“The timing is unfortunate,” resident Lauren Shapiro told the council on Tuesday. “It would be irresponsible, and frankly tactless, to propose this bond to voters.”

The City Council unanimously endorsed plans to renovate the former school, but ultimately it will be up to voters to approve the funding to make that possible. A bond referendum will not go to voters until at least November 2025.

“Is it ever the right time? We’ve delayed this for so long,” Councilor Rachael Coleman said.

South Portland City Hall Kelley Bouchard/Staff Writer

City officials say the current City Hall, fire and police stations and the library all have inadequate space and some of the buildings need major updates.

A city facilities committee spent the last three years looking at the current and future needs of multiple municipal buildings – including the current City Hall on Cottage Road, the main library and the central fire and police stations, which are not far from Mahoney – and analyzing options for new or renovated facilities.

Mahoney became part of that discussion after students relocated to the new middle school on Wescott Street last year and the school department turned the 10-acre property over to the city, a move that was required by state law because it was no longer being used for education.

The new plan calls for relocating departments currently housed in City Hall and the former Hamlin Elementary School property into the Mahoney building.

The city also would build an addition to relocate the library and construct a new 26,000-square-foot police station on the adjacent field. The central fire station on Broadway would be renovated after the existing police station is demolished.

The theater and gymnasium would be reserved for community use. And there would be enough open space left on the Mahoney property to keep one soccer field.

FACILITIES NEED UPGRADES

A preliminary estimate puts the cost of the project at $74 million, but that number could change before taxpayers are asked to approve a bond to pay for it. The city allocated $4.5 million for the design phase, which will generate a more accurate estimate for the total cost.

City leaders say they recognize the project is a big ask, but is unavoidable because putting off needed work only makes it more expensive.

“Eventually, if nothing is done with these buildings, we’re going to have serious problems,” City Manager Scott Morelli said. “I don’t know what the answer is if voters don’t eventually approve a bond.”

EMTs clean a fire truck at Central Fire Station in South Portland in March 2020. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer

Fire Chief Phil Selberg said the condition of the fire station is embarrassing – the floors are cracked, mold is growing in the building, there is only one working bathroom on the second floor and some windows are so drafty that firefighters wake up in the winter covered with snow.

“It was state of the art in 1955 and still looks like it was built in 1955 because we haven’t been able to do much to it,” he said.

The current main library branch is undersized and doesn’t fit the needs of a modern library, said Director Kevin Davis. The library, designed by noted Maine architect John Leasure, was a well-regarded early example of modern architecture when it opened in 1966.

“It was modern, it was innovative, it was cool,” Davis said.

But there are now 10 more employees than when it opened, the library offers far more services than just book lending, and the stacks are 8 feet high instead of 4 feet, Davis said. There is also limited parking, only one office and no dedicated space that people can use for quiet study or meetings.

Davis said in an interview after the City Council vote that he feels a sense of relief that councilors support the Mahoney plan, even if it would be years until a new building was ready.

“At least we know there is a desire from the city to move forward in this direction toward a new facility for our services,” he said.

South Portland Library Director Kevin Davis said the library has outgrown its current building, which opened in 1966, and needs a bigger space. The books are currently stacked about 8 feet high on some shelves. Shawn Ouellette/Staff Photographer

‘A LUXURY WE CANNOT AFFORD’

The council had also considered a proposal from the South Portland Housing Authority to use the property for affordable housing.

During recent public meetings, dozens of residents urged the city to move forward with that plan and to find ways to preserve as much green space as possible.

Morelli, the city manager, said the council could decide to use the current City Hall, Hamlin building and library for affordable housing in the future and that they could be redeveloped into more units than would fit in Mahoney. The housing authority, Avesta, Developers Collaborative and other firms have indicated they would be willing to bid on those sites if the the city chooses to turn them into affordable housing, he said.

Bob McKeagney, speaking on behalf of the Historic Preservation Committee, urged councilors to preserve the historical integrity of Mahoney, which the committee nominated for inclusion on the city’s inventory of archaeological and historic resources.

The committee also is advocating for the city to preserve the library building, which is the only publicly accessible example of international style architecture in South Portland. The international style is characterized by modular forms, flat surfaces without ornamentation, and open and airy interiors.

Residents who spoke before the vote said that even if the renovations and upgrades are needed, residents can’t shoulder a tax increase to pay for the project.

“This makes my blood boil. We started tonight talking about unprecedented tax increases,” said resident Donna Kane. She said the plan for the campus is lovely, “but is a luxury we cannot afford.”

Diane Romano said the city needs to “distinguish between needs and wants” and that it was tone deaf to be talking about the renovation plan “when we’re all up here pleading because people are being taxed out of their homes.”

“What’s wrong with this building that you can’t suck it up for a few more years?” she said. “Something’s got to give and something’s got to give quick.”