The Maine State Pier is a municipal-owned deepwater marine facility and music venue located at the intersection of Commercial Street and Franklin Street on the eastern waterfront in Portland, Maine.[1][2]
 Casco Bay Lines' Bay Mist and Aucocisco III berthed at the pier | |
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| Location | Commercial Street, Portland, Maine, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 43°39′26″N 70°14′54″W / 43.6571°N 70.2482°W |
Located to the north of Maine Wharf, it was completed in 1924. In the mid-2000s, competing proposals were examined to redevelop the Maine State Pier into a tourist destination, but difficulties with state regulations and the late-2000s recession halted proposed redevelopment.[3] In 2009, the first annual Portland Lobster Fest was held at the State Pier.[4]
In 2009, the Portland City Council approved spending $2.4 million to redevelop the end of pier. Improvements included the creation of an outdoor music venue.[5] In 2011, rapper Wiz Khalifa and others appeared at the venue. In 2016, Maine native Howie Day performed "Collide" and other songs at the pier. In '07, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals from Vermont played there. Boston acts Guster played there in '09, and Rachel Platten in 2015. The venue has a maximum capacity of 3,000.[6]
During the 2011 Portland mayoral campaign, several candidates, including former State Senator Ethan Strimling made the lack of redevelopment at the Maine State Pier a key campaign issue. Many of Strimling's largest campaign donors were employees of Ocean Properties, one of the companies which sought to redevelop the pier during the 2000s.[7]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Policy Statement for Maine State Pier". Portland, Maine City Council. September 18, 2006. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
- ^ "Walk the Working Waterfront" - PortlandMaine.com
- ^ Billings, Randy (November 15, 2011). "Lobster dealer prepped for new lease at Maine State Pier in Portland". The Forecaster. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ Parkhurst, Emily (June 21, 2010). "Falmouth Rotary brings 2nd annual LobsterFest to Maine State Pier in Portland". The Forecaster. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ Bucklin, Kate (August 18, 2009). "Portland councilors eye music venue, public dock for state pier". The Forecaster. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ "Maine State Pier" (PDF). PortlandEvents.com. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ Woodard, Colin. "Who bankrolled Portland's mayoral candidates?". Portland Phoenix. Retrieved 15 November 2011.