Red Claws owners pitch arena plan
Two of the owners of the Maine Red Claws basketball team are proposing a $100 million hotel and event center at Thompson's Point in Portland.
Jon Jennings, president and general manager of the Red Claws, and fellow owner William Ryan Jr. today announced the Forefront at Thompson's Point, which includes office space, a performance hall and an arena that would be used for conventions and sporting events, according to the Portland Press Herald. The 3,500-seat arena would host Red Claws games and could also be used for conventions and seat as many as 4,500 for concerts. Jennings and Ryan have an option on the 30-acre property near the Amtrak Downeaster station, listed for $9.9 million and currently home to a few industrial buildings, a sewage pumping station and propane facility. They plan to privately finance the project, and have lined up investors and contacted banks, though financing isn't yet finalized. Construction could begin next spring, if permits are obtained before the end of the year, according to the paper.
The proposal could complicate the Cumberland County Civic Center Board of Trustees' plan to spend as much as $30 million to renovate the center and seek a bond for the project. Neal Pratt, chairman of the board, told the paper the group will have to show the civic center rehabilitation is different from Jennings and Ryan's project.
Earlier this week, Shipyard Brewing Co. owner Fred Forsley announced his proposal for a hotel, convention center and culinary school on property adjacent to the brewery near the waterfront. Forsley told the paper he favors a downtown convention center, but supports such a facility being built anywhere in Portland.
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