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Proposal For Arena Near Turnpike Gets Another Chance

December 27, 2010 - PORTLAND - A local developer's vision for a new arena off the Maine Turnpike may still have some legs after all.

The Cumberland County Budget Advisory Committee, by a vote of 3-2, decided Dec. 8 to recommend spending up to $100,000 from the county's upcoming capital budget on a feasibility study examining the conversion of the Cumberland County Civic Center into a convention center. The money would come out of $200,000 placed in the budget originally as a placeholder to fund studies of civic center renovations.

The decision came as a shock to some in attendance who thought the issue was dead after the civic center's board of trustees voted Nov. 17 to move forward with a $28 million plan to renovate the 33-year-old civic center.

Even Jason Snyder, the Westbrook landowner who has ruffled some feathers with an alternative proposal to turn the civic center into a convention center and build a new publicly funded arena on land he owns in Portland or Westbrook, said it was a surprising move.

"Everyone assumed it was dead and over," he said in a phone interview from New York City this week. "You could hear the proverbial jaws hit the ground."

The trustees' earlier vote was based on the recommendation of a task force that researched the issue for several years and determined that civic center renovations were the most cost-effective solution to dealing with the problems of an aging facility. Trustees eschewed Snyder's proposal following a meeting in late October at which Snyder said he needed around $85,000 for a feasibility study.

Now, the money may be available - though it was not specifically earmarked for Snyder. Lisa Villa, who chairs the budget advisory committee and is a selectman in Harrison, said the recommendation is to study generally the idea of having a convention center and an arena.

She added, though, that Snyder's plan fits that mold and has its share of positives.

"I liked his presentation. I liked what he had to say," Villa said.

Snyder said his properties are "prime candidates" for any new arena plan given their location and size.

He believes an arena off the turnpike would be a greater benefit to the county as a whole. He also said a convention center in downtown Portland would add a new dimension to the area's tourism industry - business executives who would stay in hotels for multiple nights and spend their money in Portland and beyond.

On the downside, conservative estimates place the cost of Snyder's new arena at $85 million. Civic center trustees estimate it could actually cost $125 million.

John Menario, a trustee who has vocally opposed Snyder's idea, said this week that Snyder wants to hire consulting firm Conventions, Sports and Leisure for the $85,000 study. However, the same company did a study on the feasibility of a Portland convention center in 2001 that Menario said did not reflect positively on the idea.

"Why would you spend $85,000 ... to learn the results of a study that was already done nine years ago?" Menario said. "I understand their position. I don't agree with it."

He added that a firm examining civic center renovations found they would increase revenue $1.6 million annually due to expanded concessions, seating and arena naming rights.

Neal Pratt, chairman of the civic center trustees, remarked that the challenge for the budget advisory committee was that it simply did not have the time necessary to carefully consider the issue. He said Snyder's idea does not compare with the renovation plan, which stakeholders spent years on and found to be the reasonable and correct move.

Villa, though, said the budget committee members are just doing their job by "asking the hard questions" and providing county voters with options.

She said the civic center task force did not give adequate representation to the rest of Cumberland County, and the budget committee is just asking for a broader economic analysis of the options.

Villa said many people she has spoken with believe the renovation plan is "throwing good money after bad" and that the trustees are ignoring that viewpoint.

Paul Emery, a budget committee member and Westbrook city councilor, agreed. He questioned even Portland's benefit under the status quo, saying "times have changed" and the civic center no longer has the market it once did.

"Mr. Snyder's recommendation and his proposed plans and so forth make a lot of sense," he said, adding a new arena could aid growth and positively impact the budget at the state level.

The three county commissioners will consider the budget advisory committee's recommendations when they vote on the final county budget. That vote was supposed to happen on Monday, but was delayed because commissioner Richard Feeney was ill.

There are conflicting feelings among the commissioners about the idea. James Cloutier, commissioner for District 1, said he did not think much of it.

"I wouldn't honestly be doing cartwheels over that kind of proposal," he said, explaining he does not think capital funds should be used in that manner.

If there were more groups involved in the study, he said, the study would be a more viable option. As it stands now, Snyder's "bare bones" plan "doesn't have a lot of muscle," Cloutier said.

Malory Shaughnessy, the outgoing commissioner for District 3, sees things differently. She said she would vote in support of the recommendation because it is incumbent upon the county to do a regional impact study.

Shaughnessy said she thinks the $28 million bond could have problems passing when it goes before voters, which should highlight the concerns that exist beyond Portland about the viability of the current civic center.

The commissioners are expected to vote on the county budget on Monday, Dec. 20.

December 15, 2010
By Joey Cresta jcresta@keepmecurrent.com


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