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Bangor council, legislators discuss reuse of state property and mall redevelopment as housing priorities
Summary
Councilors and legislators discussed the possibility of redeveloping the Bangor Mall and reusing state-owned Dorothea Dix property for housing, and identified infrastructure costs as a barrier to new housing development.
Councilors and state legislators spent part of Monday’s joint meeting discussing several redevelopment opportunities and obstacles, including the city’s interest in bringing housing to the Bangor Mall site and the state-owned Dorothea Dix property.
Several legislators said they had introduced or planned legislative language to put the Bangor Mall before the Maine State Housing Authority as a potential redevelopment opportunity. A delegation member described a resolve to ask the authority to consider purchasing the mall for housing redevelopment, but noted the city is currently involved in litigation with the mall owner and that court matters may limit what the council can say publicly.
City leaders also raised concerns about the reuse of the Dorothea Dix site. Delegation members said the Department of Administrative and Financial Services is holding Dorothea Dix “in reserve” for a possible state purpose — for example, a future hospital — and that a legislative act would likely be required to transfer or repurpose the property for municipal or non‑state uses. Delegation members noted the administration had invested in maintenance and upgrades at the site and that demolition and renovation schedules have been delayed.
Councilors and legislators also discussed housing financing and the “missing middle” problem. City staff said development costs make many multi-family projects financially infeasible in the current market; the council has used ARPA dollars and other tools to buy down infrastructure costs at a 10-acre Grandview Avenue site to make projects work for developers. City officials said the per-unit construction gap for affordable multi-family housing can be on the order of $25,000–$35,000 per unit without subsidy; council staff pointed to sewer and utility upgrades as the capital pieces that would enable larger projects such as mall-area redevelopment.
Ending: Legislators asked city staff to provide specific infrastructure cost estimates and to continue coordination as bills and concept drafts take shape this week.
