Courtesy / The Boulos Co.
The building, at center, will consolidate executive staff, the registry of deeds, the department of public health, regional assessing and the emergency management agency together on the same campus.
November 22, 2023
Cumberland County buys Portland office building for $4.6M, will unify operations there
Courtesy / The Boulos Co.
Plans are in the works to establish the 32,532-square-foot, three-story building at 27 Northport Drive in Portland as Cumberland County’s center of operations.
Cumberland County has a plan in the works to develop a central campus for much of its operations, at 27 Northport Drive in Portland.
The county bought the property for $4.58 million from Martin’s Point Health Care Inc. in a deal that closed Oct. 26. The county says it will renovate the 32,532-square-foot, three-story building and consolidate offices there in 2024.
The list price was $4.995 million. Drew Sigfridson of the Boulos Co. represented the buyer and Boulos’ Nate Stevens represented the seller.
The freestanding professional office building, on 19.8 acres at Northport Business Park, was sold vacant.
Martin’s Point Health Care bought the building in 2011 for $2.65 million.
Property highlights include two elevators that were fully replaced earlier this year and parking in-common with other business park buildings.
Outgrown space
Currently, government operations of Cumberland County are headquartered within its courthouse at 142 Federal St. in Portland, although there are also functions at other sites.
The county comprises three cities, Portland, South Portland and Westbrook, and 25 towns. The population of 305,000 — nearly a quarter of Maine's census — makes Cumberland the most populous county in the state.
The new building will consolidate executive staff, the registry of deeds, the department of public health, regional assessing and the emergency management agency together on the same campus.
Over the last 20 years, the county has studied its need for space, due to the constraints of the courthouse and its limited ability to house offices, according to a memo by County Manager James Gailey.
The registry of deeds was moved to 10,000 square feet of rented space at 25 Pearl St. in the Old Port. The establishment of a municipal assessing service resulted in the assessor’s office joining the registry of deeds there. Studies also found the district attorney’s office also needed better space, although that was never pursued.
Courtesy / The Boulos Co.
The sale of the office building came with furniture.
In 2018, the County hired OakPoint Associations to conduct a space needs analysis to evaluate the existing space at the courthouse and 25 Pearl St. The OakPoint study found there was little chance to make more efficient use of courthouse space, and many areas that were never intended for offices were being used that way.
Since the 2018 report, the county has increased the size of some offices and in 2021 established a public health department that has also grown.
The county commissioners considered building new space, and earlier this year received a cost estimate for a 25,000-square-foot, two-story building of between $16 million and $17 million.
In August, the commissioners reviewed the 27 Northport Drive listing as an alternative, with the goal of consolidating staff on one site.
'Historic event'
“The property has been well kept and many floors have existing furniture that will be transferred as part of the sale,” Gailey wrote. “The building provides space for the county offices, plus more. Spaces exists for a number of conference rooms, a cafeteria, exercise room and more. This building serves the county today and will for years to come.”
The commissioners authorized cash purchase of the property at their September meeting, using funds the county received under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, allowing outright ownership with no long-term debt. Annual operation costs are expected to be less than what the county is currently paying in leases in the Old Port for three departments.
At their Nov. 10 meeting, the commissioners authorized Gailey to award the design and renovation of the building to WSP USA Environment & Infrastructure Inc., headquartered in New York City with an office in Portland.
Gailey said his office has begun meeting with WSP. It’s expected WSP will have construction drawings ready to submit to the commission by the end of April.
It will be at least eight months before the county is able to move in, he added.
The estimate for renovation is $3.4 million, also coming from ARPA funds.
“This is a historic event for the county,” said Neil Jamieson, the commission’s chair. “It’s really a generational opportunity for Cumberland County.”
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Carla Nixon
November 22, 2023
What are the plans for their current space?
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