May 29, 2006
Sea change | Old Orchard Beach Town Manager Jim Thomas discusses reinventing the town as more than just a summertime destination
By Sean Donahue
On a dreary afternoon in early May, it's difficult to believe that Old Orchard Beach will soon be mobbed with tourists. Several seasonal businesses remain boarded up, and the town's famous pier and seaside amusement park are deserted in the lashing rain. The sense of desolation is broken, though, by construction activity at the site of the Grand Victorian, a $20 million condominium and retail project rising five stories above the famous beach.
When it's completed in 2007, Old Orchard Beach Town Manager Jim Thomas hopes the high-end housing complex will be the new face of Old Orchard Beach ˆ one that reflects a diverse community and 12-month economy as attractive to retiring Baby Boomers as it is to summer vacationers. "What we're trying to do is not only accommodate the tourists, but accommodate year-round residents too," Thomas says.
Activity in recent months seems to show momentum toward that goal. In late April, more than 100 residents turned out for a town-sponsored planning session to discuss redevelopment of the town's former minor league ballpark, which developers have been eyeing as a potential retail, office and hotel site. Also in April, Tim Swenson, the developer behind the Grand Victorian, announced plans for an even bigger development near the beach ˆ a hotel, convention center and retail complex that would straddle the town's railroad tracks.
For Thomas, these big projects are crucial steps toward the transformation of an overwhelmingly tourism-dependent economy ˆ fully 90% of Old Orchard Beach's businesses are seasonal and 30% of its housing stock is made up of vacation properties, he says ˆ into something he believes will be more sustainable. It's an effort the Lewiston native has been pushing since he came to Old Orchard Beach in August 2003 after serving as town manager in Whitefish Bay, Wisc., but which he says started with a necessarily modest focus: Curb appeal.
For more than two years, Thomas has been encouraging downtown property owners to spruce up their buildings with coats of paint or more substantial improvements. He's also asked business owners to stretch their traditional Memorial Day to Labor Day season.
That campaign yielded several recently improved buildings along Old Orchard Street and signs of diversity emerging among businesses, such as a former bar that recently was subdivided into retail space. And Thomas says small steps like those were needed to get outside developers with more ambitious projects excited about the town's potential.
Not everyone in town is excited about the changes, though. Critics decry projects like the Grand Victorian as harbingers of doom for Old Orchard Beach's traditional summertime character. With upscale condos and high-end retail potentially replacing inexpensive motels and pizza shops, critics fear the extinction of an affordable destination for working-class vacationers along Maine's increasingly exclusive coast.
Thomas' unapologetic response to critics: "Change is hard." He also says the town needs the economic stability offered by development. The site of the Grand Victorian, for example, generated $29,000 in property taxes when it housed a handful of summer businesses such as an arcade. When completed, though, the facility will generate $500,000 in taxes annually.
Thomas also believes development will balance out the existing tourism economy ˆ not kill it. After all, the town's famous beach isn't going anywhere. "The tourists will come," he says. "We've got clean beaches and they're free."
When it's completed in 2007, Old Orchard Beach Town Manager Jim Thomas hopes the high-end housing complex will be the new face of Old Orchard Beach ˆ one that reflects a diverse community and 12-month economy as attractive to retiring Baby Boomers as it is to summer vacationers. "What we're trying to do is not only accommodate the tourists, but accommodate year-round residents too," Thomas says.
Activity in recent months seems to show momentum toward that goal. In late April, more than 100 residents turned out for a town-sponsored planning session to discuss redevelopment of the town's former minor league ballpark, which developers have been eyeing as a potential retail, office and hotel site. Also in April, Tim Swenson, the developer behind the Grand Victorian, announced plans for an even bigger development near the beach ˆ a hotel, convention center and retail complex that would straddle the town's railroad tracks.
For Thomas, these big projects are crucial steps toward the transformation of an overwhelmingly tourism-dependent economy ˆ fully 90% of Old Orchard Beach's businesses are seasonal and 30% of its housing stock is made up of vacation properties, he says ˆ into something he believes will be more sustainable. It's an effort the Lewiston native has been pushing since he came to Old Orchard Beach in August 2003 after serving as town manager in Whitefish Bay, Wisc., but which he says started with a necessarily modest focus: Curb appeal.
For more than two years, Thomas has been encouraging downtown property owners to spruce up their buildings with coats of paint or more substantial improvements. He's also asked business owners to stretch their traditional Memorial Day to Labor Day season.
That campaign yielded several recently improved buildings along Old Orchard Street and signs of diversity emerging among businesses, such as a former bar that recently was subdivided into retail space. And Thomas says small steps like those were needed to get outside developers with more ambitious projects excited about the town's potential.
Not everyone in town is excited about the changes, though. Critics decry projects like the Grand Victorian as harbingers of doom for Old Orchard Beach's traditional summertime character. With upscale condos and high-end retail potentially replacing inexpensive motels and pizza shops, critics fear the extinction of an affordable destination for working-class vacationers along Maine's increasingly exclusive coast.
Thomas' unapologetic response to critics: "Change is hard." He also says the town needs the economic stability offered by development. The site of the Grand Victorian, for example, generated $29,000 in property taxes when it housed a handful of summer businesses such as an arcade. When completed, though, the facility will generate $500,000 in taxes annually.
Thomas also believes development will balance out the existing tourism economy ˆ not kill it. After all, the town's famous beach isn't going anywhere. "The tourists will come," he says. "We've got clean beaches and they're free."
Mainebiz web partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments