Shipyard Brewing Co. aims to build Portland’s first beer-themed hotel, or ‘brewtel,’ as part of a $65 million redevelopment plan submitted to the city and made public on Tuesday.
The Portland Press Herald reported that the proposal, submitted with Bateman Partners, also envisions a first-floor tasting room and potentially craft-beer room service.
“It just feels like an opportune time to take advantage of the demand for space downtown,” Fred Forsley, Shipyard’s founder and president, is quoted as saying.
Citing planning documents given to the city last month, the paper reports that Shipyard’s existing brick brewery building and tasting room on India St. would be renovated.
The rest of the buildings on the two-acre site would be demolished to make way for a 105-room hotel, a three-story residential building with nine units at Hancock and Newbury streets, a large office building and a four-story garage.
The plans come amid a flurry of development in the area, where fast-growing Tilson has its new, open-plan office, cPort Credit Union is building a branch on Middle Street due to be completed later this year, and payment-solutions provider WEX Inc. is putting up its new global headquarters on the waterfront.