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3 hours ago

SoPo's new proposal to convert former Mahoney school clears one hurdle

Mahoney Middle School is an old brick buildng. Photo / Courtesy City of South Portland The South Portland City Council approved a $74 million municipal campus proposal for the former Mahoney Middle School, at 240 Ocean St.
By Laurie Schreiber

After considering a proposal to convert a former middle school into a residential development, the South Portland City Council recently approved a $74 million municipal campus proposal for the facility.

Mahoney Middle School, at 240 Ocean St., closed for good last year and the property became available after the new South Portland Middle School opened last fall on Wescott Road. 

The City Council approval is just one hurdle the project faces. 

The city said it would next look to hire a design team to work up a final plan with a solid cost estimate, and begin seeking other sources of funding to reduce the burden on taxpayers. South Portland voters will ultimately decide if the plan moves forward, with a ballot likely in 2026.

Six-year discussion

Earlier this year, the council voted to hire Carl Cooke of Frontline Construction Management in Belgrade to consult on what the South Portland should do with the property. Options included proposals from the city and from the South Portland Housing Authority to create a mix of housing units.

After six years of discussion about the city’s facilities needs and two years of work by the city’s facilities committee, the council earlier this month voted for the city to consolidate its offices at Mahoney. 

The option would address the city's “significant facilities needs more affordably than some other options, allow for the construction of a new police station and renovation of Central Fire Station, and preserve the Mahoney theater and gymnasium as community spaces,” according to a city post on its website.

The proposal would consolidate city services into a new municipal campus, including the city hall, a new police station and the public library. The project would repurpose the existing building, maintaining community spaces like the gym and theater, while allowing for future growth in municipal services.

Consolidating city offices at Mahoney would also provide the greatest potential for affordable housing to be developed on the sites of the current city hall, library and Hamlin Building, if the council supports that concept.

The proposal supports economic development by putting potentially vacated properties back on the tax rolls, according to the city. Revenue from property sales could help offset costs, generating long-term financial benefits and helping to address concerns about affordable housing. 

“By investing in a centralized municipal campus, South Portland ensures more efficient use of resources while also creating new opportunities for economic growth through property development and reuse,” the city said.

Century-old school

The building dates back to the 1920s, according to Greater Portland Landmarks, which named the building to the group's Places in Peril list in 2017.

Located on a 15-acre lot, the Beaux Arts structure was originally South Portland High School, and served as the city’s junior high school in the 1950s. Later, it became Mahoney Middle School, named after Daniel J. Mahoney, a longtime principal at South Portland High.

The schoolhouse is a brick, three-story, 94,000-square-foot, U-shaped building. Features include symmetrical window pattern, a decorative sill, simple entablature openings, Doric pilasters and a flat roof with a detailed parapet. It was designed by the Maine architectural firm Miller & Mayo.

The building sits at the corner of a major transportation route into parts of South Portland and Cape Elizabeth.

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