A Portland committee advanced a proposal Tuesday that would block a new concert hall proposed by Live Nation and a local developer, despite objections by members who said they ultimately would not support the measure.
The change, which would expand the buffer required between large entertainment venues to 750 feet, will next go to the Portland Planning Board for review and then to the City Council for a final decision.
The debate at the Housing and Economic Development Committee on Tuesday indicated that the councilors are starkly divided on an issue that inspired hours of testimony at public meetings over months.
“I do not want my ‘yes’ vote to be interpreted that I support it,” Councilor Kate Sykes said, as she considered sending the proposal to the planning board.
The Portland Music Hall would be a 3,300-seat room at the corner of Cumberland Avenue and Myrtle Street, next to Merrill Auditorium. Outcry against the project led to a moratorium on large entertainment venues and concert halls, which has stalled the project.
“We can pretend, as council often does, that there is nothing we can do here,” said Councilor Wes Pelletier, who sponsored the proposal with Councilor Pious Ali. “I’m not going to go along with that.”
The City Council will also soon consider extending the moratorium, which is set to expire in March.
EXPANDING THE BUFFER ZONE
The developers say the Portland Music Hall would attract new acts because the city doesn’t have a venue of this size right now, while its detractors point to an ongoing federal antitrust lawsuit as evidence that Live Nation would crush the local scene. Opponents have also said the venue would lead to congestion in downtown and a strain on parking, but city staff and the developers say increased traffic from the venue would be manageable.
During the moratorium, the Housing and Economic Development Committee has considered two proposed ordinance changes that would impact the Portland Music Hall. The first was a new fee that would direct money from every ticket to the local entertainment sector, which the City Council approved in January.
Councilors Pelletier and Ali sponsored the second proposal, which would expand that buffer to 750 feet for certain entertainment venues with a capacity greater than 1,000. They would eliminate it for smaller venues. Right now, the city requires a 100-foot buffer between businesses with entertainment licenses.
“In doing so, the hope is to mitigate traffic snarls that are bound to arise from thousands of people arriving to and leaving from multiple venues at the same time,” Pelletier wrote in a memo to the Housing and Economic Development Committee. “As Portland’s density increases, the choices we make today will be felt for generations to come, and I believe that we as leaders must proactively ensure that we are using the power given to us by our constituents to ensure that we are building a city that makes sense.”
Councilor Sarah Michniewicz said she could not support that idea but suggested a 250-foot buffer instead that would prompt the developers to move the front entrance of the Portland Music Hall further from Merrill Auditorium. Councilor Regina Phillips said she would also oppose a 750-foot buffer but might be interested in a 250-foot buffer.
The committee eventually asked the planning board to consider both options — or no change at all.
A HEATED DEBATE
Public testimony on Tuesday echoed concerns that have been raised over months.
The Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce joined a handful of property owners and developers who spoke against any change that would derail a project that was on the brink of approval by city officials.
“Expanding the buffer zone from 100 feet to 750 feet for venues over 1,000 seats is not a modest adjustment,” said Thomas O’Boyle, director of advocacy. “In the context of the peninsula, it effectively functions as a barrier.”
Representatives from Portland Ovations and the Portland Symphony Orchestra spoke to the committee about the congestion and safety issues that already occur when tour buses line Myrtle Street for a performance at Merrill Auditorium.
“We have a lot of great intentions for attracting new venues here to the city, but putting them right next to each other like that, there is just not the room,” said Eric Hager, production manager at Portland Ovations.