A proposal to build a new music venue in downtown Portland drew dozens of people to city hall Tuesday night, where the planning board heard about the project for the first time.
Concert promotion giant Live Nation would operate the new venue, with a capacity for 3,300 people. It would be built on a partially vacant lot next door to the Merrill Auditorium.
Several Portland arts groups told the city planning board that if the project is approved, it would be logistically challenging for the city to host multiple events on a single night.
"I don't know if you guys have gone to a hockey game when there's a show at the State or at Merrill, but you'll probably miss the first quarter of the hockey game," said Lauren Wayne, who runs the State Theatre and Thompson's Point. "It is a mess."
But the developers, which include Scarborough-based Mile Marker Investments and Live Nation, said the proposed venue is intended to fill what they see as an unmet need in Portland's live music scene. With 3,300 guests, the proposed Portland Music Hall could attract acts that are too big for Merrill and the State Theatre, which can both serve roughly 1,900 people, but not big enough for the Cross Insurance Arena.
"Unlike other cities this size, there's no venues in the 3,000 capacity level," said Ryan Vangel, president of Live Nation New England. "That gap means the citizens of Portland are missing out."
A few local restaurant owners told planning board members that a new venue will boost their business during the off-season. Several residents also said the project would worsen parking problems downtown, particularly when multiple events are happening at the same time.
Planning board members said Tuesday night they will hold at least one other workshop on the project.
