Portland, Maine, To Develop New Neighborhood

"Portland's effort to develop a new neighborhood on its eastern waterfront will show signs of progress in December.

That's when construction of a 719-space parking garage is scheduled to start at Fore and Hancock streets as part of the $100 million Riverwalk project.

The project includes The Longfellow at Ocean Gateway, a 116-unit luxury condominium complex with 80 underground parking spaces. Construction of that phase of the project is expected to start in the spring, lead developers Drew Swenson and Fred Forsley said Thursday.

Riverwalk LLC is moving forward after forming a financial partnership with Intercontinental Real Estate Corp., a Boston-based asset management and real estate development company. Intercontinental has built several residential and commercial projects in Boston, Providence, R.I., and New Haven, Conn., said Nicholas Iselin, the company's development and construction director.

'Portland is just a logical extension of our strategy to build in New England,' Iselin said. 'Portland is a destination for many different people for many different reasons.'"