PORTLAND, Maine — Like lattes rising from the ashes. German pilsner brewed in an old scrapyard. The smell of fresh bagels and distilled spirits wafting over the train tracks. East Bayside has come a long way from its scrappy beginnings.
Built on the wreckage from Portland’s great fire of 1866, this industrial chic neighborhood is touted this week with a daylong symposium, focusing on its phoenix-like transformation from brownfield to food hub. Co-sponsored by the Greater Portland Council of Governments, Phoenix Fare on Thursday, Sept. 17, focuses on the area’s main economic driver: food and drink.
“Food represents a large part of our economy,” said Caroline Paras, economic and community planner for the Greater Portland Council of Governments, who plays a large role in the event.
From a movie screening at the Merrill Auditorium, to a food tour of East Bayside, to backyard soil testing at a community garden, Phoenix Fare showcases what is right with this swath of the city.
In March, Portland was selected for a $200,000 Brownfields Area-Wide Planning grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for East Bayside. Those funds, arriving this fall, will fund a two-year study to further revitalize this area bounded by Washington Avenue, Marginal Way, Cumberland Avenue and Franklin Street.
“The businesses themselves are the true stars of our food ecosystem,” said Paras, whose documentary “ Scaling Local” focuses on Portland-area food manufacturers and will be shown Thursday morning at the Merrill Auditorium.
Last year, the White House designated Greater Portland one of 12 “ Manufacturing Communities” in the country, and Paras was inspired to learn more.
In interviews with the owners of Coffee by Design and Rising Tide Brewing, among others, she “follows the narrative arc of the lifestyle of a business, exploring how they got their business ideas, formed partnerships and went from a leap of faith to growing pains to growing wildly.”
Amid discussion on food economics by Ryan Wallace from University of Maine’s Center for Business and Economic Research and a talk by historian Allan Levinsky on the Porland fire, the public can peruse East Bayside’s hidden cafes, bakeries and breweries with a new self-guided map.
“We are opening people’s eyes to these enterprises that were once home occupations” said Paras, adding that businesses, such as Tandem Coffee Roasters, which just celebrated three years in East Bayside, “have transformed the very areas where they choose to locate.”
Tandem co-owner Will Pratt could not be more pleased with the scene percolating around his cafe.
“I hadn’t realized how many food producers were in this neighborhood. It’s quite staggering,” said Pratt, who is upgrading to a new roaster to meet demand for his award-winning, hand-crafted coffee. “Hopefully, folks take the walking tour and hit all 10 businesses.”
Planners and town managers, food entrepreneurs and Portland residents are all invited to the free event.
“In the past, East Bayside has held many events, such as block parties,” Paras said. “This is more about education and outreach.”
Phoenix Fare will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sept. 17. It is free.
