This September, after years of hand wringing and money wrangling, Maine’s Department of Transportation plans to begin building Ocean Gateway on Portland’s Eastern Waterfront. In July the Portland City Council approved borrowing an additional $1.6 million, bringing the city’s contribution to $4.1 million towards the $20 million project. In late June, a contractor was finally selected to build Ocean Gateway — after bidders were asked to go back to the drawing board and look for potential cost savings under a “design-build” approach, Reed and Reed of Woolwich came out the winner.

Reed and Reed submitted a base bid of $16,787,770 with cost savings proposals worth $1,588,494, for a total bid of $15,199.276. (The competing bid from Cianbro was $16,984.491.)

“The exterior of Ocean Gateway will look the same, but we came up with about 40-plus ideas on how to cut costs, like steel pile sizes and slab configurations that no one’s going to recognize, as well as electrical items that could utilize the existing infrastructure,” explains Art Cavanaugh, senior project manager at Reed-and-Reed, Inc.

One last-minute glitch needs to be hashed out — and fast. Unused rail-access rights owned by Phineas Sprague of the Portland Company on Fore Street cross five acres of city-owned land at the planned extensions of Hancock and Commercial Streets. Thus far, Sprague has not granted permission to cross this property.

“This part of Hancock Street is a necessity for the commercial traffic of our project,” explains Paul Pottle, the Maine DOT project manager who has focused on Ocean Gateway for seven years.

Drew Swenson, co-developer of the proposed $75 million Riverwalk project near Ocean Gateway (WWF July 05), has offered to purchase the rail access rights, offering Sprague $250,000 in return for the right to develop the 10-acre Portland Co. complex. No go, Sprague said.

Months ago, another idea was proffered and rejected: “I offered a non-cash trade with the city for the right to expand my marina,” recalls Sprague, “but that was overturned last spring.”

In July, the Portland City Council voted 7-1 to take unused rail access rights from the Portland Co., supporting an eminent domain effort.

“Eminent domain is not very popular here in Maine,” dryly notes Sprague. “I’m willing to litigate if necessary to project my rights.”

Drew Swenson, meanwhile, says he hopes to find a solution agreeable to all parties. “There’s no question that Phin has — the Portland Co has — some rights,” he said. “The question is what is the extent of those rights. Are they as a good as a right of way or are they virtually meaningless?”

“The real point,” continued Swenson, “is that neither the city, Phin or I want to see any project delayed on the Eastern Waterfront, so we’re all working very diligently, with multiple meetings, multiple phone calls and we are trying to arrive at a settlement that would be of mutual benefit to all the parties, the city and its residents.”

Determination and a positive attitude are frequently hallmarks of successful developers: “We’re going to make a settlement happen, so that we can make everyone happy,” Swenson concluded.