Franklin Street in Portland, Maine, Could Get a Long-Awaited Redesign

Today's Franklin Street in Portland, commonly known as Franklin Arterial, was created in the late 1960s by demolishing entire neighborhoods. Now, the City of Portland is looking at ways to bring back that feel of community to the area.

The arterial was a project to open a corridor for traffic from the new Interstate 295 to downtown Portland and the Old Port. The construction was at the expense of 130 homes and businesses in the Bayside area that were torn down to make room for the four-lane arterial.

According to the Portland Phoenix, in the mid-2000s, Portland residents were adamant about the issues of Franklin Arterial. They wanted more areas along the arterial for sidewalks, bicycles, and buildings for retail, making the area into a mixed-use urban neighborhood like it was in the days before Franklin Arterial. In 2015, the Portland City Council approved a plan to redesign the area but nothing has been done almost a decade later.

The plan calls for a roundabout, areas for foot traffic, and an expansion of Lincoln Park up to Franklin Arterial.

Now, the Portland City Council will be presented this spring with some updated plans recommended by Portland Public Works to the Sustainability and Transportation Committee. This could finally get the ball rolling on a long-overdue redesign of a neighborhood that shouldn't have been torn down over 50 years ago. A new neighborhood in the Bayside area along Franklin Arterial is just what the city can use.