State/High 2-way project on City Council agenda, but no plans are available

[Christian MilNeil]

Next week's City Council meeting agenda includes an "Agreement Between the Maine Department of Transportation and Portland RE: Improvements to State Street, High Street, and
Forest Avenue at Fourteen Intersections" that will put the city on the hook for $5.1 million:
https://portlandme.portal.civicclerk.com/event/9573/files/report/4705

According to the memo (emphaseis added), "This agreement must be approved by City Council and signed by the City Manager to allow engineering to be completed and maintain delivery dates for the two-way reversion project. DOT has already begun design; the agreement must be signed prior to completing design on the two-way components. Delay could result in the project being shifted to a later DOT Work Plan."

That means that there's got to be a conceptual design out there somewhere, but it's nowhere to be found in the Council's packet. 

This has come up as an issue with other MaineDOT projects – they tell the Council that they need to sign on the dotted line NOW or else risk losing the funding, but the public and the Council don't know important details about what MaineDOT is planning.

I've c'ed Jeremiah and Bruce in case they can share some useful details– I'm hoping they're in the loop. But more generally, we should really ask the City Council to demand more details in these projects, and more accountability from MaineDOT so that we know they're improving safety instead of just rebuilding the dangerous status quo. 

Christian MilNeil
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[Christian MilNeil]

Thanks Jeremiah. I'm familiar with the concept plans from last year, but which one is the preferred alternative moving forward? The presence of a MOU and a specific $5.1 million construction estimate seems to indicate that there's a preferred concept that's moving to final design. 

Christian MilNeil
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On Fri, Aug 21, 2026 at 12:27 PM Jeremiah Bartlett <jbar...@portlandmaine.gov> wrote:

Hi Christian,

Thanks for reaching out about this project.

You can find presentation materials, including the concept plans, on our project website:

https://engage.zencity.io/portland/en-US/projects/state-high-street-two-way-project

The City has hosted several public meetings on this effort, including presentations to the Sustainability & Transportation Committee and a previous endorsement by the City Council.

The current goal is to secure the remaining $100,000 to finalize the project design, which incorporates city-recommended components like the two-way reversion. This agreement is a significant step forward because it represents a formal endorsement of the two-way reversion by MaineDOT. Furthermore, the project consultant has committed to an accelerated work schedule to move the project forward quickly once the agreement is signed.

While these additional components require a financial commitment from the City, both the S&T Committee and the City Council have been fully briefed on the details. We are also actively working to reduce the City's financial exposure and have requested that PACTS/GPCOG formally recommend to MaineDOT that all components of the work be included in its upcoming 2027-2029 Work Plan.

Have a great weekend,
Jeremiah

Jeremiah J. Bartlett, PE, PTOE

Transportation Systems Engineer

Department of Public Works

212 Canco Road, Suite B

Portland, Maine 04103

jbar...@portlandmaine.gov

(207) 874-8891

He/Him/His

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