The Gulf of Maine Research (GMRI) Institute announced Monday that it was purchasing Portland’s iconic Union Wharf to protect it as a working waterfront.
GMRI officials declined to comment beyond a press release announcing the sale, which did not disclose the price of the purchase.
The Poole family, which has owned the property since the mid-nineteenth century, decided to put the wharf up for sale in March. Charlie Poole said the family chose to sell to GMRI in part because the institute wants to preserve it as a working waterfront.
“For generations, the Poole family has felt very strongly about stewardship to Union Wharf and more broadly, to the working waterfront in the Port of Portland,” he said. “The Gulf of Maine Research Institute brings a very similar view of the working waterfront and the necessary commitment to maintaining the infrastructure to a very high standard.”
Dating back to the 1790s, Union Wharf today splits Portland’s waterfront between more tourist-friendly businesses and the working waterfront. Ongoing hotel and condominium development projects in the area prompted GMRI to purchase the property to preserve waterfront access for marine businesses, the institute said in a statement.
“Union Wharf epitomizes a high-quality working waterfront in Portland Harbor,” said GMRI President and CEO Don Perkins. “Our vision is for Union Wharf to serve as a model for how coastal communities can continue to invest in and protect waterfront access. We will steward and manage Union Wharf over the long-term, with the guidance of industry advisors."
Willis Spear, a longtime Portland fisherman, commented in the statement that GMRI’s purchase will help preserve the marine industry on the Portland waterfront.
“All the wharves in the harbor impact each other,” he said. “By buying and protecting Union Wharf, GMRI will buffer the rest of our working wharves and protect them from speculation. They will help ensure a future for our next generation of fishermen.”
GMRI said in the statement that it plans to expand Union Wharf to continue to support marine industries.
“Union Wharf is blessed with a hardworking, innovative and diverse mix of marine tenants,” Perkins said. “We look forward to supporting them in the same spirit that the Poole Family has done for 160 years.”
