Maine College of Art

A few recent nighttime photos of the venerable Maine College of Art:

Americana

A residential brick building on Mountfort Street. 

Door 14

Alleyway entrance at the Portland Company Marine Complex off of Free Street.

The Bird

Some local wildlife (is this a sparrow?) on the Eastern Waterfront:

Fort Gorges in the distance. 

Market and Newbury

The corner of Market and Newbury Streets in the Old Port. The Old Port Sandwich Shop is pictured.

Port Bean

The Port Bean Cafe at 111 Commercial Street.

Better Know a Building: Lancaster Block

Lancaster Block, built in 1881, sits along Portland's Monument Square at 474 Congress Street. The building was designed by John Calvin Stevens and is proudly listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The style of this building is Romanesque, according to a source.

Flashback: September 2010

Here are some photos that I posted around this time last year. I often lament that a downside of posting so many photos is that even the best ones end up getting buried eventually. So it's nice to take a look into the past every now and then and pick out some forgotten photos. You can check out the rest of September 2010 here. And as always, you can visit the Portland Daily Photo archives going back to 2008 by scrolling down the page and finding  the archives section in the right hand column. 

Commercial Street from the Casco Bay Bridge

Victoria Mansion fence on Park Street 

Another view from the Bridge

True Meridian

This stone marker on the Western Promenade is at longitude 70 deg. 16 min.

Shay's Grill Pub

Shay's  - 18 Monument Square

Trail to Ale 10K 2011

Here are a few photos from Sunday's Trail to Ale 10K race. The race is an annual fundraiser for Portland Trails, which is "a non-profit urban land trust dedicated to building a network of multi-use trails in the Greater  Portland area." The race starts at the Portland Company complex on the Eastern Waterfront, heads   out around Back Cove, and finishes at the East End Beach. The after-party, featuring Portland Pie Pizza and Shipyard Brewing ales, is in a space at the Portland Company.

Trail to Ale starting line

Cruise ship and runners waiting for the race

Post-race party at the Portland Company

Cruise Ship Season

The new mega-berth at Ocean Gateway in action:

Old Boat

An old boat (possibly being restored) at Portland Yacht Services on the Eastern Waterfront.

Sidewalk Art Festival 2011

Here are some photos from this year's Sidewalk Art Festival on Congress Street. The event was back on a  beautiful day in late August (the 27th). It seems to get bigger every year and draw more visitors too.

In With the New

Portland themed graffiti on the back of the Asylum. A work in progress.

The nearby blueprint mural at night.

Brown Street Trio

These three photos are of Brown Street and the quiet side of Binga's Stadium restaurant. All three photos are just slightly different. I always take more photos than I need of a particular scene, so in this particular case I would usually pick my favorite one and delete the other versions. Here I have posted all three shots and invite you to pick your favorite or least favorite.

Sunset from Monument Square

Monument Square at dusk. Click image for a slightly larger view.

Food: Taco Escobarr / Bam Bam Bakery / Plush West End

Here's some snapshots of a couple new  food places on the peninsula. First is Taco Escobarr at 548 Congress Street. Escobarr is a new venture by  the good  folks across the street at Nosh Kitchen Bar. So far this new eatery has a perfect 100% "like it" rating on Urban Spoon. 

Next in the "now open" category is Bam Bam Bakery at 267 Commercial Street. This fine looking bakery offers a wide variety of fresh baked goodies and is Portland's only (as of press time) gluten-free bakery. I think they will do well here. 

Also, on the topic of eateries, here is Plush West End Tapas and Lounge. This is at 106 High Street (former home of Katahdin Restaurant). It will be "opening soon," perhaps in September. Looks like they've been doing a lot of work inside.

Chester Street

These photos are from Chester Street, which is two streets over from yesterday's "Better know a street" installment of Berwick Street. This part of Portland has some great views and feels kind of like an island community.

Chairs at the end of Chester Street

An Edward Hopper-ish scene on Chester Street

Better Know a Street: Berwick Street

Berwick Street

Here's a look at Portland's Berwick Street. I hadn't explored this little area of Portland previously and was pleasantly surprised. I'm not sure if this is considered to be East Deering or if there is another name for this neighborhood between I-295 and Casco Bay. As far as this particular street goes, I don't have much information about this street other than a few photos. I presume the name is somehow related to Berwick, Maine, which itself is named after Berwick-upon-Tweed, England (per wikipedia).

Here's an aerial view from google maps:

Google maps aerial view

Berwick Street towards Casco Bay

Berwick Street looking back

Part of the view at the end of the street. The Maine Yacht Center is in the foreground and the Eastern Promenade is straight ahead. Also, the B&M Baked Beans factory is to the right of this photo a bit. 

Stay tuned for some more photos from this scenic neighborhood later this week.

September 11

Just a Little Rain

Passing by the Portland Public Library on Congress Street on a rainy afternoon. Monument Square is partly reflected in the windows:

This photo is really just a snapshot taken while walking (it's been cropped) but I like the feel of it. The black and white really brings out the reflections also.

Morrill's Corner

These photos are near Morrill's Corner, which Forest Avenue runs through. I don't make it this far off the peninsula often, but I've noticed this building on Bishop Street before and though it looked interesting.

And Foldy

End of Bishop Street

Corner of Bishop Street and Forest Avenue

Lobster Traps

Lobster traps on Widgery Wharf

Old sign on nearby Holyoke Wharf

Morning on the Docks

From Portland's Widgery Wharf on Sunday, a day much like today weather-wise.

Little Red Moped

Parked on Exchange Street on a quiet morning. This photo and many more are for sale at Corey Templeton Photography.

Back Cove Trail

The 3.5 mile Back Cove Trail circles around  Portland's scenic Back Cove. It's one of the finest public spaces in Portland and here are two recent photos of it during high tide: