City Hires WSP USA Inc. to Conduct Reimagining Franklin Street Final Planning Phase

PORTLAND, Maine – The City of Portland is pleased to announce that it has hired WSP USA Inc. (WSP) to conduct the final planning phase for the Reimagining Franklin Street effort. Set to begin later this month, the planning effort will update and refine the conceptual design that was adopted by the City Council as part of the 2015 Franklin Street Master Plan, as well as develop a land use/urban design plan for the street. The planning effort is expected to take approximately 10 months to complete. 

“We’re excited to collaborate with WSP on this transformative project.

Their expertise and vision, combined with community input, will help shape one of the most significant projects in Portland’s history,” said Kevin Kraft, Director of Planning & Urban Development for the City of Portland.

The hiring of WSP follows the news in January that the City of Portland and MaineDOT were awarded $2 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program for the first phase of design for the Franklin Street redesign project. The federal funding will be matched by the City and MaineDOT, each contributing $250,000. Having the federal funds already in place allows the City to move immediately into the design phase after the final planning phase is complete. Reimagining Franklin Street is a partnership between the City of Portland and MaineDOT through the Village Partnership Initiative program.

This final phase of planning work is necessary in order to update and refine the 2015 Master Plan’s conceptual design due to changes in transportation patterns, and planning and design standards since 2015, as well as the updated zoning along and near Franklin Street due to the adoption of the City’s ReCode effort. The final phase will also take into consideration the significant development that has occurred along and near Franklin Street since 2015 as well as the opportunities that are now in place due to the availability of federal funds such as those the City and MaineDOT have been recently awarded. 

The transportation portion of the planning work will include an emphasis on safety and multimodal accessibility and connectivity for all users of the street including pedestrians, motorists, bicyclists and transit users as well as strengthening connections between neighborhoods bordering Franklin Street. It will also apply a land use and urban design lens to integrate place-making and ensure the project includes vibrant and active streets, and integrates opportunities to meet the City’s housing, sustainability, and economic development goals.

“Reimagining and rebuilding Franklin Street presents a generational opportunity to transform a gap in Portland's urban fabric into a vibrant, connected space,” said Eugenia DiGirolomo, the Northeast Urban Design and Placemaking Practice Leader for WSP, and the project manager for the Reimagining Franklin Street effort. “These improvements will make the corridor safer, foster economic growth, and create a dynamic place for the community to come together. We’re building on past efforts and are excited to work with the City of Portland and its residents to make this vision a reality.”

The City of Portland contracted with WSP through a competitive selection process. WSP is a national multi-disciplinary consultant firm with experience integrating engineering, planning and urban design in transformational projects similar in scope and scale to that envisioned for Franklin Street.