Portland, Maine, is home to many neighborhoods.
Arts District
Portland's Arts District is based around Congress Street in downtown Portland. The District includes the Portland Museum of Art, the Children's Museum of Maine, the Maine College of Art (MECA) and the State Theatre. It is a mixed use neighborhood with both apartments and commercial establishments.
Back Cove
Back Cove is a neighborhood off of Portland's peninsula and downtown areas. The neighborhood is mostly residential with some commercial business located within Woodford's Corner and along Ocean Avenue. With views of the Portland skyline across Back Cove, the Back Cove neighborhood borders the neighborhoods of Deering Center, North Deering, East Deering, Rosemont, and Oakdale. Neighborhood boundaries are: Washington Avenue (North), Baxter Boulevard (East), Forest Avenue (South), and Canco Road (West).
Within the boundaries of the Back Cove neighborhood are Woodford's Corner, Ocean Avenue, Cheverus High School (a private Jesuit school), and Ocean Avenue School (a Portland Public Schools elementary school). Landscape architect Carl Rust Parker designed the Boulevard Park subdivision of 110 homes in 1912, while Baxter Boulevard was being constructed. The neighborhood includes many historic homes. The John B. Russwurm House and the Sparrow House are located within the Back Cove neighborhood.
The Back Cove Trail is one of the oldest trails in Portland. It is 3.6 miles long and circles Bay Cove and connects to Payson Park, the Bayside Trail, and the East End Trail. Payson Park is a 48 acre park located within the neighborhood with baseball and softball fields, basketball courts, tennis courts, a playground, an ice skating rink, a sledding hill, ski and snowboarding park, a playground, a community garden, and the Longfellow Arboretum. The small Barrows Park and Heseltine Park and the George Street Cemetery are located within the Back Cove neighborhood.
See also
Back Cove estuary basin in Portland, Maine
External links
City of Portland
Back Cove Neighborhood Association
Ocean Avenue Elementary School
Bayside
Bayside is the downtown neighborhood located between the Old Port and Back Cove. It is a mix of residential and commercial properties and old and new architecture. The neighborhood is bounded by Forest Avenue, I-295, Congress Street, and Franklin Street. It is bordered by the neighborhoods of Parkside, the Old Port, and East Bayside. It is represented by the Bayside Neighborhood Association. It is often confused with the East Bayside neighborhood, which is on the opposite side of Franklin Street.
Portland High School, whose original building that is the school's middle wing was built in 1863, and Baxter Academy, a charter high school with a STEM curriculum, are both located in the neighborhood. Merrill Auditorium is located in the neighborhood. The state's only Whole Foods and Trader Joe's supermarkets are located in the Bayside neighborhood. Notable buildings in the Bayside neighborhood include the Schlotterbeck and Foss Building, an historic art deco factory building built in 1927 and that is now apartments, and Franklin Towers, a high-rise apartment building constructed in 1969. Greater Portland Landmarks has documented that Bayside has some of the earliest homes in Portland, including Federal and Greek Revival homes, because most of the neighborhood was not burned in the Great Fire of 1866. The City of Portland's former Public Works operation center in Bayside has been redeveloped to be a commercial center comprising restaurants, breweries, distilleries, exercise studios, a bowling alley, and many new apartment buildings.
The Bayside Bowl bowling alley is located in the Bayside neighborhood next to the former Public Works operation and since 2014 it has been hosting the PBA League Elias Cup team competition. The PBA League said Bayside Bowl has rejuvenated its event.
The Bayside Trail begins on Elm Street in the Bayside neighborhood. The trail goes across the Franklin Street divided throughway and then through East Bayside and then connects to the East End Trail and the Back Cove Trail. The Stone Street Playground is located in the neighborhood and is popular in the summertime because of the splash pad fountain and the proximity to the Old Port. The neighborhood association rents plots in the community garden located on Chestnut Street across from the Daymark condominium building that was built in 2022.