University of Southern Maine

News Releases

Portland Plastic Pipe and USM Reach Sales Agreement

March 14, 2005

An agreement reached between the University of Southern Maine and a local business has paved the way for the planning of University Commons, a complex along the I-295 side of USM's Portland campus that will include new academic buildings and a community plaza.

University Commons will be the centerpiece of USM's new $25 million capital campaign that is expected to run until December of 2006. The fund-raising campaign, which will be officially kicked off this spring, will help ensure that USM has the physical capacity to better serve students and the public.

Portland Plastic Pipe Founder and President Fred Olsen stressed that his company will remain open for business during the 18-month transition period, and then will continue operations at the new South Portland site. Portland Plastic Pipe, which was founded in 1975, is a leading wholesale supplier and distributor of plastic pipes, fittings and valves.

"Fred Olsen has built a successful business that is well known and respected," said USM President Richard L. Pattenaude, "so it was important to us that Fred and his employees have the ability to continue operations and then relocate to a viable commercial site. At the same time, his property on Winslow Street is absolutely essential to our plans for development of University Commons which will provide the campus and off-campus communities with access to educational and cultural resources. I want to thank Fred publicly for working with us to come up with an agreement." Portland Plastic Pipe is located on land between the USM Glickman Family Library and USM's Joel and Linda Abromson Community Education Center.

The agreement calls for USM to pay $1.95 million for the property. The university will use private donations to finance the cost of the purchase, which was negotiated by university officials and members of the USM Foundation, a private, non-profit group established to receive and manage donations made to USM.

University Commons will include the Abromson Community Education Center at the corner of Bedford and Surrenden Streets, the Glickman Family Library at Forest Avenue and Bedford, and the land along I-295 between the two facilities. The Commons will be the building site for the national headquarters of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, which offers programming for citizens ages 55 and older; the USM Muskie School of Public Service; and an expanded Osher Map Library and Smith Center for Cartographic Education. The Commons also will feature landscaped, public open space.

Design work on University Commons will start later this winter after a committee of faculty, staff and neighbors selects an architect. The architect, working with the committee, will develop plans to the point where they can be submitted to the city of Portland for consideration. Development of the entire Commons is expected to take several years.

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