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US: Developers plan to transform the former Portland Press Herald building into a 100-room boutique hotel.
Developers Jim Brady and Kevin Bunker signed a purchase-and-sale agreement in June with John Cacoulidis, president of Grand Metro Builders of New York Corp, who bought the building in 2009 from the newspaper’s parent company, MaineToday Media Inc.
The 1923 building has been empty since the Press Herald moved to new premises in 2010.
The developers plan a restaurant on the ground floor and a 100-room hotel above, with work due to start in spring 2013. The hotel is scheduled to open around spring 2014.
Jeff Levine, director of Portland’s Planning and Development Department, said: “It’s good to see interest in the building and that it’s going to get used. It’s a shame when a building like that sits empty.”
