PORTLAND HARBOR, Maine (AP) Part of an island in Portland harbor is no longer on the market after being purchased last week for $5.3 million, according to the sellers.
The new owners plan to use the 12-acre (5-hectare) property on House Island for weddings and other events, The Portland Press Herald reported Sunday. Casey Prentice and Kevin Costello are managing partners of Portland Foreside, a development project along the city’s eastern waterfront. That’s just a few minutes from House Island, which is accessible by boat or helicopter.
The property on the island’s northern half has three renovated homes, a barn, a pier and five sandy beaches, the seller’s realty company said in press release.
Portland designated House Island a local historic district in 2015. While that doesn’t ban development entirely, the city’s Historic Preservation Board would have to sign off on most plans.
The newly purchased property was a federal immigration quarantine center from 1907-1937, while the southern half of the island holds Fort Scammel, built in 1808.
In the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, the property’s former owner marketed it as a COVID-free refuge for a cool $250,000 a week, plus expenses. Portland entrepreneur Noah Gordon had originally planned to host high-end weddings on the property when he bought it for $4.5 million in late 2019.
