• Tom Blackburn, 14 Hanover Street

I moved to Bayside on Hanover Street in 1998. In 2000, I joined the Bayside Neighborhood Association (BNA) as treasurer. During my time on the board I was event chair for five Black Frame Art Sales and three Bayside World Market and Fairs,. In 2006, I served as a project manager to move an 1857 house, slated for demolition from Mechanic Street to Myrtle Street. The BNA received a $200,000 loan from the city of Portland to move, renovate and buy the land on Myrtle Street. I also helped form the Bayside Community Development Corporation, a BNA-sponsored non profit organization formed to participate in the development of the Bayside as a center for working artists and other cultural activities.After resigning from the BNA, I formed Maine Construction Consultants, a general contractor and project management firm, and managed over $2 million in projects. I served as a board member of Creative Portland for five years, and formed Creative Space, an organization designed to provide creative workspace for individuals and organizations. I was contracted by the city of Portland to identify all creative spaces in Portland, discovering 650 by the end of his search. During this time, I met Justin Curtsinger and together we formed Grime Studios, currently a 39-room musician and artist workspace facility in Portland renting to over 300 musicians who play in 80 bands. In 2014, I became a board member of Mechanics Hall on Congress Street, serving as vice president, and finally building supervisor for over 10 years. In this role I  supervised over $1 million in restoration projects, and with the assistance of Deborah Van Hoewyk, raised several hundred thousand dollars in grant funding. This work was instrumental in elevating Mechanics Hall’s historic registry designation from local significance to national significance, allowing for the raising of much larger sums of money.Following an absence of about 15 years from the BNA board, I am pleased to see the recent direction of the BNA, especially the revival of committees and subsequent broad support from the community. Currently I’ve stepped into the role of team lead for the Bayside Business Breakfast Club, which is bringing new energy and focus to our neighborhood’s business community. I’m particularly interested in the BNA as a partner to the proposed Bayside Opportunity Center, in hopes of establishing 72 Parris Street as a community center for Bayside; potentially a game changer for the community and Bayside residents, especially the immigrant population. 

• Colette Bouchard, 18 Hanover Street

Originally from Rhode Island, I came to Portland in 1983 to experience the beautiful state of Maine and live in a small city that had lots to offer, including places where I could earn a living.  In 1991, my partner and I decided to take the opportunity to buy a house in Bayside that was under foreclosure and affordable for us.  Maine was in the depths of a recession at the time, and properties all around us sat vacant. Over time, people who I came to know as neighbors also decided to buy property in Bayside.The BNA has been a great way to meet people from the neighborhood, learn about what is going on, and get involved in projects that impact the community.  A group of new BNA teams has now emerged, and their members want to create public art, revive “The Baysider” newspaper, increase safety on the streets, reduce litter, have Bayside business gatherings, follow plans for developments, plant more trees, do outreach in the community, and create fun events and activities.  I want to be part of all this and invite others along too! 

• Jim Hall, 47 Cedar Street

I grew up in Wiscasset under the warm glow of Maine Yankee, took merit scholarships to Bates in Lewiston, found between-semester work in Portland in the late 80s and made it home. I landed in Bayside proper mid-90s with Sarah, first renting on Cedar as close as we could to her atelier in the Time & Temp building, then buying the home next door from one of the last remaining families of the former Armenian enclave. I initially cobbled together various gigs adjacent to arts & education, not quite making a living. As digital production tools became available, I gradually morphed into a tech worker, and now I run complex software development projects.I’ve served as BNA treasurer since 2019, I co-chaired the task force that crafted the City of Portland’s priorities for the current 5-year funding plan with HUD, and I currently represent the BNA on the 72 Parris steering committee working to develop a community ownership model for that donated parcel. Plenty of my additional public comment is on record, should anyone wish to learn more about my views from letters to the editor or the city’s agenda portal. With the neighborhood finally starting to unclench after years of successful advocacy by the BNA, my near-term intention is to focus my energies on the 3 prerequisites I see before we can really serve our community with more extensive programming: governance, fundraising & engagement. I’d like to see the BNA build on the community visioning we recently accomplished by drafting our first five year plan in 2025.

• Peter Markoe, 47 Hanover Street

Hello neighbors of Bayside and beyond, Thank you for considering me for a board member position on the BNA! I have been a proud Bayside resident for almost 4 years. I was born and raised in Central Maine and stayed close to attend college at Colby. Setting off to Los Angeles, I cofounded an urban farm focused on raising edible insects as an alternative protein source. Eventually, I found my compass pointed from southwest to northeast, and the rest is history. In my free time, you can find me at Bayside Bowl, sampling Portland’s top-notch food scene, taking in the beauty of Maine’s mountains, waters, and coast, or just hanging at home with my wife, Sophie, and our one-year-old son.  I’m looking to join the board of the BNA in order to help, in whatever ways I can, the inclusivity, vitality, and vibrancy of our community. There are a lot of moving parts in Bayside these days, but I think that we, as the constituents of Forest–Franklin–Congress–295, can shape a space that is as diverse, exciting, and unique as we are for decades to come. I have previously been involved in the BNA Development Committee and have attended neighborhood cleanups, but I am also looking to become involved in the evolution of 72 Parris, and other BNA committees and initiatives where my skills can be useful. My mission for joining the board is to learn more about others in my community and find ways in which we can come together and lift each other – and Bayside – up.

• Rob Sylvain, 167 Falmouth Street

Soon after Sue and I moved to Bayside in 1998, we went to the very first meeting of what would become the Bayside Neighborhood Association. Since then we’ve seen many changes in the neighborhood, and in ourselves. We brought our kids up in Bayside, and made lifetime friends of our neighbors. When we made the decision to move just “off penninsula” to accomodate our growing family, we left our hearts in Bayside. For me, serving the BNA would be a long term commitment; part of a lifetime journey.Looking at the old issues of the Baysider which the Portland Public Library recently posted to the digital commons it’s clear that the BNA has moved the neighborhood forward in significant ways. What’s more clear, and perhaps more important, is the sense of community, the sense of place, and the sense of goodwill evidenced by those pages. That spirit is what keeps my heart in Bayside, and it’s that spirit that will continue to move us forward in the coming decades, together.