CUMBERLAND COUNTY – While most towns in the northern areas of the county voted to reject renovations to the Cumberland County Civic Center, voters in Portland and its suburbs roundly approved the $33 million bond, enabling the measure to pass by a wide margin.

“We are very pleased,” said civic center trustee and Scarborough resident Neal Pratt on Wednesday. “We were cautiously optimistic going into it, and I would say the margin of victory is very gratifying.”

Countywide, the measure passed 58 percent to 42 percent. (With 95 percent of precincts reporting, the vote total was 45,887 to 33,463.) But the figures also show support for the renovation project dwindled in proportion to distance from the Portland-based arena, which has played host to sporting and cultural events since being built in the 1970s.

Bridgton, whose Board of Selectmen urged a no vote the week before the election, voted 990-525 against the project. Raymond residents voted 852-634 against. Windham voted 2,292 to 2,170 against. Starting in Westbrook, the tide turned toward the renovation project, with residents in the city voting 2,716 to 2,218 in favor. Gorham voters approved the project, 2,126 to 2,068. Scarborough voted favorably, 4,314 to 2,944. South Portland voted 4,322 to 2,642 in favor. And Portland, with the most voters of any municipality in the county, voted overwhelmingly – 12,732 to 6,493 – in favor of the project, which will cost an estimated $55 million over the life of the 25-year loan.

Though the question was defeated in most of the northern county towns, Pratt said many mid-county towns had fairly close tallies.

“If you look at the numbers, you see how relatively close they are, meaning a large number of people in outlying towns did recognize the importance of this project and agreed that it does impact the county, not just Portland or those towns around Portland,” Pratt said.

He also attributed Portland’s mayoral race as benefiting the Forest City’s turnout and, by proxy, the bond.

“Definitely the timing of the referendum played a part,” Pratt said. “We are very happy about the volume of support we received inside and outside of Portland.”

Charles Leavitt, a Raymond selectman who was vocal in trying to defeat the proposal, said he expected the result.

“It’s very difficult to overcome the disparity of the numbers when you compare populations. So I always felt it would be an extremely difficult proposal to defeat,” Leavitt said.

Leavitt feels not only geographical distance from the center but socioeconomic factors played a part as well.

“Economic hurt isn’t as visible, I would say, for Portland and coastal towns, as it is, say, in Bridgton and Harrison,” Leavitt said.

Gary Plummer, a Republican state representative for Windham, former Cumberland County commissioner and current member of the county’s board of trustees, said prior to the election that the vote would be a referendum on whether voters believed government should be involved in operating the arena, rather than closing it or letting a private entity run the arena. Post-election, Plummer said the voters have sided with the government running the enterprise, in almost a mirror result of the original vote in the 1970s that authorized construction of the civic center.

“The public spoke on this issue and I think we have authorization to move ahead to make improvements that will keep the civic center competitive for the next 20 to 25 years,” Plummer said.

Plummer said the renovations would take effect in four phases. The first includes the trustees selecting an architect and design team, as well as a building committee which will act as a liaison to the architectural team.

Next, the first phase of construction will begin, Plummer said, “hopefully the day after the hockey season ends,” in May or June of 2012. Phase I will renovate the inside of the civic center’s “bowl,” as Plummer calls it, or auditorium. New seats will be installed as well as handicapped access.

Phase II will renovate restrooms, the loading dock area and concession areas. Plummer said the goal is to complete Phase I and II before hockey season starts in the fall.

Phase III, which will transform the outside of the building to “make the building more aesthetically pleasing and modern,” Plummer said, will take place next fall and winter.