SOUTH PORTLAND – A South Portland proposal for an outdoor concert venue has faltered, while Westbrook’s plan for one in Riverbank Park heads for public input.

Last week, plans for a waterfront concert venue adjacent to South Portland’s Bug Light Park took a major step back when potential developer John Cacoulidis withdrew an application for a possible 10,000-seat project.

Jon Jennings, South Portland’s assistant city manager, said Monday that during discussions with the developer last Friday, Cacoulidis reiterated that he’d like to “go in a different direction” and put together a master plan for the property. Jennings added that the concert venue development was envisioned as a short-term plan for Cacoulidis.

“Instead of an interim step with a performing arts venue, he’d rather begin to look at what he’d like to develop there in a long-term strategy,” he said.

Jennings said the city is still weighing its options, including looking at other possible locations, but that he doubts outdoor concerts will be on tap this summer. However, he said, the outdoor concert venue project “is not something (the city) is giving up on. We’ll continue to look at available space in the city and hopefully identify something we can move forward with.”

In Westbrook, a 2,500-seat proposal is still being explored. City officials are hoping to hear more community feedback and weigh interest in the project, which could reshape Riverbank Park, off Main Street.

Bill Baker, Westbrook’s assistant city administrator for business and community relations, said last week that he is working with Ward 4 City Councilor Gary Rairdon, whose ward includes Riverbank Park, to plan a neighborhood meeting to discuss the project sometime this month.

He added that he also plans to encourage the still-unnamed concert promoter to come forward in order to move discussions along with city officials and the City Council.

Baker unveiled plans for the venue in February, saying that the city had been taking a “methodical” approach to exploring the project since September 2013. He said that following any neighborhood meeting, there would most likely be public discussions as part of City Council vetting.

On Tuesday, Baker said that the recent withdrawal of plans in South Portland doesn’t affect Westbrook’s plans.

“South Portland’s decision has no impact on our long-running and careful analysis of this concept,” he said. “We expect the concert promoters, industry professionals and the concert market will determine future site selections, and we are pleased to be in that conversation.”

He added that music industry representatives have told him southern Maine can’t support more than one outdoor venue.

“Our opinion is informed by the industry experts who tell us that southern Maine probably could not support more than one of this particular size, based on how the promoters work and how the concerts get booked,” he said.

An environmental feasibility study has already been completed by a group of University of Southern Maine graduate students, and the city has received a complete financial estimate from Span Systems Inc. of Manchester, N.H., an international firm that specializes in producing and installing large, tent-like structures for outdoor amphitheaters. The estimate spells out that the project could cost between $500,000 and $1 million, which the city would recoup through revenue sharing with concert promoters.

A 2,500-person capacity venue in Riverbank Park, along the Presumpscot River, would drastically change the makeup of the park, with preliminary plans calling for the stage to abut the American Legion Hall building, with amphitheater seating expanding outward into the park. The playground would most likely be relocated to the opposite side of the parcel, near Legacy Publishing.

Baker said that, so far, feedback on the proposal has been generally positive, with most people believing that exploring projects such as this would only bring more economic development into Westbrook. However, he also said he’s heard concerns about the project, including noise, traffic and green-space impact.

James Tranchemontagne, owner of the Frog & Turtle restaurant on Bridge Street, who has also organized small concerts in Saccarappa Park, believes a larger concert series would be great for the city, but said the city should start small.

“I’m not 100 percent sold on building an amphitheater, but I do really like the idea of having a temporary stage,” he said. “Having some national artists down there on a temporary stage would be awesome.”