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Congress Square Park, in the heart of downtown Portland, has been a gathering spot since it was built in 1982.

The look and feel of it has changed a number of times over the years.

The park has been the site of music performances, yoga classes, dance classes, civic protests and other community events. It’s also a spot to just hang out.

The park is currently the middle of a redesign. The project hit a snag in 2024 when the city cut ties with the original contractors over unexpected issues and delays.

Local nonprofit Friends of Congress Square Park announced that construction will hopefully resume this summer.

Here’s a look at the park from when it was first created in the early 1980s, how it appeared in the mid-’90s and a photo from a dozen years ago.

A view of the future site of Congress Square Park at the northeast corner of Congress and High streets, taken from the top of the Portland Museum of Art construction site on March 18, 1982. Press Herald photo courtesy Portland Public Library Special Collections and Archives
Congress Square Park on a late summer day in a photo from the Portland Press Herald on Sept. 12, 1995. At the time, the park had shade awnings stretched over some of the tables and chairs.  Press Herald photo courtesy Portland Public Library Special Collections and Archives
Pigeons and gulls were the only creatures stirring in Congress Square Park in this photo on April 23, 2013. Gordon Chibroski/Portland Press Herald

See more photos of life in Maine from our archives here.

Aimsel Ponti is a music writer and content producer for the Portland Press Herald. She has been obsessed with – and inspired by – music since she listened to Monkees records borrowed from the town...

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