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P<\/strong><\/span>ythia, the Oracle of Delphi, was famous for her cryptic predictions but notoriously difficult to interview. These days, if you want to keep your ear to the ground, it\u2019s much more fun to talk with our local oracle, Evan Livada. <\/span><\/p>\nWhat do you see?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe Portland waterfront from Ocean Gateway past Phineas Sprague\u2019s operation below the West End is just booming. Just look at the high-end hotels and high-rises going on near Ocean Gateway. The exclamation point is the new WEX headquarters. WEX is building a 100,000-square-foot office, with retail below. It\u2019ll likely bring in 800 employees and 200 contract workers, which is what WEX has in South Portland at present. From the darling of Wall Street to the darling of Commercial Street. Their stock is up 37 percent this year, 76 percent on a one-year return.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n What\u2019s behind what we see? Lift a veil for us.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe Canadian company Premium Brands, of Vancouver, recently bought the Maine wholesale lobster-shipping firm Ready Seafood. By being acquired by Premium, Ready could circumvent the 25-percent tariff on U.S. lobsters sent to China [a total of 32-percent compared to the seven percent imposed on Canada]. The Ready brothers, from Cape Elizabeth, are brilliant. They launched in 2004. Ready purchases and sells 15 million pounds of live and processed lobster annually. They were looking to get some investors for a lobstering processing plant in Saco. But the Canadian company said, Not only do we find this interesting, we\u2019ll buy you<\/em>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Tell us a story that won\u2019t wake us up in the middle of the night. <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou go up the Turnpike, and every tenth truck is an Eimskip container on wheels. Eimskip has 63 offices in 20 countries. Portland is their U.S. headquarters. They\u2019re the biggest shipping firm in the North Atlantic. This Iceland company is stepping up its presence in Portland and roaring into prominence here. From what I see, I\u2019m enthusiastic that Portland is going to continue to grow into a big, big, important town.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n We\u2019re not overheated?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe vacant lot that was Rufus Deering Lumber is right in the middle of Commercial Street, so it\u2019ll be interesting to see what happens there. Between Phineas Sprague\u2019s and Ocean Gateway, it\u2019s a prime location. Whatever happens there is going to be spectacular.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n We aren\u2019t too precious, are we?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThink of Dock Fore in Boothby Square. The same guy has owned it for decades. He doesn\u2019t serve food except for hot dogs. But for beer, you can get it for $1.95 pint. It\u2019s like going back in time. For $3.95 you can make your own Bloody Mary, and you have the ambience of a friendly sports bar. In the middle of all this high-end foodie stuff, here\u2019s a place that\u2019s been around for 40 years, with an incredible sense of self. It\u2019s terrific.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Show us a dark horse on its way up.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDan Stevens started Capt. Mowatt\u2019s sauces 21 years ago. He\u2019s gone from a little factory on the East End to an exciting business that\u2019s taking off with his son Nate and son-in-law Mike. He has consistent 18-percent growth. The Sunday New York Times<\/em> front-page food edition featured them. Now he\u2019s getting orders from all over the world. Tremendous stuff. I love the Canceaux sauce, named for the ship that set our city on fire.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Tell us something we shouldn\u2019t know yet.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAmericold proposed a $30M cold storage facility on the waterfront. But it fell through. I guess somebody got cold feet. But it was a great idea, to help receive shipping and expand its possibilities, so everyone thinks there will be a public\/private partnership that will emerge. Talk around town is that the state and local forces will try to make this happen.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \n\n