A nearly 400-foot tower that would transform Portland’s skyline moved one step closer to reality Tuesday night when it received unanimous approval from the city’s Planning Board.

The 30-story mixed-use, high-rise building is proposed for 45 Union St., adjacent to the Old Port.

Now, the developer will need to secure building permits, finalize financing and begin work on detailed construction documents. The project does not require any approval from the City Council.

The tower, proposed by Portland developer East Brown Cow Management LLC, would stand at 380 feet, making it far and away the state and city’s tallest building. It would include more than 70 residential units, commercial space, an 88-room hotel and a restaurant at the top, and is just one part of a project called Old Port Square, designed to fill an entire city block.

Portland updated its zoning laws last year with the goal of allowing growth in the city while preserving its character. The overhaul included an increased maximum height for buildings in some of the city’s major corridors, permitting buildings up to 380 feet in downtown.

On Tuesday night, the board heard presentations about traffic impacts of the proposal and reviewed the developer’s latest revisions to the application before receiving a final round of public comment.

That testimony, both in person at the meeting and in submitted written comments, was mixed.

Local organizations, including Greater Portland Landmarks and the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce, expressed support for the project, describing it as a modern but thoughtful design that would transform an underutilized parking lot into a vibrant mixed-use space.

“This project shows that Portland can honor its history while preparing for its future,” said Thomas O’Boyle, director of advocacy at the chamber.

But other residents and local business owners criticized the building as an eyesore, whose height would disrupt Portland’s skyline and conflict with the city and Old Port’s historic character. Several commenters said the city, in need of more affordable housing, should prioritize those projects over new high-end apartments and a hotel.

In accordance with Portland’s inclusionary zoning rules, developers are planning to pay about $3.3 million into the city’s Jill C. Duson Housing Trust Fund in lieu of building affordable housing units.

During deliberations, the board acknowledged public concerns about the skyline and how it might visually transform the city, but noted that the applicants had met board standards. Members acknowledged that after raising the city’s maximum permitted downtown building heights last year, someone had to be the first to build in the new allowable space.

The planning board approved the project unanimously, although several members were absent.

The board also passed language requiring that if the developer makes major material or architectural changes that substantially differ from the approved plans, they must submit those changes to the board for review.

“In times like these, when there seems to be increasing discord and strife in our society, the courts can help to maintain stability and order by resolving disagreements fairly and rationally, according to the rule of law,” said Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly S. Budd in the annual State of the Judiciary address.

Funding is down. So is public confidence, especially as the federal system has become the main venue for heated and far-reaching disputes over President Trump’s policies. Some worry of violence. And, separately, artificial intelligence looms, bringing possibility and peril alike.

Speaking in the courtroom where the Supreme Judicial Court hears cases in the John Adams Courthouse , Budd said it’s crucial that the judiciary strengthen its reputation by being accountable and transparent.

“We’re constantly looking for ways to improve,” she said to a small crowd of judges, lawyers and others for the 45 minute talk.

She cited changes the courts have made to make it easier for people representing themselves to navigate the complex system. The judiciary has also restarted a review process for judges to receive feedback, and created more digital processes, such as a way to apply to seal old eviction records online.

“The program has proven to be incredibly popular,” she said. “Since it was launched, it has been used to prepare and file over 1,000 eviction sealing petitions in the Housing Court.”

Budd’s remarks came after a year in which the state’s court system endured a budget shortfall that led to cuts with a direct impact on public services.

Over the summer, as federal funding cuts loomed, Gov. Maura Healey vetoed millions of dollars of spending on the court system, leading the courts to implement a hiring freeze.

Other leaders of the state’s court system spoke of those challenges during Tuesday’s address.

Trial Court administrator Thomas Ambrosino said the system is down about 200 staff positions, from clerks to support staff.

The legislature recently restored more than $9 million of $24 million in cuts, Ambrosino said, leading him to begin to authorize some new hiring. But over the past few months, he said, the freeze “has a real impact on operations.”

In clerks’ offices, he said, “It means the phone rings longer than it should and sometimes cant even be reached. It means people waiting in line.”

The system has long felt overlooked by Beacon Hill. And this has come as a work stoppage by court-appointed defense attorneys for indigent defendants over higher pay has rippled through the courts, resulting in the dismissal of more than 1000 cases. The wage dispute wasn’t directly mentioned on Tuesday, though a case that will determine whether the SJC would give judges the right to raise pay is currently before Budd and her colleagues.

Budd and Ambrosino both spoke of ongoing modernization efforts in the state’s 94 courthouses, from wireless internet to projects to replace the aging buildings.

Budd also touched upon artificial intelligence. Advances in generative AI have reverberated through the legal profession. Some see it as a way to facilitate research and open up access to the courts. But others cite confidentiality issues, and also cite instances — including in Massachusetts — when lawyers have relied too heavily on AI to write filings.

The courts have a committee look into whether they should add any new rules for AI usage, and ultimately decided to recommend no changes for now, though it should be further studied.

“We are committed to being curious and open-minded about GenAI, while simultaneously being deliberative and thoughtful in how and when we utilize it,” she said, referring to generative AI, artificial intelligence that creates new content or writing.

Budd, Ambrosino, and Massachusetts Bar Association president Michael H. Hayden, fielded submitted questions, including about courthouse safety. Ambrosino said the system is using capital funds to make security upgrades across dozens of the courthouses.

Hayden also spoke of the need to protect judges.

“Our judges in Massachusetts have been increasingly harassed,” he said, saying some had seen their personal information released online, and others had even had pranks such as people ordering pizzas to their homes.

He urged legislators to implement protections for the personal information of judge, similar to what exists on the federal level.

“The time for decisive action to protect our judiciary is now,” he said.

Sean Cotter can be reached at sean.cotter@globe.com. Follow him @cotterreporter.

On one side of Concord’s City Plaza is a nativity scene. On the other is a pentagram — a symbol of Satanism — encircled by a wreath.

The display, installed by the Satanic Temple’s New Hampshire and Vermont congregation, honors the Dec. 25 Satanic holiday of Sol Invictus, which translates to “unconquered sun” in Latin.

Sol Invictus is a “celebration of being unconquered by superstition and consistent in the pursuit and sharing of knowledge,” according to the group’s website.

The wreath, adorned with lilacs, New Hampshire’s state flower, will stay up through Dec. 31 alongside other religious and seasonal exhibits that are on display in front of the State House.

“We, like any other religion and organization, are allowed to participate in this public forum, and we are proud to stand with these other displays,” Vivian Hess-Mahan, the congregation’s co-leader and minister, said in a press release.

This is the second annual holiday display by the Satanic Temple, which erected a statue of its part-goat, part-human deity, Baphomet, last year.

The robed figure and an accompanying plaque of the group’s guiding tenets garnered attention on social media and were repeatedly knocked down and shattered, leading Concord Police to arrest three people on vandalism charges.

The City of Concord approved the permit for the first display based on the First Amendment and to avoid a lawsuit, officials said in a statement last year.

State Rep. Ellen Read, a Newmarket Democrat, asked the Satanic Temple to install something on City Plaza.

“As a secular lawmaker, I believe it is critical that the City of Concord does not appear to endorse one specific religion over another,” Read said in the press release, arguing that the public place of City Plaza should be “neutral and inclusive.”

“Pluralism is the heartbeat of the ‘Live Free or Die’ state,” she said. “We must ensure that no single perspective dominates the public conversation and that all groups feel safe and represented in their own government.”