Low-income trailer park on Seawall sold; last season for abutting Charlotte's Lobster Pound

OTHER NEWS: Hearing Monday to clarify Mount Desert's vacation rental ordinance; Are car repair shops a dying breed on MDI?

SOUTHWEST HARBOR, May 16, 2024 - The town’s oldest and largest trailer park has been sold, and tenants are facing rent increases which may force them to vacate their properties, including one business, Charlotte’s Legendary Lobster Pound at 465 Seawall Road, where a roadside stand has existed since the Sixties.

Charlotte Buchanan Gill said this will be her last season at the Seawall site. She has told the new owner, William. O. Andrews of Sorrento that her last day will be Nov. 30, 2024.

Gill said she made an offer to buy the park at a higher price but was rejected because of a disagreement among the previous owners.

Gill said she would have helped existing tenants secure new mobile homes under a state program which helps replace old trailers with new, energy efficient units.

The 10-unit trailer park is among the lowest rental housing available on MDI. Some of the tenants have been there for decades, Gill said.

“Some of them are elderly. They're on fixed incomes. Where are they supposed to go?” Gill said.

According to Hancock County Registry of Deeds, the 1.94-acre property was sold Dec. 8, 2023 by Joseph Cough of Bar Harbor, William Vandegrist and a third unnamed partner under the seller title, Not Mine LLC. They acquired it in 2008. The buyer was named as William O. Andrews, of 48 East Side Road, Sorrento.

Only Cough’s signature appeared on the deed as the seller.

The property was assessed at $341,000 and was sold for $400,000, said Gill, who offered $615,000.

Gill said Cough and Vandegrist were often not in agreement and that it was Cough who forced the sale to the buyer with the lower price. Gill puts the responsibility for the fate of the low-income tenants squarely on Cough. Vandegrist and Cough could not be reached for comment for this article.

Andrews did not respond to an email asking for details about his plans.

Gill has owned the lobster pound for 13 years. In that time she received international press coverage for famously cooking lobsters with cannabis so the lobsters felt no pain. Her fame came with plenty of pain, as neighbors complained of parking on the side of the road on Seawall.

Gill also owns the Seawall Motel near the entrance to the campground at Acadia National Park.

Owners of Mount Desert vacation rentals ‘looking out for Number One’

NORTHEAST HARBOR - When you see the world through the lens of self interest exclusively, there is a tendency to relegate facts as inconvenient speed bumps.

It’s an unfortunate truism in Small Town, USA, that those who oppose something are more likely to show up at a public hearing. The Planning Board faced this earlier this year when wealthy summer people dominated the discourse in their opposition to six units of affordable housing in the village.

Likewise, bankers, real estate brokers, out-of-town investors and landlords showed up in force last Monday night to decry the proposed ordinance to regulate short-term vacation rentals of the type marketed on Airbnb and similar platforms.

They threw out a plethora of objections to see which would stick - “this ordinance has nothing to do with affordable housing”; “we inherited properties and may only afford them if we’re allowed to rent them for short-term vacations”; “it only drives a wedge between residents”; and my favorite: “It violates the Bill of Rights and is unconstitutional. We should be able to do anything we want with our property.”

(The short-term vacation ordinance aired Monday night was preceded by 17 proposed amendments to the land-use ordinance telling residents exactly what they can and can’t do with their property, such as you can’t turn your property into a campsite with more than one RV).

They portrayed the proposed ordinance as some kind of bureaucratic overreach when in fact it is mild compared with some of the other municipalities such as Portland, which has a weighted fee scale of up to $4,000 for any STR owner with more than five rental units.

Kate Chaplin set the tone for the hearing early on by saying there is no research or data connecting STRs to lack of affordable housing. She spoke frequently and at one time was told by the chair to give others a chance at the mic. Chaplin runs the vacation rental business for Knowles Company, the town’s largest real estate broker.

Chaplin is correct that capping STRs may be an overall economic drag on a community, but that largely depends on where that community is located, according to studies by the state.

Maine is a huge state. Most of its towns do not attract tourists. Mount Desert Island is the opposite. All four towns on MDI have experienced the most extreme growth of vacation rentals on Airbnb and VRBO since 2016, according to Airdna. Since Bar Harbor enacted its cap in 2021, Ellsworth has experienced a similar spike, becoming a Top 10 market in the country for vacation rental growth.

Last October, town assessor Kyle Avila reported that home sales in town were “skyrocketing at jaw-dropping prices,” according to Dick Broom of the Islander.

In particular, Avila cited Northeast Harbor and Seal Harbor as the “outliers” for the price spikes, according to Broom. Along with Otter Creek, they are also where all the growth is for STRs.

Asserting that STRs do not impact housing prices is either disingenuous or willful ignorance of the basic economics that a rising tide lifts all boats. At least the out-of-town investor declared his self interest openly - a cap will eat into his margins and he opposes it.

The backbone of a thriving community is its cops, fire fighters, nurses, teachers, librarians. They are much more focused on prosaic needs than those at the public hearing Monday night, such as rent cost and distance to work.

As Ellsworth becomes more unaffordable, island workers are having to commute a greater distance, if they choose to commute at all.

The biggest goal of the ordinance, as it did successfully in Bar Harbor, is to cauterize the bleeding first - grandfather everyone who is a current STR landlord and then take a breath and analyze the data to see what strategies to pursue.

The town assessor said there are 2,611 dwelling units in town. Airdna reported almost 200 units advertising as STRs on online platforms. In 2016, there were none.

STRs are essentially unlicensed inns and B&Bs doing business in residential neighborhoods with virtually no rules to safe guard the neighborhood. Many of them are owned by absentee landlords. Why wouldn’t the town want to gather more information on on this segment?

Two members of the Planning Board spoke Monday night in support of the ordinance, including former school committee chair Gail Marshall, who is a lawyer.

“So everybody's going to be opposed to something because everybody seems to me as I listen to this tonight is looking out for number one.

“We need to hear those concerns. But in the end when we make decisions, we have to make decisions for what's in the best interest of the community.

Maine Municipal Association has publicly stated its position that “municipalities are required to ensure their ordinances and regulations are designed to ‘affirmatively further’ the purposes of the FHA and MHRA, and municipalities may establish and enforce short-term rentals for this purpose. For this reason, MMA Legal Services believes that municipalities must ensure that local ordinances and regulations do not discriminate against protected classes identified in these law.”

In response to my question of whether it supported Chaplin’s opposition to the ordinance, Knowles Company responded in an email, “The Knowles Company supports and encourages any efforts to increase affordable housing that both protect the property rights of homeowners and support a healthy real estate market. We encourage thoughtful public debate in order to create the best possible outcomes for our communities.”

Unfortunately, rental income may become a more important segment for Knowles, since the National Association of Realtors settled a lawsuit last week throwing out the standard 6 percent commission which will put more pressure on margins for the industry.

Several speakers Monday night said they were only able to afford the taxes on properties they inherited by renting them out as vacation homes.

But according to airdna, the average revenue per advertised listing last year was $109,100 in Mount Desert, $101,900 in Northeast Harbor and $88,600 in Seal Harbor while the median property tax in town was $4,500 and the average was $8,300 per property.

The select board public hearing on the ordinance will continue Monday at 6:30 at the town office building and on Zoom.

Here is a summary of the ordinance:

The proposed rental ordinance and the team who put it together is meant to respond to and address the many concerns of the many stakeholders in the Town of Mount Desert. It is not intended to be a solution to the housing crisis, nor is it intended to unduly restrict people’s ability to continue to practice what has long been a tradition on this island.

What it does:

• It identifies and differentiates between 3 types of rental properties, the first two of which would fall under the same licensing requirements (no cap - lower fee)

Rentals that serve as a primary residence or are located on a property that serves as such - to be called Short Term Rentals (not capped)

Rentals that can not serve as a primary residence because they are not suitable as such (non-winterized camps- cottages) - to be called Seasonal Rentals (not capped)

Rental properties that do not serve as a primary residence and rent short term - to be called Vacation Rentals (all existing grandfathered - capped at 10% thereafter)

• It provides the town the capacity to know how many and what type of rental properties exist in Mount Desert.

• It provides for any and all currently allowed rental practices to continue, provided licenses are obtained and continually renewed. It also allows for any existing licenses to be transferable within the current owner’s family, allowing for generationally continuing practices.

• It provides for the funding of a needed position in the Code Enforcement office, to assist the CEO and also to manage the monitoring and licensing processes for rental properties without adding an additional tax burden to residents.

• It attempts to limit the extent to which residential properties are sold as investments in the future by capping the percent of year-round properties in town which are eligible to be licensed as Vacation Rentals (all current Vacation Rentals are grandfathered). What it doesn’t do:

• It does not require that the homeowner be on the premises at all times.

• It does not set a minimum number of nights or restrict how an owner chooses to market and or tailor their rental to their own standards.

• It does not require an inspection.

• It does not require any sign at the end of your driveway or in your front yard.

• It does not restrict the addition of future rental units on an existing residential property, provided such additions are approved under the building codes of Mount Desert.

Auto shops a disappearing business class on MDI?

SOUTHWEST HARBOR - Are auto repair shops an early indicator of the worker crisis on MDI?

SKIP’S AUTO REPAIR AND CAR WASH

“We’re thinning out,” said Skip of Skip’s Auto Repair, my go-to emporium for fuel pump repairs, wheel alignments, oil changes and other mechanical fixes for my 6-year-old Outback. I even bought a full set of tires from Skip’s once.

Used to be the summer people would garage a “Maine” car over the winter. Skip’s crew would dutifully winterize their Volvos, Volkswagens and Subarus. By Memorial Day, they would fire them up for reliable service through Labor Day.

I adopted the island ethos a long time ago - in the Nineties. That’s when I drove a used Volvo wagon - an attempt to assimilate among the Rockefellers, the Putnams and the Astors (ha). Those days no one would be caught dead driving a late model German sedan down Main Street in Northeast Harbor.

(I am sorry to report that the parking lot at Northeast Harbor Golf Club has given way to an inexorable tide of change - Volvos replaced by Lexus SUVs, and, God forbid, a BMW 5 class now and then.)

Skip is feeling this. His full name is Dorr “Skip” Wilson. He owns Skip’s Auto Repair and Car Wash on the border of Southwest Harbor and Tremont on Rt. 102 in what I call Piston Alley - NAPA auto parts next door, Gordius Auto down the road in Tremont, a body shop behind Chandler’s store and A&S auto repair in Seal Cove.

But these days, everyone is feeling the stress - high expenses, staffing challenges, unrealistic customer expectations.

What Skip said about “thinning out” was in reference to the shuttering of the late Les Foss’s Island Towing and Auto Repair shop a year ago in Town Hill, and others on MDI that have cut their hours, and a general decline in availability of such services.

(I needed body work on my truck in January and when my usual service provider was unavailing because of health reasons, I called Moody’s in Ellsworth which was happy to schedule an appointment in May. I eventually drove down to Connecticut to get the work done.)

For five years now, Skip has been pondering this situation and engaged in a “soft” peddling of his shop to potential buyers.

On Thursday, he went full monty and posted this on his Facebook page:

“Skip’s Automotive Services has provided automotive repair services since 1989. My business began as a partnership on the Seawall Road, grew into a new construction building on the Bass Harbor Road and eventually a 5-bay garage with a full service car wash.

Year-round and seasonal customers became familiar faces year after year. Many of you became my friends. I am proud of the business I have built.

After 35 years, the time has come for me to retire. Beginning January 1, 2024, Skip’s Automotive Services began publicly advertising the business is for sale.

At this time, the Skip’s team intend to continue serving their customers under the name ‘Skip’s Automotive Services.’

I want to thank all of my customers for your many years of support. I expect you will continue to receive the reliable automotive services under a new ownership of this hardworking team. With gratitude, Dorr “Skip” Wilson”

His real estate agent has contacted the town to gauge its interested in buying the property for the town garage.

The select board has scheduled a site visit Tuesday, but it is hoping a better outcome would be for the town to receive $2.4 million in federal funds to enable the reconstruction of the current town garage on Seal Cove Road. Town Manager Marilyn Lowell said $1 million has already been approved for the town’s water and sewer upgrade and that she is awaiting word on the second grant.

Select board Luke Damon expressed concern the town would accelerate the decline of much needed auto services on the island. Skip’s Auto repair also pays about $4,000 in property taxes a year.

As stated above, Skip’s preference would be for a buyer to continue to operate the business.

FOOTNOTES: SWH’s dangling participles

Southwwst Harbor Town Manager Marilyn Lowell has been instructed by the select board to ask the contractor of the Main Street sidewalk/water infrastructure project to restart work earlier so that traffic disruption in the month of June can be minimized.

The work is in one of the busiest stretches on the island on Rt. 102 between the condos at the end of the harbor and the southern edge of the village. Work was halted over the winter and scheduled to start in June, requiring traffic to be on way. The select board would like work to start in the spring.

• The Warrant Committee voted 8-0 to support hiring a fire fighter to cover the town on Sundays, which is the only day of the week without coverage. Chair Priscilla Ksionzyk said she personally has relied on the fire and ambulance services and was grateful for their “excellent” response. Select member Luke Damon, whose family members also has relied on fire services, voted to block the new hire, along with select chair Carolyn Ball in February.

• Lowell also was asked to seek an opinion from the Massachusetts Municipalities Association on the legality of the town’s contract with the private company which operates the town’s garbage transfer station, one of only three such private companies in the state. Select member Jim Vallette and members of the Solid Waste Disposal Task Force have criticized the town’s five-year contact with Eastern Maine Recovery because of its opaque profit margins, private deals with other users such as Acadia National Park and exclusivity clauses which prevent the town from being able to provide its own compost and recycling services,

NOTE TO CAROLYN BALL, LUKE DAMON (SWH select members): A contract is not an exclusive agreement by definition, as you assumed at your last meeting. Exclusivity may be part of a contract and may be narrowly or broadly defined as in the town’s current contract with EMR. But everything in a contract may be negotiated.