SOUTHWEST HARBOR, March 30, 2024 - Rarely has a single building symbolized the frustration and despair of a small town as profoundly as the failed attempts here to maintain a public works garage to safe guard its highway equipment from the brutal Maine winters.
Just a note to say that while the Cover Farm is on Rt. 3, it is not "next to the Pot and Kettle Club" which is some distance away and on the opposite side of the road. Cover Farm is across from the open beachy area of Hulls Cove and Pot and Kettle is next door to the Linscott's property. It's after Baymeath Road on the same side of the road and before Gerrish Chiropractic which is on the opposite side.
Regarding "State Supreme Court upholds Bar Harbor vacation rental cap," it is interesting that the Appellate Court affirmed the result using a completely different ground that was suggested to it by the Maine Municipal Association -- namely, that the 2/3 rule had to be in the town charter, and so was invalid. In other words, the original rationale for ignoring the 2/3 rule that the town had followed, and which the lower court followed, was unsound -- as anyone looking at the facts would have seen. That's why the plaintiffs challenged the action. Neither party considered this new argument until it was suggested by the outside group. I guess the ultimate result was correct, given the charter requirement, but it would have been fairer if the plaintiff had been given a fair chance to have a chance to vet that new ground. The problem with the current situation is that owners of a vacation house are treated the same way as outside investors who buy up properties just to make vacation rental income. In particular, such vacation rental owners can't hand down their house to a child without losing the rental permit. I hope at some point the rules are modified to fix that.
Just a note to say that while the Cover Farm is on Rt. 3, it is not "next to the Pot and Kettle Club" which is some distance away and on the opposite side of the road. Cover Farm is across from the open beachy area of Hulls Cove and Pot and Kettle is next door to the Linscott's property. It's after Baymeath Road on the same side of the road and before Gerrish Chiropractic which is on the opposite side.
Regarding "State Supreme Court upholds Bar Harbor vacation rental cap," it is interesting that the Appellate Court affirmed the result using a completely different ground that was suggested to it by the Maine Municipal Association -- namely, that the 2/3 rule had to be in the town charter, and so was invalid. In other words, the original rationale for ignoring the 2/3 rule that the town had followed, and which the lower court followed, was unsound -- as anyone looking at the facts would have seen. That's why the plaintiffs challenged the action. Neither party considered this new argument until it was suggested by the outside group. I guess the ultimate result was correct, given the charter requirement, but it would have been fairer if the plaintiff had been given a fair chance to have a chance to vet that new ground. The problem with the current situation is that owners of a vacation house are treated the same way as outside investors who buy up properties just to make vacation rental income. In particular, such vacation rental owners can't hand down their house to a child without losing the rental permit. I hope at some point the rules are modified to fix that.