TREMONT, Aug. 7, 2021 - Richard Cohen grew up at a time of enormous change in New Jersey where a new turnpike would re-fashion the economics, culture and social fabric of small towns.
He experienced first-hand the tension between “locals” and the new commuting class. He went off to Princeton to study public affairs and to reckon with the detritus of a rapidly changing society. He got a law degree from Yale. After years of practice, he became a state superior court judge and then an appellate judge. He adjudicated over hundreds of cases where there would be winners and losers in the abyss created by modernity.
So Richard Cohen is familiar with virtually every issue a municipality could possibly face. In 1977 he and his wife began to summer on MDI. QSJ did the same seven years later. When he retired he became a permanent Quietside resident. So did QSJ.
But 40 years of summering and then moving here cut you no slack with the “locals.”
That’s why Richard Cohen is an unfortunate mismatch in this rural coastal town, where Down East meets Appalachia and qualification is not a consideration for local government.
On Monday night, the select board voted 3-1 to reject his nomination to fill a vacancy on the board of appeals after member Howard “Howie” Goodwin said he wanted to see if any other candidates would turn up. Translation: “He is not a member of our tribe. Let’s find one of us.” Chair James Thurlow and member McKenzie Jewett voted with Goodwin. Watch the following video starting at minute 3:45.
Joanne Harris, chair of the appeals board, said she was shocked that the town would reject such a distinguished candidate who would have been a “badge of honor” for Tremont. “He was my nomination and the select board’s decision is just baffling.”
“They summarily dismissed it and no one bothered to call me after it happened. In fact it was Rick (Cohen) who told me.” Harris said if the board is putting its own bias “ahead of what is in the best interest of the town, then I will have to rethink my own situation.”
The Board of Appeals meets only when there is an appeal to consider from the Planning Board. The last time the board met was in January.
The town has had difficulty filling its boards and committees. This year it amended its ordinance to cut the planning board from seven to five members because of attendance issues.
The select board’s profiling of Cohen is consistent with its recent favoring of “local” candidates who stand to benefit from the town’s current, explosive growth. It is more comfortable with the likes of Beth Gott, co-owner of the island’s largest heavy equipment company, a waste disposal company and a general store here. Goodwin made the motion on June 21 to name Beth Gott to the planning board, which is wrestling with new development applications. The video of that discussion and Planning Board Mark Good’s vigorous objection to Gott’s appointment is worth watching as well (starting at minute 15).
Gott said at the meeting she saw no conflict because the ordinances will guide her decisions and that she will not rely on “personal opinion.”
Several speakers said it’s difficult for small, rural towns to avoid conflicts. Goodwin owns a concrete business in town. Jewett’s husband has a plumbing business. Thurlow is a lobsterman. He and member Eric Eaton both are in the marine services business. A giant campground, or a new marina, or a new waterfront condominium would be irresistible to these local businesses.
They and virtually every business in town would flourish with the human traffic and ancillary revenues generated by the likes of the Acadia Wilderness Lodge, which has an application pending before the planning board for a 154-site, 72-RV campground in a “residential/business” zone in West Tremont.
Except that only 4.2 percent of the tax base in Tremont is commercial. The rest is residential. The select board is badly misreading the campground battle. Whether it will be reflected in future municipal elections remains to be seen but the boards are dominated by a few local business people who smell a quick buck to be made. If that means selling out the residential base, so be it.
At a neighborhood meeting earlier this year, Richard Cohen publicly opposed the campground as was originally proposed. It is unclear how he would have reacted to the applicant’s recent public promise to cut the campground to 55 luxury yurts. Cohen declined to comment when QSJ contacted him.
Harris said Cohen told her if the campground came before the appeals board he would have recused himself.
Add all this to an ineffectual planning board more interested in a long, socratic “Where’s Waldo” dialectic than trying to solve problems, and you have a predictable outcome: frustrated citizens who want to take matters into their own hands.
Fed up with the backwater, free-for-all town boards, the citizens are taking it directly to voters with a petition, allowed under Maine law, to stop campground applications for at least six months.
The planning board attempted to seek a similar moratorium but was told by the select board to come back with an amendment to the zoning ordinance instead. That was four months ago. The planning board has been debating it since.
Now it’s the citizens’ turn.
Once their signatures are certified by the voter registrar, a special select board meeting may be called before Sept. 2 to qualify for the 60-day deadline to make it on the warrant ballot on Nov. 2. Organizers said Friday they have 177 signatures, far more than the required minimum of 84. The current select board chair James Thurlow was re-elected in 2019 with only 157 votes.
If the select board makes mischief with the petition, the state law is explicit that the town must hold a special meeting within 60 days of it being certified which could be as early as mid-October.
“On the written petition of a number of voters equal to at least 10% of the number of votes cast in the town at the last gubernatorial election, but in no case less than 10, the municipal officers shall either insert a particular article in the next warrant issued or shall within 60 days call a special town meeting for its consideration.”
The group is seeking to place a moratorium on campground development which could extend to a year to give the town time to sort out its current zoning morass. The “residential/business” zone - the town’s largest - is confusing and holds the potential to mix commercial businesses inside residential neighborhoods.
Tremont does not have a Downtown business district. Planning board member Brett Witham has surmised that the residential/business zone was created decades ago to stimulate a bigger businesses base so the town would not rely only on residential taxes.
As a town, Tremont is at a major crossroad. This year it had the fastest growth in sale of real estate of all the towns on MDI from nine single family homes sold in 2020 to 18 so far this year. The value of those homes sold went from $2,928,750 to $8,660,100 and the average price of homes sold went from 325,417 to 481,117.
When they couldn’t buy houses, people bought land. Ten parcels sold so far this year as opposed to three in 2020 for a total value of $1,885,000 versus $460,000. The average price per lot went from $153,333 to $188,500.
In short the Quietside is getting inundated. Town attorney James Collier urged the town to take this trend seriously and to fast track a comprehensive plan which will make for tolerable and manageable growth.
The town does not have its own police force, a professional fire department, nor full-time positions in many jobs in the municipal office building. Its school building is at capacity. It has more roads per capita than any other MDI town. The roads are a monstrous public works challenge.
The town needs strategic thinking and modern planning. Instead, the select board is shunning experienced intellectual capital such as Richard Cohen and baying at the promise of more campground applications so its businesses may ring a few more dollars at the register.
It took a decade, but Bar Harbor learned its lesson the hard way with residents finally revolting against cruise ships and vacation rentals which benefitted a few but ripped asunder a once quaint and proud New England community.
SWH selectman’s sister gets special treatment, quick police intervention
SOUTHWEST HARBOR - Speaking of Appalachian archetypes, the select board here never seems to disappoint.
That’s where Aimee Williams got quick action on July 13 without having to go through the usual channels - the front door which everyone else uses.
It helps that her full name is Aimee Jellison Williams, sister of select chair George Jellison.
Williams and a neighbor were able to cut in line at the select board meeting to seek extraordinary police intervention for her grievance about parking on Seawall Road next to the iconic lobster pound which has been a fixture in SWH for five decades. By his own admission, Jellison said it was unusual to allow someone who was not on the published agenda to speak. Then he went on to ask whether anyone wanted to amend the agenda. It was his first act as the new chairman.
The obviously scripted conversation led to the board allowing Williams and the neighbor to speak. Not only was Williams given ample time but she bantered with the board and acting town manager Dana Reed freely, questioning him on whether the code enforcement officer will go after the owner on zoning issues, in addition to the police action. Here is a recording of the meeting.
Both brother and sister live on Seawall. Both used the opportunity to publicly disparage one of the town’s best known business persons, Charlotte Buchanan Gill who didn’t know about the discussion because it was not publicly posted on the agenda.
In a blistering post on Facebook, Gill said Jellison held “a meeting before the meeting” with other select members and orchestrated the move to have his sister speak. That would be a violation of Maine’s Freedom of Access Act if a quorum of three members held such a discussion.
“I have owned Charlotte’s Legendary Lobster Pound for the past decade. For the past 50 years it has been under a variety of ownerships since its creation in the 70s. During that time, parking has always been allowed ‘roadside.’ In fact there is no ordinance in Southwest Harbor that prohibits this. During my time of ownership parking has never been abused. Nor has there EVER been a car accident.”
Aimee Williams, who never identified herself by name at the meeting nor was she asked to by any select member, succeeded in getting the board to approve police action to post “no parking signs” on the side of Seawall facing the restaurant.
Even after the board acceded to her entreaty, she kept pressing on the timeline for action.
Acting Town chairman Dana Reed, sensing the board action could be problematic, urged the board to change its motion to “request” that police take action. A police chief does not take orders from a political board on matters of public safety. But it was the second night on the job for Chief John Hall, who ordered his patrolman to post the signs immediately.
Hall’s view of the “request” was that he had no choice, he told QSJ. He also acknowledged that he knew the complainant was Jellison’s sister.
“Literally ‘in the night,’ a week ago, parking cones and temporary police order signs were placed the length of the road on one side, and for a brief period of time, on BOTH sides, including in front of the field blocking ALL parking for the restaurant with the exception of the 10 spots on its actual site,” Gill wrote on FB.
Gill, who received national publicity in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and other national media for her anesthetizing lobsters with cannabis before they are cooked, said of Williams:
“Over the past two seasons and since our treatment of lobsters with cannabis, one particular neighbor on a diagonal from the property has been a continuing source of complaints. Endlessly calling police, telling them cars are obstructing the road when they are not, and often yelling at guests. We never retaliated, as we try to take the ‘higher road,’ and knew we were doing nothing wrong.
“Meetings can be held and people can discuss points of issue, but then what is supposed to happen by due process is a new meeting is scheduled where all voices can be heard, especially those who would be impacted the most, (in this case me the owner of the restaurant).”
“None of this happened. Signs were installed, flashing speed signs were placed, temporary police order signs were installed, tickets were written, new parking orders were enforced, and the neighbor jeered, laughed, and recorded the guests as it took place.
“In summation, the building went from looking like an adorable 1950s takeout stand to a crime scene overnight.
“For the 10 years this restaurant has been under my watch, and the 40 years before that (since it’s creation in the 70’s), there has NEVER been so much as even a single parking related “fender bender” here. That cannot be said for many other areas in town still operating with ‘business as usual,’ such as Seawall, Ships Harbor, Wonderland, and of course the main road entering Southwest Harbor where people run back-and-forth across the highway, and parallel parking in a 50 mph zone.
“We love what we do and would love even more, to do it over the years to come. With these actions, just this week alone, we have experienced a 50% loss of business. Continuation of what is happening will be catastrophic.”
Buchanan Gill has since been scheduled to appear at the Aug. 10 select board meeting.
Her support on FB was swift and copious. The Islander report on the fracas received 99 comments :
Chris Groobey: thank you for posting this. SWH politics (and politicians) are getting out of hand. Thanks for shining light on the situation and be certain to let your supporters know when meetings are called to discuss this. This proud SWH resident will be there.
Amy Sullivan Sounds like you need a restraining order against the neighbor and a tro against the town!
Bethani Gerrish Great PROFESSIONAL response!I’m sorry your business is being singled out and targeted. I enjoy driving past and seeing the families on the lawn enjoying yard games, music, delicious food and supporting our local businesses.
Karen Rawson I think I would be beyond pissed. You have to make a point of going to all the meeting allowed.
Beth Ellen Warner The peculiar agenda being advanced by those in powerful positions sounds like malfeasance with the goal of assassinating your fine business. This is obscene. The various"ambushes" are heinous where no meetings were held you could attend and you were not informed, how cones and signs of temporary police orders were installed at night all indicate some mighty shady stuff indeed. Make sure to post on facebook when legitimate meetings take place the public can attend. You go girl! Your place is where I proudly direct visitors and have appreciated your "friends and family discounts."
The empire strikes back; cruise ship industry threatens Bar Harbor council
BAR HARBOR - Well that didn’t take long.
Two days after QSJ wrote about the cruise ship industry’s aggressive response to Key West’s attempt to limit cruise ship visits came an aggressive response to Bar Harbor’s nascent attempt to limit cruise ship visits.
Before the town council had even started its workshops on cruise ship limits this week, the CEO of the industry’s global trade association sent the council a letter with not-so-veiled threats of legal action.
It got almost no discussion from the council even though it was part of the packet of information made public just before the 5:30 workshop Aug. 2.
It took an hour before council member Jill Goldthwait finally said, “I’m sorry that the industry introduced the idea of what we could be sued for and what decisions we might make so early in the process and at the same time we’re discussing a desire to cooperate …”
The July 30 letter from Kelly Craighead, president & CEO of the Cruise Lines International Association, was a boilerplate rendition on how to threaten a prospective nemesis.
“There are obvious legal and constitutional issues that attend any effort by local governments to restrict the size, capacity, or port access of vessels authorized by U.S. and international law to operate in the maritime commerce of the United States. However, local action that frustrates forward-planned vessel calls for which cruise lines have incurred costly contractual commitments also present issues of financial damage and diminution of value of expensive assets of the lines. Because the sudden cancellation of one port call in a range can have knock-on effects on previous or subsequent port calls, the adverse financial impacts of local interference with scheduled calls can extend beyond the cruise lines themselves and beyond the given port.
“To the extent a local government acts arbitrarily to compromise port access by a federally authorized vessel, the diminution in value of the vessel can amount to an unconstitutional taking by the local government. The lines make major design and investment decisions involving millions of dollars based on projections about the accessibility of ports in certain ranges to existing and projected vessels. An action by a local government or port that places the port off-limits to a cruise vessel fully compliant with all federal and international requirements and eligible to operate in the maritime commerce of the United States can dramatically diminish the value of the vessel over its lifetime and can amount to an unconstitutional taking by the local government.”
Key West activist Evan Haskell called the Craighead letter “typical smoke and obfuscation. I guarantee there is nothing there to be worried about. Cruise ships are ‘movable assets’ and the same boat might have calendar holds on multiple ports for the same day, the lines themselves back out of those dates all the time.
“Questions to raise are who agreed to those calendar holds? (answer: Chase, Leavitt & Co.) What is CLC's agreement with Bar Harbor to place those holds? (I'd be surprised if there is one) Is there evidence of ACTIVE agreement from Bar Harbor to receive those ships? Raising those may be helpful in alleviating the smoke screen."
QSJ called Chase Leavitt & Co. in Portland, the agency which handles bookings for the industry, and could not ascertain that Bar Harbor and cruise ships have any formal agreements other than a calendar where both sides have made occasional cancellations. It’s similar to recreational boaters who make reservations with harbormasters for transient dockage. The reservations are made with a phone call.
Ten days before this letter, council member Matt Hochman raised the exact same point about Bar Harbor’s commitments to cruise ships in 2022 and 2023.
QSJ asked Hochman by email whether he was being coached by the industry and whether Hochman was representing the cruise ship industry or Bar Harbor voters. Hochman did not reply.
QSJ reported last week that Ocean Properties, which owns most of the hotels in Bar Harbor and the the dock and piers where the passengers disembark, contributed $1 million to the campaign committees of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who signed legislation overriding Key West’s referendums to limit cruise ships. Maine does not have laws giving the state such ultimate authority.
Joe Jacquot, DeSantis’s own former general counsel, wrote in a July 21 opinion:
“A municipality’s sovereign power to protect its citizens is assumed in any contract to which it is a party. As the U.S. Supreme Court noted in its seminal decision in Home Building & Loan Assn. v. Blaisdell, 290 U.S. 398, 437 (1934): “This power, which in its various ramifications is known as the police power, is an exercise of the sovereign right of the Government to protect the lives, health, morals, comfort and general welfare of the people, and is paramount to any rights under contracts between individuals.”
Hochman and Dobbs have been trying involve the cruise ship committee chaired by Eben Salvatore, who runs the cruise ship business for Ocean Properties, in the council’s deliberation of ship limits.
Hochman stated during the workshop Aug. 2 that he ran a business which benefitted enormously every time a cruise ship anchored in Bar Harbor.
QSJ also asked Council Chair Jeff Dobbs whether he received any financial support from Ocean Properties for his MDI tourism videos. Dobbs did not reply.
Both Hochman and Dobbs’s terms end in mid 2022.
The third cruise ship friendly council member Erin Cough raised the possibility of tax increases - another oft-used industry smokescreen - if cruise ship revenues decline.
Bar Harbor gets about $1 million in passenger fees. Its expenses amount to half that. It is restricted on how it may spend the balance. At the end of the Aug. 3 council meeting, Town Manager Cornell Knight announced that the parking revenue will be $2 million this year, far exceeding expectations and more than enough to offset any loss of passenger fees.
Nonetheless, expect Dobbs, Hochman and Cough to continue to carry water for the cruise ship industry which would compromise the town in any future legal confrontation.
SWH names new Harbormaster
SOUTHWEST HARBOR - Oliver Curry, owner and operator of Jordan River Boat Co. in Lamoine has been named Harbormaster.
He replaces Jesse Gilley, who resigned after less than six months, to take a job to operate Goodwin Construction’s barge which hauls equipment to nearby islands. Jordan River specializes in maintaining and storing wooden boats.
Curry previously worked at Lake & Sea Boatworks, Bar Harbor, and attended Unity College. He is also a lieutenant at the Lamoine volunteer fire department, said SWH acting town manager Dana Reed.
SWH has been our favorite staycation spot since 1996. We regularly enjoy our time and certainly enjoy Charlotte's Lobster Pound. We also travel back and forth to Seawall often and have never had any trafic or travel nightmares in the area of the Lobster Pound. The story here seems to indicate foul play on the part of the selectmen and the police. It will cause my wife and I to reconsider our stays in SWH as Charlotte's is a big part of those stays.