A view of Belfast's tug boats from the harbor walkway.

Working Waterfront

Stand-off on Belfast’s waterfront illustrates new dynamics

The Island Institute launched this newspaper over 20 years ago in part to highlight the importance of Maine’s working waterfronts. Those properties, from which marine harvesting and other water-dependent businesses operate, were suddenly threatened by commercial and residential development. The most visible example of that threat came when condominiums were… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Cruise business continues upward trend in Maine

Maine is a happening place when it comes to attracting cruise ships. The numbers just keep going up. Statewide, the season is bringing 378 cruise visits to Maine ports, said CruiseMaineUSA Director Amy Powers. The passenger yield is estimated to be over 283,000, an increase of over 6 percent above… SEE MORE

Suzette McAvoy in a hallway at the new Center for Maine Contemporary Art.

Working Waterfront

High visibility for contemporary art in Rockland

The idea behind the new Center for Maine Contemporary Art (CMCA) building on Winter Street just off Main Street in Rockland is to “turn a traditional museum inside out,” says executive director Suzette McAvoy. The building, which has been under construction and visible to much of Rockland’s downtown over the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Millennial generation key to Maine’s future

They’re the young generation and they’ve got something to say. And if Maine policy makers are smart, they’ll listen. After decades of dominating the economy, politics and culture, the baby boom generation has been eclipsed by millennials, those born in the 1980 to 1998 period. Since 2006, millennials outnumber boomers,… SEE MORE

A sailboat and cargo ship share the waters off Searsport.

Working Waterfront

Film screened in Belfast June 16 explores conflicting ocean uses

On Thursday, June 16 the film “A New England Story for Sustaining the Sea” will be shown at the Abbott Room of the Belfast Free Library. A discussion following the film will include two panelists familiar with the needs of stakeholders working to maintain the diverse uses of the ocean.… SEE MORE

A fisherman points to a part of a map included in the draft ocean plan.

Working Waterfront

Draft ocean plan suggests better data, coordination for users

The draft of a first-ever plan for the ocean was released May 25, launching a new way of considering a host of marine uses for the region from Connecticut to the Canadian border. Public meetings on the draft plan are scheduled in June for Portland, Rockland and Ellsworth. The 198-page… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Small, island-town values play well in big world

Benjamin Stevens of Islesford (Little Cranberry Island) graduated this month from Maine Maritime Academy in Castine. Every year, people from Maine’s islands buy all sorts of things. We buy clothes and shoes, tools and supplies, fuel and electricity, and groceries. Every island resident knows how challenging it is to get their… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Saving community underpinnings means recognizing them

A friend of mine once wrote that fishing villages came in to existence once they began to disappear. Once seaside villages were lost to other forms of development, nostalgia over their loss emerged, giving rise to the term “fishing villages” in the early 19th century. Most of the time, it… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Tales from the boatyards

Boatbuilding on Mount Desert Island By Laurie Schreiber The History Press, 2016 In a small, once-isolated Maine community like Mount Desert Island, before it became a destination resort, boatbuilding was a necessity. Everyone lived on an island; roads were few or nonexistent; water was the way to get around the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

…And counting

"In God we trust; everyone else, bring data." —Michael Bloomberg For better or worse, we live in the age of metrics. The jury isn't in yet, but I'm thinking it's better and worse. Probably the most colorful example of metrics-driven decision-making comes from the world of sports. A book and… SEE MORE