July 25, 2005
COMMENTARY: A matter of perspective | Two points of view on Plum Creek Timber Co.'s proposed development for the Moosehead Lake region
By John Simko And By Mike Turcotte
JOHN SIMKO
Town manager, Greenville
The Moosehead Lake Region is a tourist destination, a major source of wood fiber for many wood products manufacturers and home to about 3,000 year-round residents and nearly that many seasonal residents. At the end of the day, the regional economy is driven by a balance of industrial consumption and nature-based recreation. If you take one away, the entire economy is placed at risk. There is strength in diversity, which is the goal of our region's economic development plan and also a prominent feature of the Plum Creek Resource Plan for the Moosehead Lake Region.
The town of Greenville (pop. 1,623) is the service center that drives the region's economy and provides the bulk of the region's public services. We are a small, rural community, and as such, have limited capacity to tackle large, complex issues. The largest employer in Greenville is Charles A. Dean Memorial Hospital and Nursing Home, with 150 full-time-equivalent positions. Although there are dozens of smaller businesses in town that contribute significantly to our local economy, few of these businesses have more than the equivalent of 10 full-time positions. Most are seasonal positions, which means that it is very difficult to make a living from them. If a seasonal worker cannot make ends meet in Greenville in the off-season, that person will find work elsewhere and live elsewhere as a result.
We need to stem the tide of declining student enrollment by encouraging young families to live in and around our community. We need businesses to offer year-round employment. We need a stronger commercial tax-base to level out the impact of the tax rate on residential property owners. We need to support and fortify our local hospital as both a major employer and also as a major selling point for families and workers looking to move to our community. And we need to find a way to create affordable housing for these families.
The appeal of the Plum Creek plan to community leaders is the fact that it embraces the concept of a diverse economy. Although the development side of the plan has been highlighted in the media, the 380,000 acres of working forest it codifies through Land Use Regulation Commission rezoning is extremely important. Several major wood products manufacturers have considered siting a plant in Greenville over the past five years, and all have struggled with guaranteed wood supply. What better guarantee can be given to a prospective investor in a major manufacturing operation than hundreds of thousands of acres of forestland that can only be used for timber harvesting?
Recreation and tourism are equally vital components of our regional economy. The town of Greenville maintains more than 70 miles of snowmobile trails through the state's inter-connecting trail system. We are challenged annually by new property owners wishing to have the trail moved off their property, which is certainly their right. Such trail relocation is difficult at best, and expensive to do. The Plum Creek plan offers a unique solution by granting permanent easements for snowmobile and hiking trails.
The question of affordable worker housing currently is being investigated by the town of Greenville through a Community Development Block Grant. As part of the Plum Creek plan, the company has offered to donate 100 acres for affordable housing development, which could create opportunities for those moving here to find a new home.
The Plum Creek plan is not a silver bullet, however, and is not without its drawbacks. The impact on wildlife and the natural environment is unknown at this time, but will be evaluated by LURC and amendments required as necessary. The impact on the services offered by the region ˆ mostly by the town of Greenville ˆ are also being evaluated at this time. As challenges to these services are identified and quantified, solutions will be devised and implemented. Plum Creek has, to date, been extremely accommodating to the needs of the communities within the region.
If the status quo in the Moosehead Lake region was acceptable ˆ if the current unemployment rate were below the state average, if the median income of our households were above the statewide average, if our school and our hospital were not at financial risk due to demographic changes ˆ then this plan would not have as much appeal. But the status quo is not acceptable to many. The Plum Creek plan offers an opportunity to make the situation better for all of us here. As a native of Piscataquis County and a father of three young children, I hope this opportunity is not squandered.
MIKE TURCOTTE
Bangor
Plum Creek's proposal for 975 house lots, two 3,000-acre resorts and a 1,000-acre economic development park with additional acreage devoted to affordable housing in Greenville would seem on the surface advantageous to the economically burdened North Woods. Yet this plan can be viewed as a short-term economic fix rather than a long-term economic investment.
There is hope among town officials and local state representatives that the resource plan will bring stability to the region and provide good-paying timber jobs from both the area timber basket and the advancement of wood composite technology. But this perceived economic timber model contradicts recent events across the state. The closure of several lumber and paper mills in the past two-plus years has contributed to the downward trend of the state's timber economy. The economic deterrents of NAFTA, rising health care costs and competition from Canadian mills ˆ along with the lack of housing ˆ may be the primary disincentives for investment in the area. In addition, studies by LDR International and Fermata Inc. conclude that the driving economic engine for sustainable economic growth in the region will be nature-based eco-tourism (e.g. canoeing, hiking, camping, kayaking and other one-with-nature activities). Not timber.
As the former executive director of the Moosehead Lake Region Chamber of Commerce, I learned quickly how tenuous the local economy is in Greenville. The majority of businesses in the Moosehead Lake area are tourist-related, and all the revenues generated from both the summer and winter seasons are highly dependent on the weather. Revenues can drop significantly given a significant number of rainy days during the summer and snowless days during the winter.
In addition, local businesses already suffer in the winter from the absentee ownership of Moose Mountain (Squaw) ski resort and its less-than-marketable facilities. Plum Creek's planned mega-resorts, RV parks and rental cabins, with their large advertising budgets, would simply overwhelm the existing lodging facilities around Moosehead Lake, which get little marketing and advertising help from the town of Greenville and the Maine Highlands Regional Tourism Board. The proposed resorts will be equivalent to dropping a Wal-Mart into a small town, saturating the market, driving down room and camp prices, and forcing local lodging establishments to reduce the re-investment expenditures needed to maintain and expand their properties.
Curiously, the town of Greenville will gain no direct tax benefit from the Plum Creek proposal. Yet town officials are effusively supporting the proposal. Business and home owners in Greenville might well ask why: "Why are you promoting the construction of two mega-resorts and RV parks with convenience stores 16-18 miles away from the town's retail center? In commercial real estate, isn't it all about location, location, location? Do I now need to move my business out of Greenville closer to the prevailing market?"
A home owner inside Greenville Township would ask, "Why is my property tax mill rate increasing, and yet the town is not going to get any direct tax benefit from the sale of home lots outside the township? If there is going to be land donated by Plum Creek for low-income housing, why isn't this indicated on any of the maps in their proposal?"
Moosehead Lake is known for its natural scenic beauty. It is the region's greatest economic asset. Protecting the surrounding forest within sightlines of the lake is vital in order to maintain its marketability. Permanently scarring the land with mega-resorts, RV parks and home lot development is not going to promote the nature based, eco-tourism marketability of the area. It will only diminish and eventually destroy it. If the plan is approved, Mts. Kineo and Katahdin will no longer be the scenic views drawing tourists. Their views will be spoiled by the 975 home lots, RV parks and the mega-resorts.
The area eventually will become a large subdivision with a very large natural "pool" in the middle of it. It will create a limited, higher-end market economy for the few who can afford it, as opposed to an unlimited open-market economy for all to enjoy. It would be prudent to not spoil the area with new development but instead to re-invest in existing developed areas to insure economic prosperity for generations to come.
Town manager, Greenville
The Moosehead Lake Region is a tourist destination, a major source of wood fiber for many wood products manufacturers and home to about 3,000 year-round residents and nearly that many seasonal residents. At the end of the day, the regional economy is driven by a balance of industrial consumption and nature-based recreation. If you take one away, the entire economy is placed at risk. There is strength in diversity, which is the goal of our region's economic development plan and also a prominent feature of the Plum Creek Resource Plan for the Moosehead Lake Region.
The town of Greenville (pop. 1,623) is the service center that drives the region's economy and provides the bulk of the region's public services. We are a small, rural community, and as such, have limited capacity to tackle large, complex issues. The largest employer in Greenville is Charles A. Dean Memorial Hospital and Nursing Home, with 150 full-time-equivalent positions. Although there are dozens of smaller businesses in town that contribute significantly to our local economy, few of these businesses have more than the equivalent of 10 full-time positions. Most are seasonal positions, which means that it is very difficult to make a living from them. If a seasonal worker cannot make ends meet in Greenville in the off-season, that person will find work elsewhere and live elsewhere as a result.
We need to stem the tide of declining student enrollment by encouraging young families to live in and around our community. We need businesses to offer year-round employment. We need a stronger commercial tax-base to level out the impact of the tax rate on residential property owners. We need to support and fortify our local hospital as both a major employer and also as a major selling point for families and workers looking to move to our community. And we need to find a way to create affordable housing for these families.
The appeal of the Plum Creek plan to community leaders is the fact that it embraces the concept of a diverse economy. Although the development side of the plan has been highlighted in the media, the 380,000 acres of working forest it codifies through Land Use Regulation Commission rezoning is extremely important. Several major wood products manufacturers have considered siting a plant in Greenville over the past five years, and all have struggled with guaranteed wood supply. What better guarantee can be given to a prospective investor in a major manufacturing operation than hundreds of thousands of acres of forestland that can only be used for timber harvesting?
Recreation and tourism are equally vital components of our regional economy. The town of Greenville maintains more than 70 miles of snowmobile trails through the state's inter-connecting trail system. We are challenged annually by new property owners wishing to have the trail moved off their property, which is certainly their right. Such trail relocation is difficult at best, and expensive to do. The Plum Creek plan offers a unique solution by granting permanent easements for snowmobile and hiking trails.
The question of affordable worker housing currently is being investigated by the town of Greenville through a Community Development Block Grant. As part of the Plum Creek plan, the company has offered to donate 100 acres for affordable housing development, which could create opportunities for those moving here to find a new home.
The Plum Creek plan is not a silver bullet, however, and is not without its drawbacks. The impact on wildlife and the natural environment is unknown at this time, but will be evaluated by LURC and amendments required as necessary. The impact on the services offered by the region ˆ mostly by the town of Greenville ˆ are also being evaluated at this time. As challenges to these services are identified and quantified, solutions will be devised and implemented. Plum Creek has, to date, been extremely accommodating to the needs of the communities within the region.
If the status quo in the Moosehead Lake region was acceptable ˆ if the current unemployment rate were below the state average, if the median income of our households were above the statewide average, if our school and our hospital were not at financial risk due to demographic changes ˆ then this plan would not have as much appeal. But the status quo is not acceptable to many. The Plum Creek plan offers an opportunity to make the situation better for all of us here. As a native of Piscataquis County and a father of three young children, I hope this opportunity is not squandered.
MIKE TURCOTTE
Bangor
Plum Creek's proposal for 975 house lots, two 3,000-acre resorts and a 1,000-acre economic development park with additional acreage devoted to affordable housing in Greenville would seem on the surface advantageous to the economically burdened North Woods. Yet this plan can be viewed as a short-term economic fix rather than a long-term economic investment.
There is hope among town officials and local state representatives that the resource plan will bring stability to the region and provide good-paying timber jobs from both the area timber basket and the advancement of wood composite technology. But this perceived economic timber model contradicts recent events across the state. The closure of several lumber and paper mills in the past two-plus years has contributed to the downward trend of the state's timber economy. The economic deterrents of NAFTA, rising health care costs and competition from Canadian mills ˆ along with the lack of housing ˆ may be the primary disincentives for investment in the area. In addition, studies by LDR International and Fermata Inc. conclude that the driving economic engine for sustainable economic growth in the region will be nature-based eco-tourism (e.g. canoeing, hiking, camping, kayaking and other one-with-nature activities). Not timber.
As the former executive director of the Moosehead Lake Region Chamber of Commerce, I learned quickly how tenuous the local economy is in Greenville. The majority of businesses in the Moosehead Lake area are tourist-related, and all the revenues generated from both the summer and winter seasons are highly dependent on the weather. Revenues can drop significantly given a significant number of rainy days during the summer and snowless days during the winter.
In addition, local businesses already suffer in the winter from the absentee ownership of Moose Mountain (Squaw) ski resort and its less-than-marketable facilities. Plum Creek's planned mega-resorts, RV parks and rental cabins, with their large advertising budgets, would simply overwhelm the existing lodging facilities around Moosehead Lake, which get little marketing and advertising help from the town of Greenville and the Maine Highlands Regional Tourism Board. The proposed resorts will be equivalent to dropping a Wal-Mart into a small town, saturating the market, driving down room and camp prices, and forcing local lodging establishments to reduce the re-investment expenditures needed to maintain and expand their properties.
Curiously, the town of Greenville will gain no direct tax benefit from the Plum Creek proposal. Yet town officials are effusively supporting the proposal. Business and home owners in Greenville might well ask why: "Why are you promoting the construction of two mega-resorts and RV parks with convenience stores 16-18 miles away from the town's retail center? In commercial real estate, isn't it all about location, location, location? Do I now need to move my business out of Greenville closer to the prevailing market?"
A home owner inside Greenville Township would ask, "Why is my property tax mill rate increasing, and yet the town is not going to get any direct tax benefit from the sale of home lots outside the township? If there is going to be land donated by Plum Creek for low-income housing, why isn't this indicated on any of the maps in their proposal?"
Moosehead Lake is known for its natural scenic beauty. It is the region's greatest economic asset. Protecting the surrounding forest within sightlines of the lake is vital in order to maintain its marketability. Permanently scarring the land with mega-resorts, RV parks and home lot development is not going to promote the nature based, eco-tourism marketability of the area. It will only diminish and eventually destroy it. If the plan is approved, Mts. Kineo and Katahdin will no longer be the scenic views drawing tourists. Their views will be spoiled by the 975 home lots, RV parks and the mega-resorts.
The area eventually will become a large subdivision with a very large natural "pool" in the middle of it. It will create a limited, higher-end market economy for the few who can afford it, as opposed to an unlimited open-market economy for all to enjoy. It would be prudent to not spoil the area with new development but instead to re-invest in existing developed areas to insure economic prosperity for generations to come.
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments