Courtesy / Maine High Peaks Initiative
The Maine High Peaks Initiative website features case studies of business retreats and conferences in the region.
December 3, 2019
New Maine High Peaks Initiative takes aim at corporate market
Photo / Maureen Milliken
Kingfield is one of eight Franklin County areas that are part of a new Maine High Peaks Initiative.
By Maureen Milliken
A new collaboration between development and business interests in Franklin County hopes to spur business retreats and conferences in the area in its first phase.
The Maine High Peaks Initiative will eventually also look to draw vacation visitors as well as new residents, but the initial goal is to highlight the attributes of the area that go beyond recreation, said Charlie Woodworth, executive director of Greater Franklin County Development Council.
The target is business conferences and retreats, where the region can inspire and spark creativity, he said.
“We want to plant the seed,” Woodworth told Mainebiz. “We want to get people to visit and then to say, ‘I can live and work there, I can have a business, or part of a business, here.”
He said the focus has long been on the recreation assets of the area, which includes ski areas like Sugarloaf, Sunday River and Saddleback, as well as the Appalachian Trail, Bigelow Preserver, Flagstaff Lake, and more.
“So we’re just getting people to understand what’s here,” he said. The effort highlights how the outdoors assets can combine with what is available in communities as far as accommodations and other amenities.
'Ideas big and bold as the High Peaks'
The collaboration, which includes businesses and other organizations not only in Franklin County but connected communities in northern Androscoggin and western Somerset counties, launched a website, Mainehighpeaks.org, last week that highlights eight areas with a focus on business retreats.
The site showcase venues that can host corporate team-building retreats, features narrative snapshot "case studies" to provide an idea of what can be done, and also offers consulting and planning help.
The group is “confident that here, amid the mountains, businesses can find ideas as big and bold as these High Peaks,” Woodworth said. Areas highlighted are Carrabassett Valley, Eustis, Kingfield, Oquossoc, Rangeley, and the Maine Woods.
Woodworth said the idea is “to open the door for businesses to tap into their employee’s creativity outside the office.”
“Maine’s great outdoors, its high peaks, captivate and inspire,” he said in a news release introducing the site. “When you bring a group together in in our backyard, we see it time and again, ideas percolate. We see it as inspiration through recreation. Big bold ideas are sparked among the high peaks.”
Travis Ferland, owner and manager of the Rangeley Inn, said the site demonstrates to businesses how Franklin County’s "terrain and diverse group-friendly activities are well-suited to inspiring creativity.”
He said the website "represents high caliber, independent business leaders who are committed to providing not only a first-rate destination for retreats and workshops, but a much-needed platform to engage with organizations that value wellness and the opportunity to interact with Franklin County’s exceptional natural resources."
Praise from DECD
The project has been praised by the state Department of Economic and Community Development. “The DECD is always looking for new and innovative ways to promote Maine as a place where people want to visit, as well as a place they can live where they work,” Heather Johnson, DECD commissioner, said in the release.
“We applaud this collaborative effort to establish a regional brand, Maine High Peaks, as a means to promote and encourage people to come to the beautiful western region of Maine," Johnson said.
The effort will expand in the future to include features to draw those who may want to live in the area, highlighting communities, broad band expansion and arts and culture.
He said the success of industry in the area already proves that it's more than just a playground. Companies like the Verso mill in Jay, Jarden's plastic products in Wilton, Pallet One Inc. in Livermore Falls, Stratton Lumber, Fletcher Mills in New Vineyard and more are thriving in the area, he said. In Farmington, employers like Franklin Memorial Hospital, Woodland Senior Living and the University of Maine campus all offer opportunities.
The area has long had a reputation as "a place you come to play," Woodworth said. "But in fact, it's most definitely a place where you can bring up your family, where you can live and work, and in one of the most scenic, beautiful areas of the state."
Most Recent
Most Recent
Anonymous
December 3, 2019
Kudos to the High Peaks Initiative for going after this market. It's a great idea! I wish them all the best.
1 Comments