Bucksport

The funding is intended to help improve access for Mainers who are economically or medically vulnerable as well as those who are geographically isolated.

Historic schooners, a Coast Guard cutter and a full-size 3D-printed boat are some of the attractions planned for a “four-port loop” among Penobscot basin communities. The waterfront activities could benefit downtown businesses at a critical time.

The Verso Paper Mill closure in December 2014 cost Bucksport 40% of its tax base and hundreds of jobs. By early 2020, planning and partnerships resulted in full downtown storefronts, numerous festivals, increasing visitation and demand for real estate.

The town is looking to become a destination for small cruise ships. American Cruise Lines wants to make Bucksport one of its featured ports. Both are monitoring the health situation for 2021.

The company, which recently moved its headquarters from Portland to Bucksport, near the site, is seeking to add a 10-acre parcel to the facility plans.

Unlike land-based salmon farms now under development in Belfast and Bucksport, the American Aquafarms site would use closed deep-water pens for raising fish.

The company has moved into the building at 52 Main St. vacated by the Bucksport Bay Area Chamber of Commerce, while development of the nearby Verso paper mill site into an aquaculture center continues.

The money, provided through the National Endowment for the Humanities, will help the nonprofits retain employees and continue essential operations during the pandemic.

A total of $106,000 from the Maine Community Foundation was awarded to organizations including the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and Coastal Enterprises Inc.

Perhaps reflecting revived activity at the former paper mill site, Bucksport’s downtown is also coming back to life with new businesses and events catering to locals and an increasing number of visitors.