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BRDA Winter Newsletter
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Bangor Region Development Alliance Attends New Brunswick "TOP 101" Companies Awards
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Mayor Ivan Court, City of Saint John flanked by Dave Milan and Steve Bolduc of the Bangor Region Development Alliance.
On October 4 Steve Bolduc, President of the Bangor Region Development Alliance, led a delegation attending the TOP 101 Companies Awards in Saint John, New Brunswick. “TOP 101” is a business networking event recognizing the fastest growing and best managed companies in Atlantic Canada. Companies are ranked on their growth, innovation, and customer focus.
Several hundred of the leading business executives in Atlantic Canada networked with the BRDA delegation at the awards reception, hosted by Progress magazine, the City of Saint John and Mayor Ivan Court, and Enterprise Saint John. The group from Bangor had the opportunity to discuss cross-border business opportunities in the energy, transportation, and telecommunications fields. Steve Bolduc said, “The TOP 101 event is a fantastic opportunity to meet with the companies leading Atlantic Canada’s growth and innovation. The proximity and similarities between the two areas make it imperative that we communicate, cooperate and conduct business with each other.”
Other members of the BRDA group were Sno Berry of Berry Dunn, Perry Newman of the Atlantica Group, Rob Frank of WBRC Architects Engineers, Dan McKay of Eaton Peabody, Mike Camire of Hollywood Slots, Jeff Bennett of the Maine International Trade Center, D'arcy Main-Boyington and Nicole Gogan of the City of Brewer, Tanya Pereira of the City of Bangor, and Dave Milan of the Town of Bucksport.
New Brunswick companies topping the prestigious list were Co-op Atlantic with revenues of $561.9 million, Major Drilling Group International Inc. with revenues of $482.2 million and Armour Transportation Systems with revenues of $235 million, ranking 9th, 10th and 15th respectively.
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Global Matters: Cross-border trade? Bangor gets it
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By Perry B. Newman
Sep 26, 2011 12:00 am
I can’t tell you how many chamber of commerce breakfasts I’ve attended over the years.
Ditto Rotary Club luncheons, “Business After Hours” and networking events in general.
If not for my parsimony at the bar and my iron will around the
buffet, I’d be tipping the scales at – a higher number than I currently
do. Networking can be a high-impact activity.
Chamber and networking events have a common purpose, of course, aside
from testing our caloric resolve. The goal is to put people together in
a comfortable setting in which conversation ensues and from which
business activity may be generated.
Common purpose aside, however, community business-to-business events
reflect the unique communities in which the participating businesses are
located. That’s why "Eggs & Issues" in Portland, for example, feels
different from similar gatherings in the Lewiston-Auburn area, or
events in the Mid-Coast, or those in other, more distant areas of the
state.
Not better or worse. Just different.
In fact, that’s what makes these events so agreeable. If you’re like
me and you genuinely enjoy chatting with people while balancing coffee,
orange juice and a plate of something or other in one hand, community
business gatherings are great fun. They’re even more fun after you’ve
been in Maine for a while and you have the chance to renew
acquaintances, check in with old friends and see how things have changed
since the last time you were in town.
Years ago, when I rode the circuit promoting international trade and
exports for the state, I spent quite a bit of time in and around Bangor.
Even then, area leaders were quick to understand the importance of
cross-border trade in particular, and were focused on opportunities with
neighboring New Brunswick in a way that those of us in southern Maine
were not.
In fact, Bangor and Saint John have long enjoyed formal city-to-city
ties. For some time leaders in both communities have articulated a
“corridor” concept that serves as a paradigm to encourage more regular
business exchanges. Moreover, back in the '90s, the cities’ cross-border
focus was bolstered on a larger scale by a Maine-New Brunswick B2B
conference known as “Partnerships.”
Conferences come and conferences go, as budgets and markets wax and
wane. But a recent visit to Bangor confirmed for me once again that when
it comes to understanding the importance and potential of cross-border
business, Bangor gets it.
Last week a delegation of six entrepreneurial companies from
Fredericton, Moncton, St. George and Edmunston, N.B., stopped in Bangor
as part of a trade mission to Maine organized by the province’s economic
development arm, Business New Brunswick. When we approached business
leaders in Bangor to explore the potential for networking with the
locals, it wasn’t long before the private and the nonprofit sectors came
back to us and offered to host a welcoming breakfast gathering.
Within minutes, conversations over coffee morphed into purposeful
business card exchanges, which in turn matured into meetings and
follow-up efforts taking place even now, after the mission has departed
Maine.
It’s important to mention, of course, that Portland got into the act
as well. After the delegation left Bangor, dozens of one-on-one meetings
took place in southern Maine, as industry associations like the E2Tech
Council, TechMaine and the Maine Chapter of the American Council of
Engineering Companies spread the word. In fact, the New Brunswickers
were fully booked here in southern Maine. The visit couldn’t have been
much more productive.
But there was something about the feeling in Bangor that was
different; it was almost a sense of kinship, and it brought back
memories of days when we focused on business not only because of the
business, but because of the people.
Folks in Bangor don’t feel the gravitational pull to Boston or New
York the way we do in southern Maine. In the Bangor area, New Brunswick
license plates and east-west traffic reflect a natural synergy anchored
by the Irving companies, McCain Foods, Cianbro Corp., the University of
Maine and everything in between.
Bottom line: I’m sure we’ll see more business done between Maine and
New Brunswick as a result of this delegation’s visit. It’s good to know
that businesses on both sides of the border will be finding ways to
prosper together.
But it’s just as good to know that Bangor’s faith in cross-border trade remains undiminished.
We didn’t have to ask the people in Bangor twice. As I said, when it comes to cross-border trade, Bangor gets it.
Comment on this story at:
http://www.theforecaster.net/weblink/
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Orono Spectral Solutions Holds Grand Opening
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Bangor, Maine, January 20, 2011 - Orono Spectral Solutions is pleased to announce the relocation of its business to 689 Odlin Road in Bangor, Maine. The company has been conducting business at the new location since November of 2010, and celebrated its official grand opening on January 20, 2011. "Orono Spectral Solutions is dedicated to keeping bright young people from Maine right here at home by creating rewarding high-tech jobs that strengthen the security of our nation and defend those who defend us," said U.S. Senator Susan Collins, who attended the ceremony. "This new facility provides four times the space, plenty of room for new equipment and new jobs." OSS Inc. was incorporated in 2004 for the purpose of advancing and commercializing chemical and biological agent detection research being conducted at the University of Maine. OSS is a small, high-tech defense contractor currently supported through several R&D contracts with the DoD-Army. Its services and products are centered on developing innovative absorbent materials and sampling methods which enable the trace detection of chemical/biological agents for defense related applications. In addition to its defense contract work, OSS also has been actively pursuing commercial opportunities in the area of air and water quality monitoring. In particular, OSS has been able to successfully leverage a technology originally developed for military applications and apply it towards detecting petroleum hydrocarbons in industrial waste and produced water (patents pending). This detection method has recently led to the development and publication of an ASTM test method (D7575) which utilizes OSS's technology, and represents a major milestone in achieving industry recognition and acceptance for its technology and test method. OSS is currently working with the EPA to facilitate approval of this method for regulatory purposes in support of the Clean Water Act. For more information, contact Luke Doucette, Vice President, at 866-269-8007 or visit OSS's website at www.ossmaine.com. |
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Booting Up - UMaine Supercomputer Project
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Booting upUMaine constructs a high-powered supercomputer with private sector customers in mindBY JACKIE FARWELL Mainebiz senior writer 03/07/11
 A cluster of 700 computers hums away inside a classroom building at the University of Maine in Orono. Students pass by, oblivious to the machines’ presence or to what, together, the computers can accomplish. Despite lacking special components or expensive price tags, the off-the-shelf computers are capable of cranking out trillions of computations per second, whizzing through complex calculations leagues faster than the average desktop computer. Individually, the computers aren’t all that different from the ones for sale in a typical electronics store. But these computers are tied together, functioning as a single, souped-up unit of processing power called a supercomputer.
And while it’s housed at UMaine, the supercomputer’s capabilities extend far beyond the university or even researchers in general. Businesses can also access the machine, sending their computing jobs to UMaine for a quick turnaround and thereby freeing up their in-house computers or, better yet, circumventing significant investment in their own machines in the first place. Bath Iron Works, for example, could run a simulation showing how different hull designs affect the stability of a Navy ship. Or a small marketing firm could create graphic renderings of various redevelopment options for a vacant paper mill to show to clients. All of it happens faster and cheaper than the companies could manage alone. But for now, this supercomputing scenario exists in concept only. It’s one piece of a broader vision for expanding Maine’s cyberinfrastructure, aiding not only existing Maine businesses but ideally providing a competitive advantage to attract new ones, as well as helping train more information technology professionals in the state. Led by the University of Maine System, the initiative, known as CIDER — Cyberinfrastructure Investment for Development, Economic Growth and Research — was recently awarded $250,000 by the Maine Technology Institute to purchase the supercomputer’s foundational machines. The project will launch with 500 to 700 machines, but hopes are that it will grow to multiple thousands of computers. And complex computing is only half of the equation. The project’s backers also see the supercomputer performing as a cloud resource, or a central hub where companies’ applications and data could live, completely separate from the physical computing hardware in their offices. “It doesn’t have to be the next rocket engine,” says Bruce Segee, the project’s director and an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at UMaine. “We’re talking about a computer’s server, e-mail, word processor.” Employees could work from anywhere, without being tethered to a clunky desktop, using a simple Web browser to access the information housed in Orono. Meanwhile, nightly information backups and regular software updates occur without interfering with companies’ day-to-day business. “It’s just as though it’s on your desktop except you don’t have to pay someone to update your machine,” Segee says. A novel idea, but first the project’s supporters have to convince private businesses of the supercomputer’s reliability and cost-saving potential. And for Maine to become a high-tech computing center, many related efforts — including the expansion of fiber optic networks and fostering a significant skilled IT work force — must work in tandem. Components of a wholeBruce Segee sits with Jeff Letourneau, executive director the University of Maine System’s Networkmaine organization, at a Starbucks in UMaine’s student center. The two men couldn’t look any more different. Wearing a red polo shirt with a university logo, Segee looks the part of a professor who has co-authored a graduate-level textbook on microprogramming and computer architecture, with his wild gray beard and square glasses. Letourneau, on the other hand, clean cut and wearing a blue button-down shirt with khaki pants, looks like a man who appreciates the order of systems. As head of Networkmaine, a unit of the university system, he oversees the management of a regional network that provides Internet services to not only the seven universities but also to K-12 schools, libraries, state government and nonprofits.  Despite their contrasting appearances, Segee and Letourneau are working toward a common goal, one they’ll pitch to Maine’s private sector this fall. By signing on to use UMaine’s supercomputer, Maine businesses will help expand and refresh a computing resource that could in turn attract more business to Maine, the men say. The pitch: A company could purchase individual “nodes” to add on to the supercomputer, basically modular building blocks that would be available to the company at any time. Say a business buys 10 nodes; all 10 would be at its disposal for typical operations, but another 20, 50, 100 or more could also be tapped into for periodic jobs requiring more computing power. The business avoids buying additional computers to handle occasional work, as well as the costs for heating and cooling the temperature-sensitive machines and hiring techs to service them.
“It makes less and less sense to have all of these businesses doing essentially the same thing that’s not their core business,” Segee says. Freed of IT overhead, businesses can better compete, he says. “It makes a small business almost feel like or be able to act like a much larger corporation.” Still, fear of the unknown will no doubt present a challenge in winning some companies over as marketing efforts begin in a few months, he acknowledges. “I think there’s going to be a lot of reluctance from companies that have large IT staffs,” Segee says. The supercomputer is just one piece of a wider effort to make Maine a center for high-performance computing. Businesses with complex computing requirements often rent out space to accommodate their systems, or turn to out-of-state data centers in metropolitan areas, where real estate is expensive and rates are high, the men explain. But Maine has a distinct advantage as a potential home for the supercomputers and disaster recovery systems that data centers house: paper mills. Power represents roughly 90% of the cost of operating a data center. By sharing space with a mill, a center could run on the affordable, reliable power generated by the mill through hydropower and biomass. That would also serve as a boon for the mill, which could sell the power to the center free of any distribution costs. Plus paper mills are located in rural areas, perfect for computing warehouses that most of their customers never visit, and cold Maine river water is ideal for cooling the centers. Old Town Fuel and Fiber has been eyed for a center that could serve an array of industries, including aquaculture, composite manufacturing and agriculture. Letourneau envisions it as just one of many data centers in Maine. “It’s turning the data flow around,” he says. “Rather than Maine being the consumer of services everywhere else in the world, have the world [be] the consumer of services in Maine.” For now, even one data center would help to maximize the tens of millions of dollars in private and public investment Maine has already made in its fiber optic network, including the $25 million Three Ring Binder project that will add 1,100 miles of broadband network to the state’s rural areas. Five states are also working to expand Internet accessibility and capability through the North East Cyberinfrastructure Consortium. If the data center industry takes off here, UMaine would be glad to hand over the reins to the private sector one day, Letourneau says. “The whole driver here is economic development,” he says. “It’s not just for the propeller heads to crunch numbers.” Jackie Farwell, Mainebiz senior writer, can be reached at
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U.S. Patent official says Maine one of most innovative places in nation
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11/10/10
By Matt Wickenheiser
BDN Staff
ORONO, Maine — Maine has several advantages that could help the state develop its innovation-based economy, the head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said Wednesday morning.
Under Secretary of Commerce David Kappos spoke at the Invention to Venture conference, held at the Black Bear Inn and organized by the Target Technology Center. Roughly 120 people were in attendance, including students from the University of Maine and from the Maine Maritime Academy, faculty members, inventors, entrepreneurs and experts up and down the entrepreneurship food chain.
Kappos has a second home in the Rockport area, and said he’s been intimately familiar with Maine for about a decade.
“Mainers have a very special innovative capability that is as good or better than anywhere else I’ve been in the world,” said Kappos.
The state has a “terrific can-do attitude; people are natural problem-solvers,” said Kappos.
How to file a patent Links to patent processes
Click here to find links on how to file a patent.
After his talk, he pointed to big and small ventures that he’s seen Maine taking on. He noted the deep-water wind project that Professor Habib Dagher is working on at UMaine as an example of where “Maine innovation meets a huge problem — global energy consumption.” There’s a tremendous opportunity there, as well, said Kappos.
“It’s something Maine is leading, and quite appropriately so,” he said.
On the smaller scale, Kappos talked about the local craftsman who made furniture for his home, pieces that look fragile but are surprisingly sturdy.
“He should be filing patent applications,” said Kappos.
Another example is the businessman who built a custom dock system for his house, and created a stainless steel attachment that could handle all the various movements the dock would experience. People from other parts of the country have come to see how the piece was made.
“I just meet people constantly like this in Maine,” he said.
And beyond homegrown problem-solving skills, Maine attracts a lot of people who have honed their skills, made their fortunes and have retired to the state to live. That sort of gray-hair capital is missing in many other parts of the United States, Kappos said.
Those experts are a resource that should be tapped, he suggested; they can mentor small startups that are looking for expertise from successful businesspeople.
“It’s an unheralded advantage,” said Kappos.
During his talk, Kappos talked about the sizable backlog of patent applications that his office continues to process. There’s a bit more than 700,000 unexamined patent applications in the office, he said. It takes about 27 months before an inventor gets a “substantive response” from the office, and about 38 months before they get a final disposition. But the office also has several initiatives to get certain patent applications shunted to the top of the pile, he said. The “Green Tech Initiative” gives priority to patent applications that are related to the environment, aiding in alternative energy, energy use reduction, etc. If approved, inventors whose applications fit the profile get a response within about 45 days.
The office is working on a similar program for medical products, and for patent applications that may be made available to help humanitarian efforts, he said.
Kappos said his office was undertaking several initiatives to try to speed turnaround time. One is an investment in technology. Another is a program under review whereby inventors who pay additional fees will see their applications sped up, with a final answer within a year or less.
“Just like FedEx, if you want your package to get there overnight, you pay for it and they take care of it,” said Kappos.
Another is a massive hiring increase. The office plans to hire 1,300 people this year, and another 1,300 next year. Kappos made the pitch to students or professionals interested in becoming patent examiners. They don’t need to be lawyers, but must have a bachelor’s degree and a background in engineering, math, physics, computer sciences or the like.
And pending legislation will allow patent examiners to work from home, around the country, he said.
“You can actually be in your bunny slippers, working from your home in Maine, as a patent examiner,” Kappos said.
Following his talk, Kappos was set to spend most of his day at UMaine, touring the Advanced Structures and Composites Center, the Foster Center for Student Innovation and the Forest Bioproducts Research Initiative before meeting with university President Robert Kennedy.
Deb Neuman, director of the Tech Target Center, said Kappos’ talk illustrated how important innovation was to the U.S. and Maine economy. The purpose of the conference was to recognize that, and to help foster it, she said. There were various workshops, ranging from how to recognize good invention ideas to how to protect them. Numerous inventors also gave talks about their business path, she said.
“The real value of today is to try to inspire and encourage and to help guide and educate and inform,” said Neuman. “We have a lot of great resources and experts to help folks.”
A number of success stories were shared during the day, she said, such as the SteriPEN, an unltraviolet water purification system that was invented in Maine.
“You can do this in Maine,” she said. “SteriPEN has a worldwide market, and they’re in Blue Hill,” she said.
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Verso mill to launch renewable energy project
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11/20/10
BUCKSPORT, Maine — Officials from Verso Paper Co. and representatives from the state and town dug their shovels into a pile of wood chips Friday during a brief ceremony to mark the start of a $40 million clean energy project at the Bucksport mill.
Although the groundbreaking was ceremonial and the company still needs to complete engineering and permitting work before the Bucksport Renewable Energy Project can begin, Verso President and CEO Mike Jackson said construction on the project would begin before the end of this year.
Jackson stressed that the project is part of a wider energy strategy that will guide Verso’s actions for the next decade.
“We announced a strategy that includes continued focus on our core coated fresh sheet and coated groundwood business, development of specialty areas and a three-part energy strategy,” he said. “This project is the first step in that energy strategy.”
The project, which Verso refers to as BuxREP, will modify the mill’s No. 8 boiler to burn waste wood such as wood chips to create steam to run a new 25-megawatt turbine generator. The modified boiler will eliminate about 90 percent of the fossil fuel now used, including all coal and tire-derived fuel. It will use natural gas only to start up and then will burn renewable, green biomass to create steam.
The steam will power the new turbine, which will create electricity that can be used in the mill or sold to the regional power grid.
“This project represents what Verso stands for when it comes to our position as a green energy company and as a leader in environmental stewardship,” Jackson said. “We will have the ability to generate more green energy from renewable biomass, which reduces our carbon footprint, all while reducing costs.”
According to Mark Daniel, director of energy technology at Verso in Memphis, the project will involve new construction in the wood delivery and storage areas, as well as changes to the existing wood handling system. The No. 8 boiler will remain in place, but it will see modifications and improvements, Daniel said.
“There will be some modifications in the boiler as well, in the air systems and environmental control systems, to make sure we continue to meet our air permits,” he said.
Most of the construction, including the installation of the new turbine, will take place behind the gas turbine building, near where Friday’s ceremony took place.
Jack Cashman, Maine PUC chairman, representing Gov. John Baldacci at the ceremony, praised the project and Verso’s efforts to advance Maine’s pulp and paper industry. In order to be viable, companies need to be innovative and energy-efficient, he said.
“This project is both,” he said. “You are leading the way in terms of innovation and have made the changes to make your industry viable in Maine.”
Cashman read a letter from the governor, in which he praised Verso efforts to transform the industry and said he was glad to be part of the public-private partnership that helped bring about this project that “has the benefits of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing overall energy consumption in Maine.”
Bucksport Town Manager Roger Raymond said Verso’s willingness to invest in this project illustrated the company’s commitment to Maine, to the Bucksport mill and to the community.
“The community is very excited about this project,” Raymond said. “We understand the value of Verso in our community. We understand that the mill has provided quality jobs for the community and the region. We want to do everything in our power to help that continue, and this project will allow it to continue.”
Raymond also praised Bucksport town councilors for their courage in approving a tax increment financing package for the project that will allow the mill to recoup about $10 million of tax revenue over the next 30 years.
“It took a great deal of courage on the part of the councilors to approve that in these very difficult times,” he said.
With construction set to start within the next month, most of the project will be built during 2011. Mill officials have indicated that they expect to begin generating power early in 2012.
By Rich Hewitt
BDN Staff
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Sail magazine recognizes Bucksport-built boat as one of the best
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12/1/10
BUCKSPORT — A national sailing magazine has named a 30-foot Maine sailboat as one of its top boats for 2011.
Sail magazine has named the Presto 30 from Ryder Boats in Bucksport the best cruising monohull under 50 feet after putting the boat through its paces at the annual U.S. Sailboat Show in Annapolis, Md., earlier this year.
“The boat’s construction is impeccable,” according to a review of the Presto 30 on the magazine’s website.
The review describes the boat as a “simple, trailerable, beachable boat that is fast, fun and easy to sail.”
“We sailed the Presto twice before inspecting it again at the Annapolis show and were impressed by its speed and agility,” the Sail article notes. “Though designed for gunkholing in thin coastal water, we reckon this boat is plenty seaworthy enough to cross the Gulf Stream to the Bahamas.”
Gunkholing is a boating term that means meandering from cove to cove in shallow waters.
The boat, which has a base price of $110,000, is 30 feet long with an 8-foot-6-inch beam. It has a 5½-foot draft with the center board down and a 1-foot-1-inch draft, with the board up.
The Presto 30 was built in Bucksport by the Union River Boat Co., which is owned by Richard Ryder and his wife, Pat. It is the first boat designed specifically for the company. Richard Ryder formed a new company called Ryder Boats with his daughter Belle to market the new design.
“Union River Boats is still the builder of record,” Belle Ryder said Tuesday. “But we figured that if you’re going to leave a design behind, a legacy, you might as well name it.”
The praise from Sail magazine is a nice way to start the new venture, she said.
“To have our first foray into building and selling a boat be recognized by Sail, that’s a big pat on the back for us,” Ryder said.
The design grew out of the work Union River had done on boats for the Outward Bound organization, which provides active learning expeditions. Designer Roger Martin, who had designed the Outward Bound boats, reconfigured the hull and deck for Ryder Boats.
The Presto 30 boat features a cabin with room for four. Sail noted its easily handled rigging — “a pair of sexy freestanding carbon masts flying square-headed full-batten sails set on carbon wishbone booms.”
“We took a bit of a risk; this is not the kind of boat you see at the boat shows,” Belle Ryder said. “You don’t often see a camper boat, a light-displacement, trailerable, shoal draft boat at the shows. But my dad and I have never marched to the beat of everybody’s drummer.”
But the response so far has been positive, according to Ryder, with six boats already sold. Two of the Presto 30s already are on the water — the first one was purchased by designer Martin and a partner. The second sails out of Rockland. A third boat has completed its sea trials and is ready to be shipped to Florida. Two more are under construction and crews are ready to start the hull for still another boat. The sale is pending on a seventh boat.
“Things are looking better,” she said. “The work we have now will take us into May. It’s good to be able to hire people and to know that you have work for more than just the next two months.”
The Presto 30 will be the company’s primary product, and Belle Ryder said Ryder Boats will wait to get its sea legs with the first boat before expanding the line.
“Launching a new boat design is like giving birth,” she said. “You need time to forget how painful it was before you do it again.”
By Rich Hewitt
BDN Staff
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TOP 101 Companies Awards
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In October Steve Bolduc and Dave Milan of the Bangor Region Development Alliance and Tim Woodcock of Eaton Peabody, Rob Frank of WBRC Architects/Engineers and John Dougherty of Oxford Networks attended the TOP 101 Companies Awards in Saint John, New Brunswick. “TOP 101” is a business networking event recognizing the largest and fastest growing companies in Atlantic Canada. Companies are ranked on their growth, innovation and customer focus.
Several hundred of the leading business executives in Atlantic Canada networked with the BRDA delegation at the awards reception, hosted by Progress magazine, the City of Saint John and Mayor Ivan Court and Enterprise Saint John. The group from Bangor had the opportunity to discuss business opportunities in the energy, real estate and telecommunications fields. Steve Bolduc, president of the Bangor Region Development Alliance said, “The TOP 101 event is a fantastic opportunity to meet with the companies leading Atlantic Canada’s growth and innovation. The similarities between the two areas make it imperative that we communicate, cooperate and conduct business with each other.”
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Old Town Well Positioned for Business Growth
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Contact: Dan Cashman, Cashman Communications 207.947.9113 207.837.4821 (cell)
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 21, 2010
Old Town Well Positioned for Business Growth
Market Feasibility Study Finds Old Town’s Location Makes City a Desirable Option for Businesses
OLD TOWN – A market feasibility study prepared for the City of Old Town has found that the city is well-positioned for business attraction and growth. The findings of the study were formally presented to City officials on Friday.
“We have always known that our City has a lot of unique characteristics that make it a desirable place to live and work,” said City Manager Peggy Daigle. “But it’s important to have solid findings to back up what we believe to be true, and allow us to put plans in place to prepare Old Town for new growth and new business, giving us a bright outlook for the future.”
The study was prepared to look at the possibility of creating a business/industrial park adjacent to the University of Maine and across the street from Old Town Fuel & Fiber. City officials would like to see the park start at Penny Road, and connect with the hilltop area of the University of Maine campus.
While the study found that the regional economy is not strong enough on its own to support another business park, Old Town’s location and partnerships make the idea a valuable one. The study specifically sites the strong engagement and partnership with the University of Maine, as well as its proximity to campus, as an asset that will allow a business park in Old Town to stand out, and likely achieve success attracting new businesses to the area. The study says that several of the University of Maine’s targeted technology sectors continue to fare well, such as bioscience, science & engineering/technical services, energy & environment, and information technology – all of which present strong opportunities for business possibilities in Old Town.
“Sometimes it’s difficult to look too far into the future when the state and the country are still experiencing economic struggles,” said Old Town Mayor David Mahan. “But the worst thing that we could do right now is do nothing. It’s vital to look to the future and look at capitalizing on our strengths to better position ourselves going forward. I am encouraged and excited about the findings in this market feasibility study and I look forward to continuing our efforts to bring more opportunities to the citizens of Old Town.”
The study was conducted by PolicyOne Research, Inc. in Scarborough, with Camoin Associates in Saratoga Springs, NY.
"The keys to long-term success of this project will be developing and maintaining focus on assets of the local and regional economy that overlap with the unique strengths that a partnership with the University of Maine brings,” said Jim Damicis, President of PolicyOne Research, Inc. “Additionally, developing options to lower overall energy costs for tenant companies will also be key success."
The market feasibility study is a very early step in developing such a business park. The City will still need to develop additional plans for the park, approval for new roads, and council approval for the overall plan.
“This is a great step toward the development of this park,” said City Manager Daigle. “The park can bring us new investment, new jobs, and a potential for endless opportunities for collaboration with the University of Maine, and we are in a unique position to deliver on those possibilities. It’s going to be a lengthy process, but with patience and motivation, this community will be the ultimate beneficiary of this investment.”
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