Mainebiz

V O L . X X V N O. V I I A P R I L 1 , 2 0 1 9 6 $100K budgeted for bicentennial marketing e Maine Office of Tourism will award up to $100,000 in marketing grants to promote projects celebrating next year's 200th anniversary of Maine becom- ing a state. e Bicentennial Marketing Grants will provide matching dollars for tourism-specific bicentennial marketing that will help drive overnight visitation to Maine beginning in July and running through 2020, Maine's bicentennial year. Grant applications will be accepted for review this spring and fall. Organizations applying for funding must be a Maine municipality or a Maine-based nonprofit that meets the grant guideline require- ments. Applications for the spring 2019 grant cycle are due by May 10. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King announced that Catholic Charities of Maine was awarded $100,000 through the Corporation for National and Community Service's Senior Corps RSVP program to support 165 Senior Corps volunteers in Kennebec and Somerset counties. NeighborWorks America awarded $1.6 million to support efforts to develop and preserve affordable housing, revitalize and sustain neighborhoods and create jobs across the state. Recipients includ- ed Coastal Enterprises Inc., $522,000; Avesta Housing Development Corp., $425,000; Community Concepts Inc., $284,000; Penquis Community Action Program Inc., $210,000; and Kennebec Valley Community Action Program Housing Services, $128,500. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded the state of Maine $2.3 million to help combat the opioid epidemic. L.L.Bean sales rise 1% in 'very difficult' retail climate Outdoor retailer L.L.Bean announced that it will pay a 5% performance bonus to about 5,400 employees plus an addi- tional 2% enhancement contribution to B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E S O U T H E R N Lubec works to get chamber back on track after two-year hiatus B y L a u r i e S c h r e i b e r L ub ec — An effort is in the works to get the Lubec Chamber of Commerce up and running again, two years after the chamber dissolved. The chamber's newly reconvened nominating committee has met to nominate board members. A second meeting is scheduled for April 14 to elect the new board, interim president Heather Henry Tenan told Mainebiz. "We're moving full speed ahead," she said. While chambers of commerce in Maine are frequently lean in staffing, in the case of Lubec, the previous chamber may have been more dependent than most on volunteer leadership. Tenan, co-owner the Eastland Motel in Lubec, is the last standing board member of the previous chamber. The chamber's last president was Gale White, owner of Lubec Brewing Co. "He has lots of energy," says Tenan. But when White twice tried to call meetings two years ago, nobody showed up, Tenan said. "Then he called me and said, 'I can't run the chamber by myself,'" she said. "Everyone is so busy here. It's a tiny town and there's a handful of people who are on every single committee. It's hard to get people to volunteer in a com- munity like this where the poverty rate is through the roof and most people work two or three jobs. Everyone is just trying to survive here." Without people to form a new board, the chamber "just kind of fell apart," she said. Grassroots interest in Lubec Even through the chamber's break, Tenan kept the organiza- tions' Facebook page active. "A lot of tourists follow that page and I didn't want to lose that," she said. "So any time anything of interest came up, I posted it." In February, she put up a post and received a message from a local businesswoman who was curious about the chamber's status. The gist of the message was, "We need to have a cham- ber. We're falling behind," Tenan recalled. Tenan pointed out the Lubec area's many claims to fame. Lubec is the east- ernmost town in the United States. It has lighthouses. There's a viable downtown. Lubec is close to the his- toric summer home of the Roosevelts, on Campobello Island, which is par t of Canada but a short bridge trip away. "I don't want to let it all go," Tenan said. "So when this woman posted, 'What's up with the chamber?' I said I'll give it one last shot." Tenan contacted a former chamber president, Jody Grimes. "Jody took the ball and ran with it," she said. "She and I coordinated a meeting with business owners about three weeks ago. We had almost 40 people show up. It was quite impressive. And those people said, 'We'll help. Let's get it back up and running.'" Despite the chamber's inactivity, Tenan said Lubec has continued to receive recognition from publications. "We still get a lot of press," she said. "People still come here. Travel writers come here all the time." That success has resulted in new businesses opening over the past few years, including Morano's Authentic Pizza, Downeast Dragonfly Bar & Grill and HD & Sons Seafood. The town's economic development committee and board of selectmen have also been active in rehabilitating the down- town, which at one time had a number of dilapidated buildings. "So the downtown is cleaned up," Tenan said. Tourism has expanded over the years, and her motel and other lodgings are often full through the summer, she said. Business owners in general direct tourists to other businesses around town. "We don't consider each other competitors. We're partners," she said. "We need to capitalize on that with the chamber." B R I E F P H O T O / M A U R E E N M I L L I K E N Two years after the Lubec Chamber of Commerce dissolved, community members are reviving the volunteer organization. Seen here is downtown Lubec. Everyone is so busy here. It's a tiny town and there's a handful of people who are on every single committee. — Heather Henry Tenan Interim chamber president

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