Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I N O. X I V J U N E 2 9 , 2 0 2 0 18 H O S P I TA L I T Y / T O U R I S M F O C U S While stores, restaurants and hotels are seeing some customers and some businesses are advertising job openings, the chamber warned that there wouldn't be enough Maine-based visitors to sus- tain the hospitality and tourism opera- tions central to Bar Harbor's economy. By mid-June, the outlook was dis- mal, by one account. "I would say it's dismal at best," says Bethany McFarland Reece, co- owner of downtown restaurant Route 66, where patronage is just 5% to 10% of typical levels. "ere are some people here," she adds. "It remains to be seen how long it will last." Bar Harbor Whale Watch, which had 1 million customers last year, was ready for the season but the state's latest testing requirements caused a "dramatic drop" in what was left of bookings, says Eben Salvatore, MDI operations chief for Ocean Properties, which owns Bar Harbor Whale Watch and four hotels in town. "If that doesn't change, it's likely we won't be operating our boats this year," he says. Two of Ocean Properties' Bar Harbor hotels are open but occupancy is off 96%. "People are taking their business elsewhere and they probably won't be back," he continues. "We're losing them forever. e long-term ripple effect goes beyond these few months." Says Anderson, "What we're see- ing is a catastrophe." Community action Bar Harbor and other Mount Desert Island communities are coming together in various ways to try to sus- tain themselves. e town of Bar Harbor conducted surveys to gauge business and resident concerns. e latest shows that 86% of businesses depend on out-of-state tourism. Half said they would close if the state's 14-day quarantine continues through July. e surveys helped inform council actions, including creation of a "parklet" program to expand outdoor options for restaurants and retailers; and a letter to Gov. Janet Mills urging her to lift the quarantine. Share Our Stimulus MDI, a citizen initiative, formed in April to encourage people to share their stimulus checks with island neighbors who need it most, through food pan- tries and other nonprofits. In the town of Mount Desert, the Summer Residents Association raised over $800,000 to provide grants to 56 businesses experiencing impacts due to COVID-19. e average grant size was $14,200 and allowed businesses to cover costs such as rent and mortgage. Healthy Acadia, a Bar Harbor com- munity health nonprofit, and Mount Desert Island Hospital repurposed substance use disorder recovery coaches to create a "social call" system to sup- port vulnerable individuals through the pandemic. e organization ramped up its food security work in response to pressures on the food supply system, as demand quadrupled for its healthy-food access programs. » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E 46 Years of Building Maine B R U N S W I C K 2 0 7-7 2 5 - 4 3 0 4 I N F O @ P O U L I N C O N S T R U C T I O N M E . C O M HOTELS RESTAURANTS ASSISTED LIVING MULTI-USE OFFICE SUITES EXTREME AFFORDABILITY $1,400/session flat tuition rate UNPARALLELED SUPPORT personal academic success coach EXCEPTIONAL FLEXIBILITY Courses are 100% online. Always accessible. You choose the pace. THE WAY IT SHOULD BE Sessions start July 6 & August 31, 2020 This is college for adults: GET STARTED TODAY! at the UNIVERSITY of MAINE at PRESQUE ISLE umpi.edu/yp | 844.811.7391 | umpi-yourpace@maine.edu MaineBiz_UMPI_YourPace-qrtr.pdf 1 5/6/2020 9:20:37 AM

• Cover