Mainebiz

V O L . X X V I I N O. I X M AY 3 , 2 0 2 1 6 $500K earmarked to fund clean energy startups e Governor's Energy Office and the Maine Technology Institute are launching a $500,000 competitive grant program to fund clean energy startups, in an effort to spur job growth and reach the state's goals for addressing climate change. Gov. Janet Mills announced the Maine Clean Energy Innovation Challenge in a media event held on Earth Day at the Montville headquar- ters of solar power company ReVision Energy. As part of the state's plan to mit- igate climate change, Mills has pledged that Maine will increase workforce devel- opment and be home to 30,000 clean energy jobs by 2030. Maine has among the fewest clean energy jobs per capita in New England, behind Massachusetts, Vermont and Rhode Island, which all have some of the country's most. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E Maine Veterans' Homes received $2 million in emergency payments through provisions of the fiscal-year 2021 Department of Veterans Affairs appropriations bill that was signed into law in December to help respond to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Scarborough location received $523,982; Bangor, $426,095; Augusta, $414,579; South Paris, $316,692; Caribou, $207,289; and Machias, $86,371. The Maine Department of Labor was awarded $382,579 to promote and enhance its Short Time Compensation program, which allows workers to re- ceive a partial unemployment benefit payment while their employer reduces their hours to avoid layoffs. The Maine Bureau of Unemployment Compensation received $823,061 from the U.S. Department of Labor to operate its Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments program. The program focuses on individualized assessments, reem- ployment services and referrals to support an individual who is receiv- ing unemployment benefits return to work more quickly. Lawsuit targets beach access in Maine A decades' old battle over who has access to the state's beaches heated up again when a group of 23 southern Maine residents announced they have filed a lawsuit that seeks to reclaim private beaches for the public. e suit was filed in Cumberland County Superior Court, and seeks to undo a 1989 Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruling that gave private beach own- ers property rights extending to the low-tide mark. e high tide mark is the standard in most coastal states. e suit names 10 defendants and asks that the Bell vs. Town of Wells decision of 1989 be overturned. "An historical mistake happened on this spot 30 years ago," attorney Benjamin Ford said at a news conference held at Moody Beach in Wells. "And today we filed a lawsuit to correct that mistake." 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 B R I E F In an about-face, Sherman's now bullish on the retail market B y P e t e r V a n A l l e n A year after closing one of its six stores, Sherman's Maine Coast Book Shops is coming back strong this year, saying it will open three stores for the summer. The bookstore chain now says it will open stores in Rockland, Topsham and Windham this summer. The new stores will be located in the Topsham Fair Mall between Renys and Lamey Wellehan, in the Windham Mall beside Renys, and in a freestanding building in Rockland on Maverick Street between McDonalds and Hannaford. The expansion is a sharp reversal from a year ago, when the retailer announced on March 26 it would close its Camden store — just two weeks after the pandemic shut down non- essential businesses. "We closed Camden out of survival. We had no idea how long we'd be closed and we panicked," Jeff Curtis, CEO and co-owner of Sherman's, told Mainebiz. "As soon as we could reopen, customers came back in droves." Curtis tried to get back the Camden space, which the company had leased, but was unsuccessful. For now, Sherman's has stores in Portland, Freeport, Damariscotta, Boothbay Harbor and Bar Harbor. The com- mon tie with the current five stores is they're all in down- towns with strong foot traffic, but new stores are in shop- ping centers or destination shopping areas. "All three are a new model for us," Curtis said. S h e r m a n 's i s m o r e than a "book store." While it carries a wide selection of books, it also stocks stationery, cards, puzzles, games, toys, and gifts — many made in Maine. And the stores have anything but a cookie-cutter formula. While all the stores offer books, they each have distinctive offerings and all vary in square footage and layout. Its Portland store has a section devoted to clever greeting cards and socks with the likeness of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Its Freeport store has a wide range of toys. Its Boothbay store is two stories and has a vast upstairs devoted to publishers' remainder books and specialties like nautical books. The Damariscotta store is attached to the Brown Dog Bakery (Sherman's leases the bakery and coffee shop its space). The Bar Harbor location takes up three store fronts on Main Street. Curtis said the merchandise mix is driven by customers. Each store started with a similar mix of products and the product mix evolved as customers "voted" with their dol- lars, Curtis said. The three new stores will open this summer, pending permits from the fire marshal, Curtis said. Most should be open by July, he said. "We are especially excited to be creating at least 15 good jobs for Maine booksellers," said Maria Boord Curtis, direc- tor of operations and co-owner of Sherman's. "This growth also creates career advancement opportunities for our cur- rent team. As a result, Sherman's is now hiring for various positions at the new locations as well as at all five existing locations in Bar Harbor, Boothbay Harbor, Damariscotta, Freeport, and Portland." Sherman's was founded in Bar Harbor in 1886. In addi- tion to being Maine's oldest bookstore, it is one of the 10 oldest bookstores in the United States. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y S H E R M A N ' S Sherman's Maine Coast Book Shops, whose Portland store is pictured here, plans to open three stores. As soon as we could reopen, customers came back in droves. — Jeff Curtis Co-owner of Sherman's

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