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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 11 M AY 1 6 , 2 0 2 2 Meet Maine's #1 Small Business Lending Team for credit unions, as recognized by the SBA 2021 NonprofitMaine.org/PowertheCommonGood #NonprofitsWorkForME $14 billion to the economy each year Maine nonprofits contribute Equivalent to 20% of Maine's Gross State Product B R I E F Brunswick Landing's landmark Navy plane will move from entrance B y W i l l i a m H a l l B r u n s w i c k — For over half a century, an aging aircraft has stood watch at an entrance to what is now Brunswick Landing — but may soon redeploy, crowded out by development in the business campus. The Lockheed P-2 Neptune, a twin-engine Navy plane that flew anti-submarine patrols from Brunswick during the 1960s, now occupies a patch of grass along Admiral Fitch Avenue and behind a neighboring shopping mall. The 102-foot wing- span nearly overshadows the roadway. The plane has been grounded on this spot since 1970, serving as an icon to generations of Maine aviators and more recently as a nod to the history of Naval Air Station Brunswick, now the home of 3,200-acre Brunswick Landing. But commercial development of the park is beginning to encroach on the P-2. More than 150 businesses have moved to Brunswick Landing in the past decade, and lots near the Neptune are up for sale and actively being marketed. The parcel behind the plane, 12 acres in total, is being marketed for development by Priority Real Estate. In addition to what's going on around the plane, Maine winters have also taken their toll on the plane's fuselage and general appearance. So a group of volunteers, Navy veterans and members of the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority, which oversees Brunswick Landing, are working to move the P-2. About a half a mile down the road, at an existing memorial park near the Brunswick Naval Aviation Museum, the group plans to restore the aircraft. The plane will also have good company, sharing the grounds with another, the P-2 model's successor, the Lockheed P-3 Orion. The group last week launched a $150,000 crowdfunding campaign to pay for the restoration and move, which will be "detailed and very involved," according to the fundraising page. "Workarounds need to be taken because of changing streets, trees, electri- cal poles and wires. The wings and vertical stabilizer need to be removed using slings and cranes. The new home within the P-3 Park needs to be excavated to remove the slope in the land," the group said. The Neptune is on loan from the U.S. Navy, and MRRA is the plane's custodian. "With the Gold Star Memorial Garden and the Lockheed P-3 Orion, [the P-2] will be restored to its original glory, worthy of continuous and dedicated ser- vice," the group said. Fundraising is in the early stages. P H O T O / W I L L I A M H A L L The landmark P-2 Neptune plane will move to a nearby museum. [The P-2] will be restored to its original glory. — Volunteers behind the move of Brunswick Landing's P-2 aircraft

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