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V O L . X X I X N O. X X V I N OV E M B E R 1 3 , 2 0 2 3 10 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E Monk's death shuts down Friars' Brewhouse e sudden death of Brother Donald Paul Martel, one of three monks at a Franciscan monastery in Bucksport, has led to the closure of the town's only craft beer-maker, Friars' Brewhouse Taproom. Friars' Brewhouse opened in April 2018 at 84 Main St., overlook- ing the Penobscot River, and had been an attraction ever since. Martel was a baker who also had a longtime pas- sion for creating beer, according to the brewhouse website. On Nov. 1, Brother Kenneth Leo reported to Bucksport police that Martel was missing. Later in the afternoon, a police sergeant came to the friary kitchen to deliver the news that Martel had been found dead inside his car, near a boat launch at Jacob Buck Pond. at's about 7 miles from the downtown but less than a mile from the Monastery of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, at 55 Orcutt Mountain Road, the home of both monks and Brother Stephen Leen. PenBay Chamber names interim CEO e Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce said Nov. 3 it has appointed Gordon Page of Owls Head as interim president and CEO. Page's appointment follows the Oct. 24 departure of Eric Belley, who resigned from his position due to personal reasons, the chamber said. Belley was named president and CEO in September 2022, taking over from the PenBay Chamber's longtime leader, Tom Peaco. Page will assume his interim role imme- diately. A search committee has been formed to find a permanent replacement. N O T E W O R T H Y M I D C O A S T & D O W N E A S T The Maine Community Foundation in Ellsworth awarded a total of $328,202 for the preservation of 25 historic buildings across the state through its Belvedere Historic Preservation and Energy Efficiency Grant Program. Bangor hires airport director Bangor City Council appointed Jose F. Saavedra as the next director of the Bangor International Airport. Saavedra replaces longtime director Tony Caruso, who retired earlier this year. Caruso had led the airport since 2012. Saavedra most recently served as the director of industry programs for the American Association of Airport Executives in Alexandria, Va. He has spent his career in the aviation industry, holding positions at Chicago Rockford International Airport in Rockford, Ill.; Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, Mich.; Grand Forks International Airport in Grand Forks, N.D.; Midland International Air & Space Port in Midland, Texas; and Raleigh-Durham International Airport in Morrisville, N.C. N O T E W O R T H Y N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N Maine's Top Gun business accelera- tor program will expand to Washington County for the first time in 2024 and will also be in Aroostook County for the first time in more than a decade, the Northern Maine Development Commission announced. B R I E F Arts and culture had $86M impact in Portland in 2022 B y R e n e e C o r d e s N onprofit arts and culture organizations delivered an $86 million economic boost to the Portland region in 2022, up from $75.6 million in 2015, a national study shows. A Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, Americans for the Arts, periodically releases an "Arts & Economic Prosperity Impact Study" to measure the economic effect of spending by nonprofit arts-and-culture organizations and event-related spending by their audiences. The latest findings, released in October, were delayed for 16 months by the pandemic, which disrupted in-person arts programming and caused financial hardship for the sector. Some organizations were forced to close forever, while others improvised by shifting to online experiences and other business models. Spending breakdown Portland's $86 million economic impact includes $58.2 million in spending by nonprofits arts-and-culture organi- zations and $27.8 million in spending by their audiences. The study also shows that nonprofits arts organizations in Maine's largest city supported 1,872 jobs and gener- ated $20.7 million in local, state and federal government revenue in 2022. About 60 Portland arts organizations — including muse- ums, performance venues and galleries — participated in the survey. Nationwide, the nonprofits arts and culture sector is a $151.7 billion industry supporting 2.6 million jobs, the study shows. Spending by arts and culture audiences generates valu- able returns for local merchants, a value-add that few other industries can compete with, according to Creative Portland, the city's official arts agency, which spent a year collecting data for the report. "This study brings new clarity to the vital role we know the arts to play in Portland's economic, social and creative well-being," said Dinah Minot, Creative Portland's execu- tive director. "A key driver for Greater Portland's economy, the arts and culture sector has undeniable value for our community across the board, which fuels Creative Portland's efforts to sustain and support local artists and arts initiatives," she added. The study, first conducted 30 years ago, evaluated 373 diverse communities and regions in its most recent edition. In central Maine, Waterville arts and cultural nonprofits generated $13.5 million in economic activity in 2022, or more than double the amount in 2015, the study found. P H O T O / R E N E E C O R D E S One Longfellow Square is a nonprofit music and events venue based in Portland. M I D C O A S T & D O W N E A S T N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N This study brings new clarity to the vital role we know the arts to play in Portland's economic, social and creative well-being. — Dinah Minot Creative Portland

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