Mainebiz

V O L . X X I N O. X I I I J U N E 2 9 , 2 0 1 5 6 Maine gets $3.66M to help unemployed e Maine Department of Labor is receiving $3.66 million in federal grants to help people who have been out of work for over 27 weeks or are about to run out of unemploy- ment benefits. e Bangor Daily News reported that money from the U.S. Department of Labor will fund statewide programs to help long- term unemployed people find train- ing and other work opportunities. It will focus on the health care, IT and advanced manufacturing sectors. e newspaper quoted U.S. Secretary of Labor omas Perez as saying that the federal funding aims to match in-demand fields with job training, adding that it will complete "unfin- ished business of the recovery" from the 2008 recession. Maine unemployment rate stays the same in May Maine's unemployment rate in May was 4.7%, the same as the previous month and 1% less than it was a year ago. e Maine Department of Labor reported that an estimated 32,200 peo- ple were unemployed in Maine, 7,800 fewer than a year ago. e national unemployment rate in May was 5.5%, a slight increase from the previous month and a decrease from 6.3% one year ago. Maine's unemployment rate remained under the average of 4.9% for the New England states. Unemployment rates are seasonally adjusted. FAME merges with student loan authority e Finance Authority of Maine is merging with the Maine Education Loan Authority as result of a recent bill signed into law by Gov. Paul LePage. e governor's office said that a merger of the two agencies had been contemplated over the years. But the need became more apparent when MELA recently learned that its long- time loan servicer, Maine Education Services, is planning to discontinue its services to MELA by the end of September. Maine trails Northeast in home sales growth Sales of existing single-family homes in Maine saw a minor increase in May, trailing behind the increase in overall sales for the Northeast. Maine home sales reached 1,335 units in May, a 2.53% increase over the 1,302 units sold in the same month last year, according to the Maine Realtors Association. e median sales price in May increased 8.86% to $185,000. e Maine Realtors Association said the latest figures confirm that the summer is ushering an increase in single- family existing home sales, noting that buyers are often looking to close on sales before the school year starts again. On a national level, home sales increased 9.7%, while the median sales price increased 8.6% to $230,300 during the same period, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales in the Northeast increased 11.3%, while the median sales price increased 4.8% to $269,000. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E A network of eight inns in Kennebunkport, Rockland and Bar Harbor launched Inns Along the Coast, a coordinated inn-to-inn oppor- tunity for exploring the Maine coast. The National Endowment for the Arts awarded $894,300 in grant funding to nine organizations in Maine that foster artistic creativity and innovation in their communities. The Maine Arts Commission received $723,300 while the remaining $171,000 will be dis- tributed to eight other organizations. The grants will support a wide range of artistic endeavors including film and folk festivals, stage productions, fiber arts and workshops for young writers and artists, among others. Falmouth firm buys Florida 'secret shopper' group A subsidiary of Falmouth marketing firm TideSmart Global has acquired a Florida-based hospitality consult- ing group that uses "secret shoppers" to gather real-time data for consumer brands. EMG3, which describes itself as an experiential marketing firm, said that its purchase of Phantom Shopper LLC will allow the firm to expand services for clients. Phantom Shopper founder and CEO Brian Mula- Howard is joining EMG3's team as an executive. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Carhartt to open first Maine store Carhartt, a Dearborn, Mich.-based work apparel company, is planning to open its first company-owned store in Maine. e company said its new 3,500-square-foot retail store was expected to open mid-June at the Maine Mall in South Portland. New charter boat launches in Portland A new charter boat called Portland Harbor Fleet is partnering with developers of the soon-to-open Inn at Diamond Cove on Great Diamond Island to provide historical and 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 Portland Science Center to anchor Old Port wharf site The owner of Maine Wharf in Portland said it's gratifying to fill the property's last vacancy with the Portland Science Center after facing skepticism over his redevelopment plans. "This is not the first property I've acquired where people questioned my sanity," Stephen Goodrich, the property's owner and former PowerPay CEO, told Mainebiz. "But decent instincts and vision have kept us on the right side of things." Portland Exhibits LLC, a subsidiary of Salem, Mass.-based The Gold Group, announced earlier this month that it will open the Portland Science Center in mid- to late-July in the second and third floors of a roughly 23,000-square-foot commercial building at 68-72 Commercial St. on the wharf. Restaurateurs Sam Hayward and Dana Street are expected to open a restaurant, Scales, with up to 120 seats, by the end of the summer. Casco Bay Artisans, an art gallery, is already operating on the building's first floor. Goodrich, who has acquired and redeveloped other formerly delinquent prop- erties in Portland, purchased the Maine Wharf for $2.1 million in June 2013, according to city assessor records. The sale closed after Goodrich had entered a lease with a purchase option with the wharf's previous owner, Eric Cianchette, less than a year before. At the time, Goodrich acknowledged in a October 2012 Portland Press Herald story that some people were skeptical of his ability to redevelop the wharf, but knew that he has proven skeptics wrong in the past with projects like the former Portland Public Market, which he bought and transformed into PowerPay's headquarters. Now, more than $4 million in rehabilitation costs and a few years later, Goodrich's decision to buy the wharf seems to be paying off. The Portland Science Center has already been hailed by Portland Mayor Mike Brennan as a "welcome and unique addition to the many great destination attractions" in Portland, with plans to hire around 20 full- and part-time workers. Scales has also received local hype from those who know of Hayward's and Street's other restaurant ventures, including Fore Street and Street & Co. Goodrich said he had received an offer from an office tenant for 68 Commercial St.'s second and third floors, but ultimately decided to go with Portland Science Center as the development's final puzzle piece. He said he opted to lease with the science center because it's expected to generate more foot traffic and not create as much demand for parking. "It will generate usage that will not create the same stress on the building as an office tenant would so we felt that [the Portland Science Center] was a good use for the wharf," he said. — D Y L A N M A R T I N I M A G E / C O U R T E S Y O F T H E G O L D G RO U P An artist's rendering of the Portland Science Center.

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