Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 13 J U N E 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 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 Husson University in Bangor an- nounced it received an anonymous $1 million gift that will be used to create a new interdisciplinary learn- ing space for students enrolled at the university's New England School of Communications and College of Business. Designlab LLC, a graphic design and marketing fi rm, became the fi rst business in downtown Millinocket to connect to the Three Ring Binder, Maine's 1,100-mile fi ber optic net- work connecting the state's rural and urban areas. The fi rm has contracted with GWI, a telecommunications com- pany in Biddeford. Dorr Lobster Seafood Market opened at 579 Broadway in Bangor. Acadia Hospital in Bangor received a $50,000 grant from the Penobscot Valley Health Association Fund of the Maine Community Foundation to provide for the training and expanded access to Suboxone Medication- Assisted Treatment for clients seeking recovery from an opioid use disorder. 800.777.5244 www.TalkWithNorton.com Specialists in business insurance and employee benefits. Talk with Norton. MAXIMIZE THE REWARDS. Minimize The Risk. Cyber Liability Workers' Compensation Property & Casualty Fork Food Lab raising $30K for public tasting space Neil Spillane and Eric Holstein, co-founders of the Fork Food Lab coming to Portland's West Bayside neighborhood, want to make their collaborative commercial kitchen about more than food businesses renting space. The duo launched a $30,000 Kickstarter campaign on June 9, and plan to use all the funds raised for a tasting room to draw in the community to try new foods from and provide feedback to the businesses at the lab. "This is part of the Food Lab that will be open to every- one," Holstein, who is chief operating offi cer, told Mainebiz. Contributors will get different goods depending on the amount they give. For example, $100 gets them a holiday gift basket, while $25 gets access to a tasting session. Spillane and Holstein said they plan to open the 5,700-square-foot space, at 72 Parris St., in August, and hold a large grand opening in September. So far, Food Lab has 34 letters of intent to use the space from food trucks, food carts, packaged goods makers and caterers, said Spillane, who is CEO. Spillane previously man- aged the food hub at Urban Farm Fermentory. One of the members that has signed up is Gelato Fiasco, which, according to Holstein, has about 200 square feet of space in which it will have an open kitchen where consum- ers can come and taste or suggest experimental fl avors. "It's from the bottom up, from the customers," Spillane said about the approach. "People eating the food will make it. It empowers Mainers and there's more control, more transparency." Food Lab space runs $800 per month for full-time les- sees and $500 for part-timers up to 16 hours per week. The Food Lab has 10 ovens currently, 500 square feet of cold storage and an area for dry storage. Spillane and Holstein emphasized that food is not just about the recipe, however. "The hardest part is executing," Holstein said. Holstein graduated from Colby College with a degree in administrative science and a focus on hospitality fi nance. Spillane, a native of Brunswick, has a B.S. degree in busi- ness fi nance from the University of Maine, Orono, and an MBA from Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. They both said their education and experience will help them guide the businesses locating in the shared kitchen space. — L o r i V a l i g r a P H O T O / L O R I VA L I G R A Neil Spillane (left) and Eric Holstein, co-founders of Fork Food Lab in Portland, are trying to raise $30,000 in a Kickstarter campaign. The funds will go to a tasting room and space for community events.

• Cover