Mainebiz

V O L . X X I V N O. X I I J U N E 1 1 , 2 0 1 8 6 Merrill Lynch settles with Maine over college savings fees Maine has reached a settlement with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. following an investi- gation that determined the invest- ment fi rm steered some Mainers' NextGen college savings into a higher-fee plan that was better suited for shorter-term investors. Maine Securities Administrator Judith Shaw said that under terms of the order Merrill Lynch will pay restitution of nearly $19 million to approximately 50,000 accounts across the United States. e settlement includes approximately $124,000 in restitution to Maine residents. In lieu of a civil penalty, Merrill Lynch also agreed to pay $500,000 to the Maine Securities Investor Education and Training Fund administered by the Offi ce of Securities. Merrill Lynch issued a statement saying it had "self-identi- fi ed" the problem of its agents steer- ing NextGen investors into inappro- priate accounts. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree said the USDA Rural Development awarded $65,000 to help farms and other rural businesses in Bowdoinham, Cumberland and Freeport cut costs through renewable power systems. Six River Farm, Bowdoinham; Autowerkes Maine, Freeport; and Vanir Properties, Cumberland each received $20,000 while Bluebell Farm, Bowdoinham re- ceived $5,286. 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 THERE IS A DIFFERENCE THERE IS Because Construction Management Design/Build General Contracting Engineering Sheridan Construction www.sheridancorp.com Fairfield Portland 207-453-9311 207-774-6138 $7M Maine-built yacht delivered to 94-year-old with need for 'a project' B y l a u r i e s c h r e i b e r Brooklin Boat Yard completed delivery of the $7.1 million Sonny III, a highly customized high-performance 91-foot yacht designed for both day sailing and blue-water passages. The yard's delivery crew landed the yacht in Jamestown, R.I., where owner Albert Phelps, who is 94, keeps his boats. Yard owner Steve White told Mainebiz that Phelps is a retired real estate developer with homes in Norwalk, Conn., and Boynton Beach, Fla., and he keeps his boat in Jamestown. "He likes sailing in that area," White said. Brooklin Boat Yard built the Sonny and Sonny II, both 70-footers designed by Dieter Empacher of Marblehead, Mass. The fi rst Sonny was launched in 2000. "He came to us 10 years later and said, 'I'm too old to sail any more; I want to donate my boat to the Maine Maritime Academy,'" White recalled. Phelps did that, but called White again, months later, and said, "'I've made a terrible mistake. I want my boat back.'" It was too late for that. So instead, White and his crew built the Sonny II, identical right down to the interior and color. Nineteen months ago, Phelps called White again and asked him to build a bigger boat. "He said, 'I don't need another boat, but I need a proj- ect. I need something to keep me interested and keep me thinking at night,'" White recalled. It's unusual for older sailors to go bigger: Many tend to go either for a smaller sailboat or for a powerboat. But Phelps has a paid captain. "He's used to having a crew, and he thought a bigger boat would be more comfortable for him," said White. In 2000, Brooklin Boat Yard was one of several bidders on the fi rst Sonny. Phelps chose the yard even though it wasn't the lowest bidder. "I think he liked the working relationship with us," said White. "He's become a real friend." That relationship includes Phelps's close involvement in the project. "He called me every single morning about 8 o'clock," said White. "I called it 'Breakfast with Bert.' Seven days a week, he called at least once a day, and often two or three times. He just wanted to talk about what we were doing, maybe some idea he had. He likes access and he likes quick responses, and we were always able to get back to him quickly with draw- ings or changes or ideas he had in mind." The biggest challenge was a shorter time frame than usual for the size of the job. "Because he was 93 when we started, the contract said he wanted to have his boat before he died," said White. "We were literally building the boat as we were designing it, trying to stay ahead. Designed by Bruce Johnson and the Brooklin Boat Yard design offi ce, construction took 18 months. "I would expect a design process of six months for a yacht of this size and complexity before the yard could even begin to cut wood," Johnson said. "Due to the aggressive build schedule we began construction six weeks after we started working with the owner. This project could not have been pos- sible without Brooklin Boat Yard's in-house designers who were invaluable, producing exceptional construction drawings." B R I E F P H O T O S / B RO O K L I N BO AT YA R D / B I L LY B L A C K Brooklin Boat Yard completed delivery of the $7.1 million Sonny III, a highly customized 91-foot yacht designed for both day sailing and blue-water passages.

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