Washington County can learn from Mobilize Northern Maine experience 

About 100 people attended a Mobilize Maine and GROWashington-Aroostook kickoff event in Machias late last month.

  

   Washington County is looking to do some asset based economic planning using the Mobilize Maine process. People in Sunrise County got the ball rolling last week with a kickoff meeting. For some firsthand knowledge, folks from Downeast can look north for help.

   Since 2009, Aroostook Partnership for Progress and the Northern Maine Development Commission have been working with consultants from ViTAL Economy as well as community and industry leaders to craft and implement Mobilize Northern Maine, a strategic planning process to help focus economic development efforts.

   It has been a vital tool for looking at our strengths and assets versus going out and competing nationally to bring business here, said Bob Dorsey, president of APP. "It is an asset-based approach that is looking inward instead of outward."

   In time, all six economic development districts in the state will complete Mobilize Maine, which is a dynamic planning framework that development strategies based on their region's indigenous assets and opportunities.

   Mark Madsen, the chief economist for ViTAL Economy, has been directly involved in both counties.

   "This process is really transformative," said Madsen. "As they [the community] get involved in it people will learn how to manage and set goals to move their economy forward."

   The most important aspects of Mobilize Maine are involvement and collaboration according to Madsen.

   "The process in Aroostook County got a lot of support from the private sector right from the start," he said. "They set some solid goals."

   Madsen says the Mobilize Maine plan will not gather dust on a shelf. It needs to be revisited and continually updated.

   "We may see new challenges or opportunities come up, so it is continually revisited," he said.

   NMDC's director of regional planning, Michael Eisensmith, echoed that sentiment.

   "Going forward, it is important to revisit the goals that we established and the sectors/clusters we are focusing on to see if they are still relevant, or whether we need to make some adjustments to move our economy forward more effectively," he said.

   Madsen also said the Aroostook Partnership for Progress, which is a public-private partnership involving developers, educators and the private sector, has been instrumental in moving the Mobilize Northern Maine plan forward.

   "It is the business sector that drives economic development," Madsen added. "The old model was government drives it, but the rate of that progress was very slow. It has to be private business now."

   The process is driven by the community looking at their assets and setting goals on where they want to be in the future. After the goals have been set, industry clusters are prioritized and strategies developed to maximize the potential for reaching the goals.

   "The primary approach in this process is to form working groups with subject matter experts as well as members of the community to refine strategies and tackle issues that are obstacles to achieving success," said Dorsey. "For example, currently the Aroostook Partnership for Progress is leading Renewable Energy, Biomass and Compressed Natural Gas working groups in an effort to build an enhanced Biomass industry in The County and get natural gas as a viable alternative for larger corporations."

   More information on the initiative is available at www.mobilizenorthernmaine.com.

Time to nominate sites for

Brownfield assessments 

 

    CARIBOU - It is only a few months before the latest round of Brownfield assessments will be underway thanks to a recent $400,000 grant to Northern Maine Development Commission from the Environmental Protection Agency.

   NMDC will begin the program on Oct. 1 and in the three months leading up to October officials are hoping to encourage property owners and municipalities to nominate possible sites for assessment.

   A Brownfield is real property, the expansion, redevelopment or reuse of which, may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant. EPA's Brownfields Program assists states and local communities to assess, safely clean up and reuse Brownfields for economic development projects.

   "We would really like to hit the ground running as early as we can in October," said Jay Kamm, senior planner at NMDC. "Once the ground freezes in November they can't do the Phase II assessments until spring."

   A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment is a historical and record review of the property and a looks into the history of what the land has been used for in the past to see if any activities at the property could have caused on-site contamination. A Phase II Environmental Site Assessment, if needed, involves a more detailed examination of the property, such as ground water and soil sampling, to determine if contamination actually does exists on the property.

   This is a voluntary and free program according to Connie Akerson, an environmental planner at NMDC.

   "Just doing a quick check of former use the last time we received assessment funding from the EPA we determined there were 72 potential sites in the region," said Akerson. "We have enough money to do assessments for 12 properties."

   "Our goal is to close the loop so after the assessment landowners can seek cleanup funds such as NMDC's Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund or cleanup grants. These assessments provide the needed framework for cleaning the properties so that they can be revitalized."

   Municipalities or landowners that want more information, or to nominate a site for possible selection, are urged to contact Kamm or Akerson at NMDC at (207) 498-8736 or check out the website  www.northernmainebrownfields.org.