Committee Members on the Ballot---Regional Issues

     Franklin School Board--Reelect Roy Gott on March 28                                                              

                                                  Hancock Selectboard--Carol Lowrie                                                                                                                                                                                                                         My name is Carol Lowrie, and I am honored to be a candidate for the Town of Hancock Select

Board.  My wife and I purchased a home in Hancock in 2016 and decided to make Hancock our

permanent residence in 2020.  Having spent the past 40 years constantly moving around the

country for my career as an Electrical Engineer with the DuPont and Chemours companies, I

was excited to call Hancock my permanent home. There is such unspoiled natural beauty in

this small town, and we feel a special connection to the residents of Hancock who have been

incredibly inclusive and welcoming.  I have the utmost respect for this hardworking

community and the long-term residents who have shaped this town.

In addition to my career with DuPont, my wife and I owned and operated two different retail

businesses for over 15 years.  By day, I managed a global team of over 200 employees and

had fiscal responsibility for numerous multi-million-dollar Information Technology projects. 

By night, I did book-keeping, payroll, sales, and yes, occasionally, cleaned the bathrooms.  I’m

not afraid of hard work.  I also decided late in my career to go back to school and obtain my

MBA from Drexel University.  

None of this means much if I don’t use my experience in the private sector to try and benefit

the community I live in, which is why I have always gotten involved on the local level with

planning committees, charitable organizations, mentoring programs, chairing diversity

organizations, as well as being a board member of several HOAs.

So, what do I hope to accomplish should I be elected to serve on the Select Board?

First and foremost, I hope to learn.  I have been attending Planning Board and Select Board

meetings for the past year.  I have watched residents give their time and energy to improve

our town.  I will continue to learn from them.  I also want to learn from the residents of the

Town of Hancock.  I will represent you; I have no self-serving agenda.

I view town government much as a business.  Although the town’s structure may differ from a

private corporation, the premise is the same.  Both entities generate income and incur

expenses. The question I would ask is, do those expenses lead to further revenue? If not, what

value do they add to our town and how can we creatively cut costs while providing the

services and infrastructure that support the residents of this community? 

Hancock, like many other small towns, has been experiencing growing pains.  Some growth is

positive, and some growth is self-serving and negatively impacts the character of our

community.  I want us to plan for growth instead of reacting to it.  There is a very delicate

balance but, by supporting policies that foster business growth and encourage appropriate

commercial development, we can strengthen the town’s tax base and reduce our reliance on

residential taxes. 

Another area I believe deserves considerable attention is the protection of our natural

resources.  There is an opportunity to have more collaboration between the Planning Board,

Select Board and town Code Enforcement Officer to be certain that the Code Enforcement

Officer is supported in their role of enforcing the town ordinances.  This is especially

important as it relates to Shoreland Zoning laws.  We are a coastal community, and many

residents’ livelihoods rely on our waterways.  We should cherish and protect this resource.

 Thank you for considering my candidacy.  Please reach out to me at

Carol.L.Lowrie@gmail.com if you have any questions or would like more information.  I am

excited about the opportunity to serve the Hancock Community. Thank you for your time,

your consideration and most importantly, YOUR VOTE!

Carol L. Lowrie

                                                                                                            Hancock Planning Board--Ken Emerson (statement)                                                                                                                                 I believe the greatest challenges facing Hancock are the lack of housing that is

affordable and appropriate to the community, and the proliferation of short-term

rentals as demand spills over from Mount Desert and Ellsworth. These challenges

are related, and our small town has limited financial and human resources with

which to meet them. I’m proud to have been one of those resources for three years

as a member and now Secretary of the Planning Board. If reelected, I will continue

to help the board live up to its responsibility not only to protect but improve the

quality of life for all residents of Hancock.

Doug Kimmel, Antonio Blasi (write-in for Associate)

Hancock School Board--Savannah Havey, Crystal Burke

Gouldsboro Selectboard--Jacqui Weaver

 Representative to the House District 12 Norman Bamford, committee Vice Chair, for 2026 Democratic Primary election.
 

From school board and committee member Terry Noyes--Some Sorrento citizens led by this organization have introduced a concept that the town withdraw from RSU 24. https://maine.parentsrightsineducation.com/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0m-75KW-m60c0ktQZhERe4E18MbjOA-alSHnok__7MZnn1RCdC0DTx_Q0_aem_Eu7Hs5YQKUf4qEAp17zLTQ 

From school board and committee member Crystal Burke:

"There is a federal mandate; there needs to be access to free education for children who are unable to attend school for health safety reasons, but Hancock Grammar School is in violation of that mandate. Their environment is still unsafe for students with compromised immune systems.
Now that Covid has been declared no longer a health crisis, remote learning is not being provided and home schooling is very expensive for children below seventh grade. Something needs to happen as there are currently no options for high risk children (emergency legislation to lower the remote ed service age)." 

https://www.bangordailynews.com/2025/02/22/politics/washington/usda-launches-review-of-umaine-for-possible-title-ix-violations/

The Planning Board will convene a Public Hearing on the proposal to rezone a section  North and West of the junction of Maine Route 182 and U.S. Highway 1 from its present zones to the Industrial Zone .  This will allow blasting and processing of the excavated material.
The meeting is scheduled for Thursday April 17,  at 6PM in the Municipal Building

LD 2003: Like It or Lump It

Hancock Planning Board member Ant Blasi raised the following regarding adopting the proposed amendments to the Environmental Control Ordinance that are based on the increased  housing density law, LD 2003, at its August 28 

Public Hearing:

Why we  were putting the cart before the horse by adopting and amending

ordinances before we have a new Comprehensive Plan.    Resident Chris Blodgett said it was important for Town residents to understand where the

designated growth areas are, and how it affects them. Several members of the Planning

Board and the audience stressed the importance of circulating maps that outline the

Designated Growth Areas, although what these areas were, are or will be is uncertain. 

The new regulations passed without a Designated Growth Area in place at an 11/6/24 Town Meeting, with Ant one of 2 voting to oppose these zoning amendments.

 The Code Enforcement Officer should not issue building permits that authorize Designated Growth Area criteria just anywhere in town under a false interpretation that Maine law allows them on any lot,  even when there is no approved Designated Growth Area.

The Planning Board  faces 2 requests from the Selectboard to draft zoning amendments

1.  to add outdoor recreational facilities like miniature golf courses, tennis courts, amusement and theme parks, water slides, zoos/animal parks, race tracks, speedways, motorcycle tracks, and riding stables to the commercial zone on Route One  from Viking to the Ellsworth City Line.  These uses were voted down at the September 15, 2021 Special Town Meeting.   The selectboard has also asked the PB for a rezoning of an area near Tideway Market from Commercial /Residential to Industrial, which would allow blasting/escavating and processing the material on site.

Why is "Paper Roads" controversial?   Regardless of the reason, Grundel was not hired to do the survey and final street grid layout.  This work was done by a local surveyor named Gilbert E Simpson.  Later sections of the development, including Doane’s Pt., are better quality surveys and are referenced on deeds as “The Simpson Plan.”   While the first Simpson Plan and the Grundel Plan for Bean Point are similar, Simpson's was the one used for most real estate transfers and is more detailed, although perhaps less artistic. 

 Grundel's plan shows his ideas for creating sweeping non-linear avenues.  His design concept for several streets radiating like spokes from the top of the hill -- above where the pool is today -- and down to the back bay, are particularly striking.  Perhaps like the Boston commissioners, Grundel's plan was found to be impractical, especially since he seems to have created a plan for pieces of land that Lewis had not yet purchased. 

A discussion of paper 'streets,' appears as of 9/25/24 on Friends of Sorrento Facebook Page: 

The Quietside Journal (published in Mount Desert) posted a warning article

https://open.substack.com/pub/theqsjournal/p/state-peddling-coastal-towns-to-fish?r=iw8pe&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

listing these towns as desired fish farm locations by the state Economic Development department (due to deep water availability): 

Gouldsboro

Hancock

Sorrento