I thought the most useful service I could provide using the Future Freeport platform would be to publish the best arguments pro and con. 

Peter & Kim Murray, who support a NO vote on consolidation, and John Gleason, who favors a YES vote, agreed to let me post their best thinking here. All three are good friends, very smart, deeply knowledgable and passionately engaged in the school consolidation issue. Thanks very much Pete, Kim, John and everyone else involved, not only for these submissions but also for the extraordinary time and effort you’ve devoted to Freeport’s school future.

The following is a compilation of Pete and Kim’s writings on the Freeport Families for Education website. For those wanting to dig deeper, there is more information there.

Please vote NO on school reorganization on November 4th, by Peter and Kim Murray.

I know that we are all fed up with thinking, debating, and agonizing over school consolidation.  But please take a moment to consider this…

The school consolidation plan before us today is not good for any of our residents or our children. The intention of the law is cost savings, however, this plan yields no cost savings.  The consolidation plan clearly states that any administrative cost savings will be offset by the costs of leveling up salaries and creating the new bureaucracy to run the consolidated district. In fact, it will cost more to operate as a consolidated district than the way we do today.

The plan before us hinges on the assumption that 180+ students can be added to the High School with only a $4,000 budget increase per student. By doing this, you end up with an average budget of $8,300 per student at the High School. This represents a lower funding per pupil than any comparable school in Maine.  You can do the math yourself.  The average cost per pupil for schools similar to the proposed consolidated HS is above $10,000.

There are several alternatives to the current consolidation plan, such as consolidating under an equitable cost-sharing arrangement with full disclosure of anticipated increased costs.  Another option is the “Alternative Organization Structure” (maybe something like this) that allows towns to retain local flavor (e.g. choice, separate boards) and yet provides structured approach to unifying curriculum and maximizing cost savings.

At one of the last public meetings, members from the Pownal RPC threatened that if this plan was not approved by the Freeport voters, then Pownal might pull all of their children out of Freeport High School.  Please, let us try to come up with a plan that is fair and prudent.  The current plan, if adopted, will require a renegotiation of the cost sharing system after 3 years of an arbitrary fixed percentage based system.  Do you think it will be easier to conceive of and implement a balanced and enduring arrangement after we are irreversibly merged?  Let’s come up with a cost sharing arrangement before consolidating that is fair and prudent, and can withstand the test of time.

As working parents of three young children, schools that are both good and efficient are of highest importance.  The proposed scheme will both hurt our schools and raise taxes.  How is that good for anyone?  Please vote NO on school reorganization on November 4th.  We have better choices.

Sincerely,
Kim & Peter Murray

The Case Against School Consolidation in Freeport Maine          

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own.

 

Below is a copy of an email I received from John Gleason.

Why I’m Voting Yes for School Consolidation, by John Gleason. 

After a year’s worth of meetings with the Reorganization Planning Committee, and with Election Day finally approaching, I wanted to share my thoughts on the question of consolidating the Freeport, Durham and Pownal school districts. In presenting the RPC’s consolidation plan, we made every effort to do so objectively, outlining the plan’s risks as well its benefits, so that voters could make an informed choice.  We tried to not allow our personal views to slant the presentation of the plan to the voters.  Now, with the public hearing process behind us, people have asked me whether I intend to vote for the consolidation plan.  I am voting to approve the plan.

I was, and remain, very frustrated with the consolidation law, its mandates, and the manner in which it was passed in Augusta. I’ve felt the need, however, to put that frustration aside –the law is on the books until a future Legislature changes it —  in order to consider whether this plan makes sense for Freeport students and their families.

For those of us whose primary goal is the advancement of educational opportunities for our students, there is not an obvious right or wrong answer when it comes to consolidation.  Ironically, while here in Freeport a great deal of energy is being expended on the consolidation question, both the proponents of the plan and its opponents are by and large committed and active advocates for a strong and high-performing school system. I believe the Freeport schools can move forward under either scenario, provided there is the public will and consensus to commit the resources to do so.  In the end, however, I have concluded that a consolidated district provides greater promise of expanded opportunities and more effective expenditures.

I believe the plan we’ve developed is responsible and offers the opportunity to move Freeport and the other districts forward. The governance structure – with six Freeport representatives, three from Durham and two from Pownal –creates a workable board and allows an appropriate voice for each community. With respect to the portion of the overall budget that is determined locally – approximately 15% in additional local monies above the state-mandated portion -  that amount is allocated in a manner that represents a compromise between assigning those costs purely on valuation versus assigning them based entirely on student population. Quickly – and for some perspective, given how the financial plan has been characterized by some – a pure valuation approach would assign 75% of this 15% “additional local money” cost figure to Freeport; an approach based entirely on student population would assign Freeport 59% of this 15% figure; our compromise assigns to Freeport 66% of the 15% of additional local money. If, after 3 years, the communities decide this allocation needs to be adjusted, the plan provides mechanisms to do so.

The administrative savings stemming from the consolidation of these three districts are relatively small, if they exist at all.  If people are expecting that consolidation will reduce their property taxes, they are bound to be disappointed. All three districts have lean and efficient administrations, so it is not surprising that there would not be substantial savings from the combination.  However, even the potential for modest administrative savings cannot be ignored, and it’s possible savings may grow over time.  And striving to achieve those administrative savings – spending our education dollars as wisely and responsibly as we can - - is a necessary step before we ask the public to support enhanced educational programs for our students.

There is no question that additional students will enable us to expand educational offerings.  That was the conclusion of our education subcommittee. As we look to expand offerings in such areas as upper level language and advanced placement courses, that aim is more easily attained – and explained to a public that is questioning school expenditures – if we have the critical mass of students at the high school who would want to pursue those courses. I’ve also observed with frustration, from the vantage point of the School Committee, the elimination of academic and athletic programs as the student population has dropped in recent years. If we stand alone – and potentially even lose Pownal to another district– it will become very challenging, with a declining student population, to deliver the full menu of academic and extra-curricular offerings our students deserve.  Opponents of consolidation have recently asserted that the projected enrollment figures utilized by the RPC are inaccurate and that, according to figures from Augusta, the student population in Freeport will stabilize or moderately increase over the next several years. However, even if we accept the figures of the opponents and project a high school with a Freeport student population in the low 300’s, absent the inclusion of the Pownal and Durham students that will still leave us with a high school enrollment far below our current level of approximately 420. We’ve already had to discontinue freshmen sports teams at our current enrollment level; dropping by another 100 students will pose even greater challenges to the continuation of our current programs, let alone the addition of any new ones.

We’ve anticipated the need for additional teachers in order to maintain current class ratios, and those expenditures are in our financial model.  I would not support a consolidation model that purported to save money by increasing class ratios. Our class ratios, in fact, have been a prime factor behind Durham’s desire to join the Freeport system. I believe we’ve been open and above-board in identifying the need for additional teachers as the student population increases. As for the physical plant, despite the conclusions of the facilities consultant, there still could be a need one day to upgrade the physical plant at the high school as more students arrive.  However, we may have such a need one day, even aside from consolidation, given the age of the older sections of the high school.  In fact, we already have that need when it comes to athletic field space. As we’ve seen from a presentation before the School Committee this fall, Freeport already has a pressing need for additional athletic fields to accommodate our students, and consolidation will add to those demands.  In the end, however, I believe the three communities would support those capital expenditures, as the needs arise, in order to enhance the opportunities for the students in all three towns.  

Consolidation, as with any merger, takes a certain leap of faith, because you have to trust your neighboring communities (as well as your own) to support the goal of a high performing school district.  As I have worked with leaders from Pownal and Durham, not only have I enjoyed them personally, but more importantly, I am impressed and reassured by their strong commitment to high quality schools.  I have pestered them – probably too much – that the real promise of consolidation in these three communities lies not in administrative savings but in the ability to enhance educational programs.  When it came time to submit the plan to the State, I asked the RPC to commit (granted, a non-binding commitment, as the decision must be made by the new regional board) that savings realized from consolidation would be dedicated primarily to improving educational programs and opportunities.  The RPC – every member from all three towns - voted unanimously to do so. 

We also would do well to learn from the students, as they often are ahead of us on these things.  I was impressed that when the first Durham freshmen arrived at the high school this fall, and class officer elections were held, the freshmen elected as their president and vice president two students from Durham, and a class secretary from Pownal.  That told me that despite misgivings in the three towns as to whether this consolidation makes sense, the students were comfortable and confident in welcoming the new students into the high school community.

John Gleason

I’m sure there are many other points of view to be added to this discussion. Please use the comments to chime in. Above all, please be sure to vote. 

On quite a few measures, the now famous Alaskan town and Freeport, Maine are remarkably alike. Wasilla’s population of 9,780 just passed Freeport’s 8,192 (2007 numbers). Municipal budgets, taking into account they don’t pay for schools, are darn close. Median household income in Wasilla is $53,792 to Freeport’s $52,023. Both towns have produced female Presidents of their respective State Senates. Perhaps we’ll look back someday and say both were the hometowns of their state’s first female Governors. (What do you say, Beth?) (Data sources from Wikipedia for Wasilla here and Freeport here.)

But there are differences too, and I’m not just talking about sprawl, meth and their backstabbing political culture. 

Wasilla isn’t bigger than Freeport. They just think bigger. They’re unafraid of hiring lobbyists to go to Washington to get earmarks ($27 million worth from 96 to 02), making them the highest per capita recipients of federal dollars in the nation. When it comes to massive federally funded transportation projects, their ambitions, shall we say, aren’t small. 

All of which has got me thinking: why not us? (Don’t worry, I’m not going to suggest we connect Wolfe’s Neck and Winslow Park by bridge, though that would at least be a bridge to somewhere.)

I wonder whether we in Freeport get trapped in a mindset of small town Maine, confined by our state’s stifling local funding model and reduced to incremental ideas like shutting Town Hall on Fridays to save $3000 per year.

OK, so maybe this isn’t exactly primetime for lining up at the federal earmarks trough. But there are still lots of opportunities for bigger thinking for Freeport that can advance our town, help our economy and benefit our people. Here’s just one.

Rising energy costs are very likely to be the greatest financial challenge we’ll face as a town this winter and probably forevermore. We’re holding workshops and reaching out to our neighbors–all good, important, laudable work, but not game changing. Meanwhile, around the country, innovative communities are profoundly impacting the energy crisis by using the power of the municipality to make alternative sources of energy more accessible to their citizens. 

The simple but brilliant concept is to use the property tax as the source of long term financing for energy efficiency and solar projects. These programs–Annapolis, MD’s EZ (Energy Zone) Program, Berkeley, CA’s Sustainable Resources Energy Financing Project and the City of Palm Desert, CA’s Energy Independence Program authorize the municipality to pay the up-front costs for energy efficiency improvements and installation of solar energy systems. Property owners then repay the cost of these installations, which can be as much as $30,000, over 20 years through a special fee on their property tax bill. The Berkeley program applies to both residential and commercial properties.

It’s genius. The property owner gets total choice about whether the value is worth the tax increase. The additional fee remains tied to the property, the value of which has been permanently increased by energy independence. Freeport, in time, becomes one of the most energy efficient communities in Maine, which is a great thing for overall values in town. Just imagine the high wage job creation for all the projects this would generate, from solar electric and water installations to more basic (but equally valuable) insulation and house tightening improvements.

What do you say? Doesn’t this seem like the kind of initiative where Freeport could lead Maine?

As I write this, folks are camped out awaiting today’s opening of Maine’s first Apple Store at the Maine Mall Sprawl. OK, I knew in May when I wrote 6 Reasons Why Freeport is a Better Location for an Apple Store that the odds for Freeport were on the order of a lottery ticket. Still, to me, Apple remains precisely the type of innovative retailer that Freeport needs and that we hoped the new Freeport Village Station would attract.

The Apple post generated a healthy number of public comments, which you can read here,  and lots of private emails that reminded me again of the perception challenges that Freeport faces. (For more on the perception topic, my What the World is Saying about Freeport Maine post is one of the most commented on so far.) Listening to what people had to say, three key themes came through:

1. Freeport is only for recreational, tourist shopping, not considered purchases like a computer. “Tourists aren’t going to buy a computer while on vacation.”

I don’t know the data, though I’m sure it’s true that a substantial amount of Freeport’s traffic is the requisite L.L. Bean drive by for every out of state visitor to Maine. Clearly, though, Freeport has its success stories of companies that are not primarily tourist driven, like Thomas Moser Furniture, Brown Goldsmiths and Chilton’s. We’ve got to figure out how to shed the “tourists only” rap.

2. Access and parking in Freeport is perceived to be worse than traditional malls. “In Freeport, it’s park a quarter mile away, walk for 15 minutes - often up a steep hill and outside in inclement weather - brave your way across an extremely busy street filled with poor drivers, and battle throngs of tourists who don’t know L.L. Bean from their behinds.”

This, as we’d say in software development, is a known bug. The new parking garage within Freeport Village Station is part of the solution. But in these comments and in the other streams of information I monitor about Freeport, this is a very real issue. A comprehensive transportation strategy for Freeport (that I wrote about here) has to tackle the perception challenges as well as the infrastructure.

3. Not everyone percieves the sprawl of the Maine Mall negatively. “At the Mall it’s park, walk in, buy, walk out.”

The ugliness and inconvenience of uncontrolled sprawl will keep some away from traditional mall zones, but it alone isn’t enough to steal a share of that traffic to Freeport.  This points to how critical it is to forge a highly differentiated positioning strategy (more on that topic here) as this town evolves–a  compelling case for Freeport beyond the suckiness of the growing mess of traditional megamall areas.

When the town agreed to support the Freeport Village Station retail development and parking garage with tax increment financing (in full disclosure I supported this TIF), we hoped and expected this project would be a game changer. Just the ticket to attracting a new and exciting category of retail stores like the Apple’s of the world. The developer, Berenson Associates, most definitely deserves our patience as they try to bring the project to market in this horrible economy, but it is hard not to be disappointed with the announced tenants so far. (There have been no new announcements, to my knowledge, since Nike, Brooks Brothers, L.L. Bean’s Outlet Store, Calvin Klein, Izod, Van Heusen and Geoffrey Bean were unveiled last March. There are 40 total store and restaurant locations in the project.)

The pitch for Apple had low probablity, for sure, but it highlights the work we have to do.

The new L.L. Bean Fall Men's catalog cover

It is a big big deal for any company in the formulaic catalog business to make a radical change in their book design. With their new Fall Men’s catalog, L.L. Bean has completely upended their conventional (but clearly time tested) model in favor of a fresh, bold, exciting new design. Speaking from squarely in the center of the target demographic, I say bravo. (The online version is here. Free catalog signup is here.)

We were away at camp for the Labor Day weekend with a bunch of friends and there was a copy kicking around. Not everyone loved it, but it achieved one of the critical goals of great design–to get noticed. Amidst all the talk of Barack, Sarah, Bristol and Gustav, we somehow found ourselves debating….a men’s clothing catalog.

The most notable and, I would venture to guess, controversial move is the alteration of the traditional L.L. Bean logo. It looks to be true to the core Bean typeface, but is presented large at the top of the page, in the style of a magazine. Amongst the clutter of our mail, it immediately stood out. Something’s different here. With an evocative road trip photo and a vintage Toyota Land Cruiser (my first car), I was immediately drawn to check it out.

The inside is equally fresh–continuing the road trip theme throughout and using some visually interesting and very useful information graphics to convey color choice and features. The photography is dynamic and it does a nice job overall of maintaining the cross-country story line. The models are hunky and unshaven. In place of the standard issue Golden Retreiver? Yes, a mutt! And, in defiance of the dense layouts typical of mature catalogs, there are lots of full bleed images and several spreads with only two products. Plenty of breathing room.

Interesting, useful information graphics and plenty of white space

Strewn throughout is a series of  1-2-3 How To illustrations –”Predict the Weather”, “Stay Alert on the Road”, “Teach a Dog to Catch a Frisbee.” They are sort of funny, bordering on irreverent perhaps (a bit of a contradiction to the old “Store That Knows the Outdoors” tag) but I confess I read every one.

The first place I heard about the new catalog was on the blog of the revered design firm Pentagram that worked with the company on the redesign. The particular blog post seems to have been taken down sometime last week (this is the original link in case it comes back); in classically arrogant fashion it described how dumb the client was before they got the Pentagram religion. Still, the work is good and it is a statement in and of itself that L.L. Bean would use a purist, high-brow design firm like Pentagram for this assignment.

For Freeporters who keep eye on mother Bean, it is a sign the company isn’t as stodgy as you might think.

The post I wrote about strengthening locally-owned businesses in Freeport (A Citizen Marketing Campaign to Boost the Freeport, Maine Economy) clearly struck a chord with people. Lots of great public and private comments from business owners, and plenty of residents excited about trying to help with the concept of a Local’s Guide to Freeport, ME. I continue to think that a concerted effort at promoting our locally-owned businesses is one way to assure a future economy for Freeport, ME that benefits residents and positions our town as unique and different for visitors.

So over the course of the last couple blogless weeks (my apologies–it’s summer and I’m a little busy at work), I’ve been observing web search patterns as they relate to local Freeport businesses. This post looks at opportunities within search engine marketing (SEM), as one element of an overall marketing campaign to boost locally-owned Freeport businesses.

Someone may know the stats on the percentage of visitors to Freeport that do internet research before their trip, but judging from the general web trends within the vacation and hospitality categories, it is fair to assume it is significant. With the proliferation of smart phones, more people are researching while on their way or once they’re here. For any locally-owned business seeking to capitalize on this traffic, a successful web presence, and particular attention to how web searchers find you, will be well worth some time and effort.

Here are my initial thoughts on some basic web and search engine marketing tactics locally-owned Freeport businesses (as well as citizens who wish to support them) can follow. These make take some time, but all can be achieved at no cost.

1. Claim your business on the major local search engines–Google and Yahoo. Google Local (the same thing as Google Maps) and Yahoo Local remain the dominant players. Everyone searching Google who uses a locationally-based term will generally get Google Maps as a top search result. The opportunity to be in the top position with a direct link to your business is huge, but if you haven’t taken control of your own listing, chances are that link won’t be right. Claim your business on Google here. Claim your business on Yahoo Local here.

2. Keep watch on other local directory aggregators, both old and new. The local search war has been and will always be one of the web’s wildest categories. I’m not expert enough in the local search game to recommend these, but there are many sites both old school (local.com, citysearch, yellowpages, insiderpages, etc) and new school (Yelp, Merchant Circle, Kudzu, Angies List, Smalltown and many more). Fundamentally, these business models are trying to rank for search on your business name, and you don’t want to lose that to anyone. Of these, I cautiously recommend checking out Yelp. It takes a social networking slant with user reviews, has very strong traffic, is one of the most popular iPhone applications and has some traction within Freeport. Yelp has strength: a review of Buck’s Naked I wrote on Yelp is currently ranking higher for the search term “bucks freeport me” than Buck’s own site. The place to list your business on Yelp is here.

3. Engage your customers by asking them to write reviews. Within the local search category, user reviews are increasingly critical. Most of the local search engines are displaying user reviews with your listing. And while I can’t prove this, the Google algorithm likes engagement, so I suspect that businesses with higher levels of user engagement will rank better. In my research, the review engines that are most important for Freeport businesses are Google, Yahoo, TripAdvisor and Yelp. These get aggregated across many of the other local search sites. Residents of town can help by taking a little time occasionally to review your favorite local businesses on these sites.

4. Check your listing on FreeportUSA.com. If your business is listed on the Freeport Merchant’s Association site, make sure it is accurate. I’ve come across a number that have incorrect, non-existent or bad links. Keep in mind that until you’ve established your own web presence, the inherent strength of freeportusa.com, given its age, traffic and pagerank, is likely to siphon your traffic.

5. Get your own web presence. If you don’t yet have a site, you should. It is critical to winning search traffic and the best way to communicate with the world about your business. The Derosier’s website, IMO, is a great example of a local business site that is simple but conveys a great story. You need something, and it is better to have a couple pages live than to wait to launch the sophisticated website of your dreams.

6. Consider a blog to support your website. The White Cedar Inn Blog and the Freeport Cheese & Wine Blog are two businesses in town that are effectively using this alternative publishing platform to capture traffic. Search engines tend to rank blog content high, so they are an excellent way to capture traffic around secondary search terms. For example, on the search term “l.l. bean concert series,” White Cedar Inn is in position #4 and Future Freeport Blog is in position #6. Beyond search, a blog is a great way to maintain an ongoing dialogue with customers and the community.

There’s much much more to say on this topic. Please let me know in the comments if you have other thoughts and especially if you find posts like this to be useful. Thanks.

P.S. Adam Nappi and I hatched an idea to get together some evening with laptops to write local business reviews. Wendy Caisse at Buck’s has agreed to host us. We’re working on a date. If you are interested, send me an email at ptroast at gmail dot com.

P.S.S. I’ve been continuing to add businesses to the Local’s Guide to Freeport, ME Google Map. Traffic to it is growing nicely. But it still isn’t a complete list. Please take a look and let me know what locally-owned businesses I’m missing.

A comment this morning from Phil, one of the family members carrying forward the 5 generation phenomenon that is Desrosier’s, reminded me that this is off to a great start. In gratitude to the people who have engaged in Future Freeport, now seems like a good time to highlight some of the great comments people have contributed so far.

Here are a few of my favorites:

At the end of the day Freeport is still a small town of 7500 people and therein lies both its limitations AND its charm. You see, Freeport doesn’t have to pretend to be authentic - it is, you just need to look around. Phil

While shopping may be the goose that lays the golden egg, Freeport has far more to offer. These other facets of Freeport can only enliven and enrich the Freeport experience for visitor and resident alike. The result is an improved economy for all. If this is, as you say, a knuckleheaded opinion, I want you to know that there are many of us knuckleheads around that share those thoughts, so you needn’t feel alone.  Dick Collins, Freeport Merchants Association.

What separates Freeport shopping from Kittery shopping? Are we just another outlet shopping desitnation on the coast of Maine or are we headed in another direction? I am a big fan of the Portland Buy Local movement, Freeport seem miles apart. Freeport seems more aligned with Kittery. John “Jake” Jaques

So how can Freeport strengthen its brand by re-asserting its diversity and authenticity? I think that Main Street needs a major storefront presence that clearly serves the locals’ quotidian needs. A library, for instance - but you already have one of those. How about a Reny’s? Or even a Rite Aid - ANYTHING that serves Freeport’s downtown residents inexpensively would also send a valuable message to tourists that this is still a real, functioning village center, that serves real people.  Christian

I’m with you 100% regarding Buck’s. National chains cheapen Freeport’s experience. I am concerned about the scale of the new parking garage. The energy and resources that went into that project may have served Freeport better had it integrated a future train station. Dan

I had (almost) exactly the same thoughts when I read about the Apple store’s move to the Mall area - the only difference in my reaction being that I thought Apple belonged in downtown Portland instead. I’m a devoted Apple customer, but I will never visit their store if they locate in the Maine Mall area. C Neal

I think this is a great conversation to continue…I do think it is time to consider the genuine local community in Freeport. Enabling true community by encouraging independent businesses, widening our scope of bike and walking accessible destinations and making our public schools the highest priority will provide the framework for prosperity and true community. Naomi C O Beal

Isnt Freeport already tipped dangerously toward being a “lifestyle center”? (That phrase makes me shiver.) DeRosiers, Bow Street Market, Azure, and a handful of other local businesses are all that stand between Freeport and mini-mall status. How can we help nudge our town the other way? Jenny Melville

Lots of people have chimed in privately in email (and I’ll protect their identities) but have been inspirational to me in keeping this going:

The paragraph that stung me the most was this one:

With the tremendous success of L.L. Bean, Freeport has become a town dedicated to one thing: shopping. Shops on the town’s main street are now almost all outlet stores or lunch places for shoppers. This is part of the downside of big-time success in a small town. Where once there were hardware stores and grocery shops, now there are discount socks and polo shirts. The saddest case is probably the elegant old town library, built by Carnegie in 1906. It now houses an Abercrombie & Fitch outlet store. So if you need a book or a hammer or a gallon of milk, you might be out of luck in today’s Freeport.

As I’ve written before, our brand is whatever people perceive it to be, and while I don’t mean to fan the flames of negativity, it’s important to understand what others, particularly influential writers and bloggers, say about our town. Brutal, honest clarity about how your brand is perceived has to be the starting place for changing it.

Brands are stories. When they’re told repeatedly, they gain traction. Freeport’s story, from the perspective of the visitor/outsider, seems indelibly stuck in “L.L. Bean, outlets, lobster.” I’ve been  trying to make the point on this blog that there is a richer, deeper, and much more compelling way to frame the Freeport experience. In the comment I left on the Blogging Stocks post, here’s my attempt at that pitch:

Up here in Freeport, we’re grateful for the attention, but I’m afraid you’ve mis-characterized our town. Yes, in the one block immediately surrounding L.L. Bean, a variety of national retailers have flocked here to seize on that traffic. But overall Freeport remains a one-of-a-kind national and local retail mix, set in a historic Maine village, that will never be replicated by the trendy but vapid “lifestyle center” malls.

Within the walkable Village core surrounding the Bean campus you will find: a 105 year old sandwich and ice cream market run by the  same family for 5 generations; the town’s high school and early elementary school; the Bow Street Market–a locally owned and operated grocery and butcher shop; the Harraseeket Inn–a hotel with two restaurants that has been the state’s pioneer in sourcing locally-grown organic produce; at least 10 restaurants, none of which are chains, with eclectic choices well beyond lobster; and, coming soon, an Amtrak Station on the Downeaster Line that will drop passengers off in the heart of the Village. (OK, Freeport Hardware is located just outside the core village.)

All of us bristle at the idea of Abercrombie in the old library, but the reality is that building is about as practical for modern library needs as the one room school house. So the new library moved just down the road. Thanks to the Freeport Historical Society’s vigilance, and strict planning rules, all of the original buildings have been preserved, even if their tenants aren’t, well, historically relevant.

Within Freeport, there is an emerging Buy Local movement that  clearly understands the 3-4X economic value of local businesses to the local economy versus the chains. More is written about this on the Future Freeport Blog and on the Local’s Guide to Freeport Maine.

And, while your point about diversity in Maine and Freeport is a fair one (but evolving too), don’t let the subtlety of that reference mislead anyone: the Onion originated “boycott” of L.L. Bean is a parody, a funny one to be sure, but a JOKE.

Look me up when you are back here next and we’d happily show you the other side of Freeport, ME.

Peter Troast

You can see the story I’m trying to tell: much more than Bean and outlets, genuine, authentic, local, historic, one-of-a-kind. I’m just one knucklehead with a point of view, so please chime in and help shape this story.

All this raises that question of who’s in charge. Companies have teams of people charged with stewarding their brands. Good ones, when their brands get attacked, have constant monitoring, clear brand platforms that guide them and rapid response programs.

When a town is a brand, and a brand is a town, who is responsible for stewardship?

Note: I know a great many local people reading this fundamentally agree with the Blogging Stocks writer. The local perspective on Freeport is another topic I’m thinking about and expect to write more on as Future Freeport evolves.

One thing I think we can all agree on is supporting locally-owned businesses.

There is quite a lot of research on the economic impact of locally-owned businesses vs. chain stores. The Institute for Local Self-Reliance looked at this issue for Rockland and Belfast and found that for every $100 spent at a local business, $45 remained in the local economy. For chains, only $14 of $100 remained. Many other benefits are outlined in their excellent report, “10 Reasons Why Maine’s Homegrown Economy Matters”, (click here to download the pdf) which was partially funded by L.L. Bean.

Putting on my marketing hat, I’m of the opinion that Freeport’s unique mix of national retailers and locally-owned shops is one of the critical competitive differentiators that will assure our future success. I wrote about this in more detail in my Think Different post.

There is a vibrant Buy Local movement sweeping the country that is having a real impact. The Portland Buy Local campaign has catalyzed the Portland community around independent businesses. Owners I’ve spoken to report the impact has been tangible. They’ve shown that small shifts in the proportion of shopping dollars going to local businesses can have a big economic impact. Freeport may want to consider replicating what Portland and hundreds of other communities around the country have done by forming a Buy Local organization. But, in the meantime, I think there is a more efficient and less time-intensive way to make a strong impact.

In our community, the opportunity is greater than just Freeport residents doing more shopping at local Freeport stores. The real upside for us, I think, is in helping to guide the 3.5 million visitors coming here to spend more of their shopping dollars at local businesses. Everybody wants local advice. Where’s the best chowder? The best place to stay? Where can I get one-of-a-kind Maine-made crafts?

So this morning I created a Google Map called Local’s Guide to Freeport, Maine. On it, I’ve begun (just barely) to add a few of my favorite local businesses. I’ve also co-located this map on a permanent Local’s Guide page here on Future Freeport. Then, from the links on the map, I used Google’s review functionality to write reviews on two of them–click these links to see my reviews of the Bow Street Market and Buck’s Naked BBQ. (In Google, my identity is PT.)

Want to join this effort? Here’s what you can do:

1. Help me build the list of local businesses. Add your list here in comments or send them to me in email and I’ll add them to the map. (Alternatively, if you’d like to get more involved, let me know and I’ll add you to the map as a collaborator.) My working definition of a “locally-owned business” borrowed from Portland, is here.

2. Write some reviews. Anyone with a Google account can write reviews. It took 10 minutes to write those two. There are few marketing weapons as powerful as user-generated reviews and none that I can think of that have as much impact and authority as local people reviewing local businesses. It won’t take many people writing one review/day to make a big difference.

3. Spread the word about the Local’s Guide to Freeport, Maine. The more people who visit the map, link to it and bookmark it, the more likely it will rise to the top in search. If we can get this map to be more prominent in searches for “Freeport, Maine” the impact could be huge.

4. Share your ideas in the comments. I’ve only scratched the surface of all the cool things that can be done with Google Maps. If you have ideas, GIS or other skills and want to help, that would be great.

As ever, let me know what you think.

Links and Resources:

Business Alliance for Local Living Economies

American Independent Business Alliance

Portland Buy Local

Local Harvest

Institute for Local Self-Reliance

First, let me say how grateful I am for all the positive feedback and encouragement I’ve received from everyone about Future Freeport. It appears I’ve tapped a nerve that lots of people in town are thinking about.

Some of the private questions I’ve been getting in emails:

What is the best way to read Future Freeport and, in particular, to know when there is a new post?

How do comments work and will my email address be exposed publicly?

In response, I’ve created a permanent “For New Readers” page that answers these questions. (And, no, your email address won’t be shown publicly.)

Comments Please (the “me” part).

It’s been said that “a blog is a conversation.” That is my primary hope for Future Freeport. The point of the posts I’ve written–about avoiding chain restaurants, attracting the right quality retailers and positioning Freeport for the new transportation reality–is to encourage discussion. For something that’s only been alive for a few weeks, I’m pleased with the response so far. I’ve heard from lots of people, but most of those comments have been in email, on the phone or in person. They aren’t, therefore, part of the permanent record of the blog and aren’t accessible for the community of readers to see. So, please take a moment to add your thoughts in the comment section.

(Full details about my commenting policy and answers to you privacy questions are on the For New Readers Page.)

Thanks much.

Howard Kunstler or one of the other Peak Oil crazies?

Nope.

These are the words of Angus King. And the oil price prediction? That is from the radical environmentalists at Goldman Sachs.

In the words of my 13 year old…holy crap.

Not exactly a rosy future scenario for a town economy built on 3.5 million tourists per year virtually all of whom arrive here by automobile.

So what do we do?

We need, IMO, a Marshall Plan-like effort at Transit-oriented Development (TOD)–the planning world’s name for communities anchored around an alternative transportation hub. And, to ratchet this idea up a notch or two, we need to position Freeport nationally as one of the country’s premier Transit-Oriented Destinations–a place you can get to without a car and, upon arrival, where you can move around without one.

The good news, thanks to the genius of historic village settlement patterns, is that we have many of the core assets required of TOD’s and Transit Villages–a walkable core village, most of our development concentrated in a center and, soon, a train. Still, there a number of steps we can be taking now to position ourselves for this pending future.

1. Getting ready for the train and doing it right.

All continues to go well for the Downeaster train to be extended north to Freeport and Brunswick within the next few years. First priority is station location: it should be on Depot Street near the Hose Tower Information Center. (TOD experts say a .25 mile or 5 minute walk is the critical radius; by my calcs, the new L.L. Bean Hunting & Fishing Store is just short of that distance; the Bow Street Market just a bit farther.) Next is doing the station right. The Downeaster will only provide a platform. I think, over time, we’ll recognize that a station experience that makes a statement will be important. (In Saco, they’re thinking big about their new station–clock tower, powered by wind, heated by geothermal.) Obviously, we have to figure out how to fund it, and perhaps it evolves over time, but we should be planning for a building that elevates the arrival experience and is architecturally significant.

2. Alternative transportation within town.

Within town, we need a shuttle system for getting around outside the walkable core that alleviates the need for a car. If you’ve ever been to Sugarloaf, there’s your model. From the crack of dawn to the last bar closing, you can catch a free shuttle anywhere in Carrabassett Valley. With a great system in place, those arriving by car can leave it on the outskirts of town. Perception problems about parking and accessibility are alleviated. (Just imagine the competitive advantage over Kittery and the Maine Mall Sprawl, for example.) And town residents begin to feel that the village is no longer given over exclusively to tourists. Perhaps most critically, a successful and regular shuttle system would allow us reclaim precious acres of land in the core village we currently sacrifice to parking lots.

3. Focusing future development within the core village.

With a laser focus on TOD, we should become more vigilant about assuring that people-centered development be concentrated in the core. Ultimately, the success of Freeport as a transit-oriented destination rests on the breadth and depth of the experience we provide within the walkable village. Long sought after amenities, like movie theaters, additional restaurants and other draws should be in the village rather than Route One South. Zoning changes should be carefully considered if, in any way, they encourage development that could be downtown from locating elsewhere. And the pedestrian experience from the train station, which the great folks at the Freeport Community Improvement Association have stewarded so well throughout the rest of town, needs to become a top priority. (Berenson–have you considered that 15 years from now the front door of Village Station might be the side facing the train station?)

4. Positioning Freeport as a Transit-oriented Destination.

Even if the Maine future Angus predicts is only half right, the prospects for communities and businesses dependent on destination travel aren’t especially rosy. We’ll know a lot more about the impact of $4/gallon gas after this summer, but I suspect all of Maine will look back on this tourist season as an ugly barometer of the new world order to come. (Have you heard the new term “staycation”? Yikes.) But I am a marketer and I know that getting Freeport positioned correctly ahead of the curve will pay future benefits. An aggressive plan to become the premier transit-oriented destination is extremely newsworthy and can generate lots of buzz–low-cost, high-impact marketing that will build the Freeport brand. (BTW–did you notice how many times in this post I’ve written “transit-oriented destination”? Give it a week or so and let’s see how Google responds…)

5. Aggressively competing for transportation funds.

I’m sure many reading this are saying, “WTF Troast, Freeport can barely afford $48K for a decent math program in our schools.” A very fair point. But crises create change, and I believe radical shifts in how and what gets funded in the arena of transportation are on the way. At every level of government, the balance of transportation dollars going to alternative forms versus roads has to change. The car-centric largess of dinosaurs like the Maine Turnpike Turnpork Authority (LOL credit C Neal) will eventually come to an end. As funding dollars shift, Freeport needs to be at the front of the line, with great projects and strong rationale. And that means starting now.

Most communities can only dream of an existing train line through a walkable village. This is a unique moment in time for Freeport. Let’s seize it.

Additional Links & Resources

Very good MaineBiz article by Sara Donnelly about the train and Brunswick’s aggressive TOD plans.

Transit Oriented Development Website

Transit Villages Website

Rights of Way transportation blog