Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE – The Aroostook Centre Mall may be known for the various businesses and vendors shoppers can peruse on any given day, and special events in the food court – such as karaoke with “Fireman Fred” – offer weary shoppers a chance to enjoy a bite to eat while being entertained. But now the mall has the distinction of being recognized as a good neighbor as well, recently being presented with the Landowner of the Year Award during a ceremony in Augusta.
“The Aroostook Centre Mall was selected to be recognized as Landowner of the Year. The nomination for the award was made by the Presque Isle Snowmobile Club,” said Game Warden Captain Joel Wilkinson, of the Landowner Relations Program.
Wilkinson congratulated Patti Crooks, manager of the mall, in a letter prior to the Oct. 16 award ceremony.
“Thanks for being such a cooperative landowner. All landowners in the state appreciate your commitment to all outdoor recreational activities,” wrote Wilkinson.
PISC President John Graves had nominated the mall for a number of reasons, including the development of a connector between the mall parking lot and the recreational trail located behind the mall. In his application, Graves recognized Crooks’ history of supporting recreational activities.
“Patti Crooks-Parsons has been supporting the snowmobile industry for years. As a mall manager in other parts of Maine, she supported local clubs by being a business member and assisting with trails near her places of business,” said Graves in his application.
The connector was completed last year and dedicated to Mark McKenney, a local snowmobiler who died in a recreational accident over a year ago. Graves recognized Crooks’ dedication and commitment to such projects.
“This support reached a new level during the past year. Two years ago, with the sale and demise of Hoyt’s Cinema located on the east end of the mall complex, we lost our trail to the south side of Maysville Street. This trail was important as it provided local access to the major trail system for many residences in the area,” said Graves.
The trail, according to Graves, also provided snowmobilers access to businesses along North Main Street, including food and fuel for riders approaching from the ITS system. It also served as a convenient route for riders to access the mall’s businesses.
“When our club approached Patti with an idea for a ramp from ITS Trail 88 – the railroad bed behind the mall – to access the parking lot at the mall, Patti was very willing to cooperate and, indeed, spearheaded the planning and construction of the new ramp,” said Graves.
Crooks was able to convince her corporate partners of the project’s value and contributed funds for planning, engineering and permitting of the ramp, Graves said. A partnership was developed between the mall, Soderberg Construction of Caribou, the Presque Isle Water District and the Presque Isle Snowmobile Club and the ramp was built.
“The club erected a safety fence, signs and trail markers were put in place to make sure that snowmobile and mall traffic could co-exist in safety,” said Graves.
Graves said Crooks was “instrumental in commemorating the opening of the new ramp as a memorial ‘trail head’ in memory of Mark McKenney, an avid snowmobiler who was tragically killed a year ago in February in a snowmobiling accident.”
“Mark’s widow had worked for Patti as a receptionist in her mall office,” explained Graves.
With the construction of the connector, outdoor enthusiasts can now access the mall and businesses on the north end of Main Street.
“Snowmobilers not only can access what Presque Isle trails have to offer in the mall area, but they can use the mall parking lot as a ‘park and ride thanks to the new ramp,” said Graves.
On hand for the Oct. 16 ceremony in Augusta were Bob Meyers, from the Maine Snowmobile Association; Dan Mitchell, from Maine ATV; and Commissioner Roland “Danny” Martin and staff who presented awards to both private and corporate property owners who allow access to their property for outdoor enthusiasts to enjoy year-round.
“Since 1996, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife has recognized 57 landowners in one of four categories for their contributions to the enhancement of outdoor recreation by allowing public access to private land. The categories include: Private Landowner of 100 Acres or Less, Private Landower of 100 Acres or More, Corporate Landowner and Municipal Landowner,” said Mark Latti, spokesperson for IF&W.
Over the past year, the Maine Warden Service’s Landowner Relations Program distributed over 500 nomination forms throughout the state to a variety of outdoor recreational clubs and associations, said Latti. From there, a selection committee was then convened and a four-person panel reviewed several nominations.
“This year, seven separate landowners received awards in three of the four categories,” said Latti.
The 2006 award recipients include: Private Landowner 100 Acres or Less, David and Betsey White of Andover, nominated by Snow Valley Sno-Goers; Private Landowner 100 Acres or More, Alden Mingo, Robbinston, nominated by Robbinston Bushwacker ATV Club; Private Landower 100 Acres or More, Robert Wilson, Lee, nominated by Lee Mogul Pounders, Inc.; Private Landowner 100 Acres or More, Downeast Lakes Land Trust of Grand Lake Stream, nominated by Grand Lake Snowmobile Club; Corporate Landowner, Aroostook Centre LLC, of Presque Isle, nominated by Presque Isle Snowmobile Club; Corporate Landower, Robbins Lumber, Incorporated, Searsmont; nominated by MidCoast ATV Club; and Corporate Landowner, River Bank Capital, Jeff Albert, president, of Madawaska, nominated by Madawaska Snowmobile Club.
According to Latti, the focus of the award is to provide awareness and recognize landowners who provide public access to private land for all outdoor recreation.
“This includes snowmobiling, riding all terrain vehicles, fishing, hunting, trapping, camping, hiking, skiing and general outdoor use and access to the state’s natural resources,” said Latti.
Wilkinson said the relationship between landowners and recreational trail users is very important.
“These individuals and nominating associations are a model of the strong landowner-user relationships needed to ensure public access to private land. The users are responsible outdoor enthusiasts that believe in ‘asking first’ and then conducting themselves in a manner that reflects stewardship of the land they are provided the privilege to access,” said Wilkinson.
Landowners, according to Wilkinson, recognize there are responsible users out there and that partnerships benefit all involved.
“The landowner in return recognizes they have responsible user groups and individuals utilizing, maintaining and providing extra care and watch over their land against unlawful abuse and misuse. These partnerships benefit all of us who engage in these outdoor activities and care about the future of our recreation,” said Wilkinson.
Photo courtesy of Fred Parsons
THE AROOSTOOK CENTRE Mall, of Presque Isle, was recently recognized as Landowner of the Year during a ceremony in Augusta on Oct. 16. Pictured, from left: Bob Meyer, president of the Maine Snowmobile Association; Fred Parsons; Patti Crooks-Parsons, general manager of the Aroostook Centre Mall; John Graves, president of the Presque Isle Snowmobile Club; Major Greg Sanborn, of the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife; and Commissioner Danny Martin, of the DIF&W. 
