Plan looks to recreation, tourism
to attract people to Mars Hill
GOING OVER DETAILS from notes on a proposed Comprehensive Plan for the town of Mars Hill are resident Steve Hitchcock and Town Manager Dan McClung.
The plan would help set guidelines for ways to increase interest in the community and grow the population, including focusing on recreation and tourism as ways to attract more people and businesses to the community.
Staff Writer
MARS HILL — Town officials are working to make Mars Hill an even better place to work and live, through the updating of a comprehensive plan.
“It’s taken a couple years to convince folks a revision was needed. The last time the plan was done was in 1992,” said Steve Hitchcock, a Mars Hill citizen who’s taken a keen interest in the project.
Hitchcock said typically the state likes to see communities update their plans about every 10 years or so. After discussing the issue with Town Manager Dan McClung, Hitchcock said they agreed it was time to update it.
“The population is about 1,500, about the same as it was in 1992. We haven’t lost but we haven’t gained. Dan and I feel it’s time to see if we can increase that number,” he said.
Hitchcock said over the course of several years, there’s been a number of changes in the community.
“We’ve seen a shift from home owners to renters, with a higher proportion of apartments. There’s also been a shift in 30 years from small independent farms to fewer farmers and larger farms. We are a predominantly agricultural community,” said Hitchcock.
The men have been looking at the town’s assets, looking for ways to promote Mars Hill.
“Our school system is one of our best assets. We’d like to see the school population grow through such efforts as with Bridgewater. Since their school closed, they’ve contracted with Mars Hill,” he said.
Increasing the population by a third, or 500 residents to 2,000, would also encourage more businesses and services to be located here, said Hitchcock.
“With a larger population, we could have things like a dentist, lawyer, physical therapist in town. We could have more if we had more residents,” he said.
Other pluses include The Aroostook Medical Center’s facility which specializes in caring for senior citizens, the golf course, Big Rock ski area, Appalachian Trail, the wind farm, stores including Mars Hill IGA and Family Dollar Store, proximity to recreational trails, the Prestile Stream/pond and a new fire station. Mars Hill also serves as the intersection for two major traffic arteries in Aroostook County — Routes 1 and 1A. The town also has Pineland Farms/Naturally Potatoes which employs about 95 people, while the schools employ around 90 and the trucking/potato brokers employ nearly 70 individuals.
The town’s infrastructure is also a positive selling point, with recent improvements made to the drinking water supply and sewage system.
“The real reason we’re doing the Comprehensive Plan is we want Mars Hill to be a vibrant, viable community in the future. We want to proactively think about and involve as many people in the process of coming up with plans for what Mars Hill should be in the future,” he said.
Hitchcock said there’s a lot of opportunity for growth, including especially at Mars Hill Mountain.
“There’s a lot more opportunity to tap into at the mountain. Recreation and tourism are two drivers for future growth,” said Hitchcock.
“Our Town Council’s pro-business. They’re enablers — want to see businesses grow and flourish here,” he said. “We see a lot of traffic from Canada, at the grocery store, golfing and skiing.”
Hitchcock said although there’s a lot of good in the community, it could be even better.
“We have a lot of pluses. But if we do nothing and don’t go out to bat, how long will it stay this way?” he asked.
He said efforts need to be made to “retain community spirit.”
“We could expand on that through areas of interest like bird watching, with guided outings. We could work with local farmers to cultivate fields — crops that would attract birds,” Hitchcock said.
Hitchcock, who is the driving force behind the Central Aroostook Historical Society, said historic aspects of the community could serve as points of interest to attract visitors and new residents.
“We’re taking over the old Blaine Grange Hall. The Historical Society encompasses Mars Hill, Blaine, E Plantation, Robinson and Westfield. Right now we’re focusing on old schools of the area,” he said.
A South Portland consultant has been hired to help put the Comprehensive Plan together.
“Beth Della Valle has been a real asset in helping us work on the plan,” he said. “It’s a 12- to 18-month project. We’ve been feeding her information to establish base data,” continued Hitchcock.
McClung envisions tourism playing a major role one day for Mars Hill.
“We’ve talked about time shares or rental cabins — some resort-type business. The key is realizing where we’re at and the resources we have available,” said McClung.
“We’re probably one of the best-suited communities with the resources we have,” continued the town manager.
With the stream in town and well-maintained trail systems, McClung sees recreation as a way to spur business.
“We could rent canoes, fishing gear, have a business rent ATVs and snowmobiles,” he said.
For those less interested in outdoor adventures, McClung and Hitchcock see the possibilities for more venues downtown.
“We’d like to spruce up Main Street, get some new businesses in town,” said Hitchcock.
“We’d like to see a bookstore — niche-type businesses. Maybe some type of craft facility,” said McClung.
Hitchcock said the community has “had some great partners/families” that have “developed businesses and grown them over the years.”
“Northern Lighthouse has expanded and added employees,” said Hitchcock. “If we do the plan right, people will jump onboard.”
McClung said for now they’re emphasizing the importance of spreading the idea of a brighter future for Mars Hill.
“The Comprehensive Plan is informational. It’s about getting the word out, select a few ideas and tap into what’s going on,” said McClung.
“We want to stress we want community involvement. We welcome all. Bring your ideas and opinions to us,” said McClung.
The Comprehensive Plan is a 10-year vision of what Mars Hill could be like, said McClung.
“It’s a 10-year view. How we get there is up to the residents. The plan needs to be flexible,” said McClung.
“We’re up to the challenge. It’s just a matter of getting people involved,” said Hitchcock.
For more information on the plan, call McClung at 425-3731.
