"Looking For Another Way, Bar Harbor Debates How to Limit Cruise Ships"
Looking for Another Way to Overturn the Results of a Free and Fair Vote, Bar Harbor Town Council and Its Manager Scheme to Lift Limits On Cruise Ship Disembarkations.
It's not a debate. It's a debacle for democracy and a travesty of home rule. Putting profits over people and the planet in its own perversion of participatory government.
ThankYou Charles Sidman. ThankYou Judge Lance Walker. And all of you who refuse to be pushed back and ground down by corrupt officials conspiring with unscrupulous business people to serve their own power over the community and their unconscionable greed. The Bar Harbor ship of state has been sailing under the pirate flag of Salvatore, Bond et al from before they became the rotten APPL.
The results of elections, expressing the will of the people, is paramount. Perhaps this year more so. How is it a Federalist Society judge fast tracked to bench by TeaParty Gov. Paul LePage and MAGA Pres. Donald Trump can understand the constitutional primacy of the people expressing their will through voting? While this passel of rogues, who preen themselves on being respectful civil servants and local entrepreneurs, usurp the authority of the ballot and scheme their little schemes of overturning the law. These folks bursting with pride of place and position. These self appointed arbiters of community values and island ways. Ha!
Where are Stephen King and Mel Brooks when we need them?
It is essential to keep the Democratic majority in the Senate in order to defeat MAGA and its creeping corporate clerical fascism. Fortunately we have Ranked Choice Voting.
I find it very disturbing that the majority of speakers and members of the planning board allowed comments without correcting people when they said that ocean properties was suing the town. To my knowledge, OP is not suing the town..,This is not about ocean properties-it is about livelihoods of many, many people that live work and contribute to the beautiful town of Bar Harbor.
Shame on Planning Board moderators for not correcting this misguided comment.
This is so sad to see This kind of thinking without giving care to what will actually happen.
Well you present the APPL party line. Eben Salvatore of Ocean Properties is a major force in APPL which is suing the town. APPL has demonstrated that it does not have the law on its side and cannot win in court, but APPL can bankrupt the town and imperil the town's ability to provide essential and emergency services. You might consider that.
To continue lining their pockets, no matter the cost to Bar Harbor, APPL is continually bringing frivolous and baseless suits against our town. As part of the APPL strategy to grind down support for a responsible balance of tourisms in Bar Harbor and a sustainable economic and environmental balance. Repeatedly losing in court as APPL, Eben Salvatore as Ocean Properties now proclaims he is above the law and will continue to violate it. Putting another burden on the town. It is one thing to contest the law in court. It is another to violate it. The first although exploiting the law for personal gain no matter the cost to others, at least acknowledges the primacy of the law and legal protocol. The second rejects the entire notion of the rule of law. In rejecting the law, Salvatore is not just imperiling Bar Harbor, he is pulling down the foundations of our democratic republic.
Give me a break. Your vilification of community members you have no clue about except as caricature IS the definition of MAGA, the very characteristics you apply to them. They are objecting to the destruction their 20-30 year business model buildup that sure, a majority of voters thought at the time were passing management rules. Spin this anyway you like but you as well as your fellow travelers are a big part of the reason for costly town litigation. It’s time you owned it.
You should be more humble about your certainty as you cast stones at others…..
Why don’t you enlighten us? What respect do these AAPPL folks deserve when most are rather wealthy yet do not have enough to satisfy their greed and constantly fight against the wishes of the majority of the community. I’ve had enough of them and make sure I advise tourists that ask for recommendations to avoid their establishments.
You’ve determined yourself who these “wealthy, greedy and pugilistic” people are. Why do need me to enlighten you when you’ve already studied, ruminated and characterized them already? All I can add to your dismissal of them as unworthy community members is that there is a lot of that blind tribalism going around these days locally and nationally.
As I suggested before, try looking in the mirror and tell me if you see some of that in you…..
At least you recognize the majority vote. Which is more than APPL does. APPL et al, have every right to seek to overturn a law they don't like. Those efforts have failed in court. So they might want to get their alternative plan on the ballot for a fair vote. (Instead of the town council try to overturn it by fiat, finagling, or in a relatively brief town meeting.) What Salvatore does not have a legitimate right to do is flaunt his disdain for the rule of law and challenge the town to enforce it.
Perhaps APPL members would like to open their books, the way the town must. Perhaps for the last 20-30 years you refer to. That would be interesting. We might be able to correlate the expansion of cruise ship related businesses to the decline of year round businesses. And of course, we would have to factor in the profits from the preferential treatment they have received. (Why didn't the town take charge of disembarkation and reap the profits?) Oh, and we'd have to quantify the costs of environmental impact.
Alas a deceptive and poorly worded referendum question.
There is currently litigation at the appellate level so the ultimate outcome is to still be determined.
As for ships disembarking without so called permits as per rules voted on by the deceived public? The Town of Bar Harbor has to prove in court each and every violation. A wonderfully expensive, time consuming and legally cumbersome enforcement policy. Too clever by half Sidman and gang has so far proven to be. It’s quite possible OPL is forcing this ludicrous situation along a little faster. In order to save Bar Harbor litigation costs?🤷
Friend you are lost in the weeds of conspiracy theories on this one.
Tourism businesses, local and national trying to make a living. It is less a conspiracy (although increasingly popular these days) than an attempt for balance which seems to elude you.
Many towns and cities around the world are grappling with over-tourism. Even Acadia is grappling with over tourism
Many 'tourist towns' are grappling with balancing seasonal tourism and year round environmentally and economically sustainable planning.
Bar Harbor did fine before the expansion of cruise ship tourism. We did fine during the Covid reduction of cruise ship tourism. If some businesses have based their models on a 'monoculture' of ever expanding cruise ship tourism, then it is on them to take other factors into consideration.
ThankYou Carrie Jones.
"Looking For Another Way, Bar Harbor Debates How to Limit Cruise Ships"
Looking for Another Way to Overturn the Results of a Free and Fair Vote, Bar Harbor Town Council and Its Manager Scheme to Lift Limits On Cruise Ship Disembarkations.
It's not a debate. It's a debacle for democracy and a travesty of home rule. Putting profits over people and the planet in its own perversion of participatory government.
ThankYou Charles Sidman. ThankYou Judge Lance Walker. And all of you who refuse to be pushed back and ground down by corrupt officials conspiring with unscrupulous business people to serve their own power over the community and their unconscionable greed. The Bar Harbor ship of state has been sailing under the pirate flag of Salvatore, Bond et al from before they became the rotten APPL.
The results of elections, expressing the will of the people, is paramount. Perhaps this year more so. How is it a Federalist Society judge fast tracked to bench by TeaParty Gov. Paul LePage and MAGA Pres. Donald Trump can understand the constitutional primacy of the people expressing their will through voting? While this passel of rogues, who preen themselves on being respectful civil servants and local entrepreneurs, usurp the authority of the ballot and scheme their little schemes of overturning the law. These folks bursting with pride of place and position. These self appointed arbiters of community values and island ways. Ha!
Where are Stephen King and Mel Brooks when we need them?
Instead we got Captain Angus King and a peck of Apples.
It is essential to keep the Democratic majority in the Senate in order to defeat MAGA and its creeping corporate clerical fascism. Fortunately we have Ranked Choice Voting.
I find it very disturbing that the majority of speakers and members of the planning board allowed comments without correcting people when they said that ocean properties was suing the town. To my knowledge, OP is not suing the town..,This is not about ocean properties-it is about livelihoods of many, many people that live work and contribute to the beautiful town of Bar Harbor.
Shame on Planning Board moderators for not correcting this misguided comment.
This is so sad to see This kind of thinking without giving care to what will actually happen.
Well you present the APPL party line. Eben Salvatore of Ocean Properties is a major force in APPL which is suing the town. APPL has demonstrated that it does not have the law on its side and cannot win in court, but APPL can bankrupt the town and imperil the town's ability to provide essential and emergency services. You might consider that.
To continue lining their pockets, no matter the cost to Bar Harbor, APPL is continually bringing frivolous and baseless suits against our town. As part of the APPL strategy to grind down support for a responsible balance of tourisms in Bar Harbor and a sustainable economic and environmental balance. Repeatedly losing in court as APPL, Eben Salvatore as Ocean Properties now proclaims he is above the law and will continue to violate it. Putting another burden on the town. It is one thing to contest the law in court. It is another to violate it. The first although exploiting the law for personal gain no matter the cost to others, at least acknowledges the primacy of the law and legal protocol. The second rejects the entire notion of the rule of law. In rejecting the law, Salvatore is not just imperiling Bar Harbor, he is pulling down the foundations of our democratic republic.
Give me a break. Your vilification of community members you have no clue about except as caricature IS the definition of MAGA, the very characteristics you apply to them. They are objecting to the destruction their 20-30 year business model buildup that sure, a majority of voters thought at the time were passing management rules. Spin this anyway you like but you as well as your fellow travelers are a big part of the reason for costly town litigation. It’s time you owned it.
You should be more humble about your certainty as you cast stones at others…..
They’re doing their best to earn that vilification
It seems you too have no clue about who you suggest deserves criticism.
Take a look in the mirror if you’re curious because it can work both ways.
Otherwise what’s your point?
Why don’t you enlighten us? What respect do these AAPPL folks deserve when most are rather wealthy yet do not have enough to satisfy their greed and constantly fight against the wishes of the majority of the community. I’ve had enough of them and make sure I advise tourists that ask for recommendations to avoid their establishments.
You’ve determined yourself who these “wealthy, greedy and pugilistic” people are. Why do need me to enlighten you when you’ve already studied, ruminated and characterized them already? All I can add to your dismissal of them as unworthy community members is that there is a lot of that blind tribalism going around these days locally and nationally.
As I suggested before, try looking in the mirror and tell me if you see some of that in you…..
At least you recognize the majority vote. Which is more than APPL does. APPL et al, have every right to seek to overturn a law they don't like. Those efforts have failed in court. So they might want to get their alternative plan on the ballot for a fair vote. (Instead of the town council try to overturn it by fiat, finagling, or in a relatively brief town meeting.) What Salvatore does not have a legitimate right to do is flaunt his disdain for the rule of law and challenge the town to enforce it.
Perhaps APPL members would like to open their books, the way the town must. Perhaps for the last 20-30 years you refer to. That would be interesting. We might be able to correlate the expansion of cruise ship related businesses to the decline of year round businesses. And of course, we would have to factor in the profits from the preferential treatment they have received. (Why didn't the town take charge of disembarkation and reap the profits?) Oh, and we'd have to quantify the costs of environmental impact.
Alas a deceptive and poorly worded referendum question.
There is currently litigation at the appellate level so the ultimate outcome is to still be determined.
As for ships disembarking without so called permits as per rules voted on by the deceived public? The Town of Bar Harbor has to prove in court each and every violation. A wonderfully expensive, time consuming and legally cumbersome enforcement policy. Too clever by half Sidman and gang has so far proven to be. It’s quite possible OPL is forcing this ludicrous situation along a little faster. In order to save Bar Harbor litigation costs?🤷
Friend you are lost in the weeds of conspiracy theories on this one.
Tourism businesses, local and national trying to make a living. It is less a conspiracy (although increasingly popular these days) than an attempt for balance which seems to elude you.
Many towns and cities around the world are grappling with over-tourism. Even Acadia is grappling with over tourism
Many 'tourist towns' are grappling with balancing seasonal tourism and year round environmentally and economically sustainable planning.
Bar Harbor did fine before the expansion of cruise ship tourism. We did fine during the Covid reduction of cruise ship tourism. If some businesses have based their models on a 'monoculture' of ever expanding cruise ship tourism, then it is on them to take other factors into consideration.
Opinions are just that, an opinion.
You have yours.
I have mine.
It is clear you brook no other opinion or criticism of your beliefs. Your mind is made up.
Sorry for your loss.
These poor APPLL folks "trying to make a living" is extremely funny, thanks for that Larry!