Randell Sprague

TWO-YEAR TERM, BAR HARBOR TOWN COUNCIL

I was born and raised in Bar Harbor I grew up in small town Bar Harbor; I now live in tourist town Bar Harbor. I graduated from MDI High School in 1973.

At 13 I started working. My first job was vacuuming the dining room at the Bar Harbor Motor Inn. I worked a variety of jobs until attending Southern Maine Vocational Technical Institute two-year course in heating ventilating and air conditioning.

I bought my first home in ’82, a 2 apartment home on 1st South St. for $25,000 with 16% mortgage rate. I worked and earned the State of Maine licenses for Master Plumber, Master Oil and Solid Fuel, Licensed Propane, and Natural Gas Technician, and EPA Refrigerant Handling Certification.

I owned and operated a heating and plumbing contracting business and had hundreds of customers. I have been in most every home and business in Bar Harbor.

I made connections with nationally and internationally recognized people in the industry. I have traveled to Germany twice, France, and Italy as a guest of heating manufacturing companies. My wife and I raised three children.

My three children and I all attended Ethel I. Connors Emerson and MDI High School. I served on the Harbor Committee, the Warrant Committee and the Economic Development Task Force.

THE QUESTIONS:

Why are you running?

I care deeply about Bar Harbor and its residents. Tourism has been a blessing and a curse, Bar Harbor has been fortunate to attract visitors that have bolstered our local economy. We have attracted a varied amount of talented people from craftsmen to doctors and educators. We have top notch facilities such as College the Atlantic, M.D.I. Hospital, museums Jesup Library and YMCA , not to mention gift shops that go beyond catering to tourists

For years there has been a poisonous attitude from locals towards tourism. Having gotten a check years ago from one of the first big hoteliers, Sonny Cough, I started to recognize how much of a benefit tourism is to our community.

Printed on the check I received from Sonny where the words, “these are tourist generated dollar.” This payment to me was then spent locally to pay for goods and services. I recognized the trickle down.

As our tourist industry grew and grew, it had displaced many of our small town businesses. To support the tourism industry, our infrastructures have had to grow exponentially. Too much of this growth has been a burden on the residents. While I truly appreciate the businesses and nonprofits, they must carry their fair share of the infrastructure costs. I want to help guide this.

I have already been made aware of the high cost of our solid waste disposal directly related to the summer tourism season also the cost of water in our town. Ot is unfairly billed. The residents are charged one rate; the big users get a discount on the more they use. Our infrastructure has to be bigger to serve them and yet we give them a discount. Things like this need to be addressed. Bar Harbor Water Division is on the cusp of having to rebuild how we treat our drinking water. When we add just a couple hundred more customers, we are required to invest several million dollars to upgrade our system.

I’ve only served on the council for a very short time, but I’ve recognized some of the things that need improvements.

My heart is truly with the residents of the town of Bar Harbor, but I do recognize the importance of the businesses. We must all learn to coexist and work together to have a successful community. I am hoping I can help facilitate this

There are a lot of issues currently that people talk about in Bar Harbor. But, if you had one local issue that matters to you more than any other, what would it be and why?

There are many local issues that matter to me but more importantly is what issues matter to the residents of Bar Harbor.

My job allows me to interact with many people in Bar Harbor businesses and residents. What I hear most from the people is high taxes. The town, like a business, has revenues and expenses. To help with taxes either you have to increase revenue or minimize expenses.

I would hope that more people would become involved in the budget process. Then they might understand how difficult it is to try to cut expenses. We really need to look hard to how we can increase revenues. A local options tax would be wonderful. It could help the community and let us all thrive and survive better. I really don’t have an agenda other than to see the town be successful, have coexistence between the businesses and the residents, and have businesses carry their fair share of the burden of the cost to the growing infrastructure that supports them.

What is something you love about Bar Harbor that people might not notice enough?

I love the fact that we have the opportunity to serve our community in endless ways. Whether serving on a board, a committee, or driving for Island Connections. People do not notice enough or recognize how so many people give of their time freely

What skills do you bring to the table that you think only you can bring?

I do not think I have any particular skill that only l can bring. I like to think outside the box. I play devil’s advocate, not to shoot down ideas but to truly understand the ramifications of the decisions we make. I listen.

If you could make one change to Bar Harbor tomorrow, what would it be?

To rid ourselves of the rampant anger and those who foster and thrive on creating discord.

What is your stance on short-term rentals, specifically now that VR2s are capped and decreasing while VR1s are on the rise? Do you have general thoughts about any potential ways to increase affordable housing in the area?

The vacation rental business is a problem around the world. It turns homes into businesses, depletes the housing stock, and destroys neighborhoods. I am glad to see that the town has taken steps to curtail in absentia land lords. I am disappointed though to see that local family-owned short-term rental properties will lose that status if handed down to family members.

Regarding what to do to address affordable housing, we are very fortunate to have organizations such as Island Housing Trust and the Y.W.C.A. The town should do all that it can to support their efforts. We need to build partnerships with private businesses and M.D.I. & Ellsworth Housing Authority.

With the hospital’s recent announcement of its closure of its maternity wing, what are your thoughts about healthcare and any links to the town’s role (if any) in ensuring that services continue?

It is indeed a tragedy that the hospital unilaterally made that decision. It really created a lot of bad feelings toward the hospital. It makes it feel like less of a community hospital. Our health care system is broken. It seems the hospital will not change its mind.

Do you think Bar Harbor is a thriving community? How would you define that?

I had to turn to the dictionary to look up community. Socially there is too much animosity to call us thriving. We need to show more respect and understanding. Economically, we are doing better than most Maine towns.

This year the town stands to give almost $500,000 to two nonprofit entities (the Jesup and the YMCA). Do you agree with the current application process for nonprofits? If not, what would you change? Is there anything you would change about the budget process itself?

This has regrettably causes a lot of friction in Bar Harbor. Both of these entities offer valuable services to the community. Even though I do not personally use them, I think they are an asset to the town. This is where more community involvement in the budget process is important. People tend to come to the game too late.

Bar Harbor’s been recently talking about solid waste issues. Do you have thoughts about changes to that?

A recent study was very eye opening. The summertime spike in solid waste doubles the amount we handle in a year. This is where it becomes a case that tourist businesses need to step up. We are faced with having to build out our infrastructure to support tourism. We need to create an equitable pay-as-you-go system.

I have suggested a three-tiered pay system: level one—year round residents rate is lowest; level 2—year-round businesses have a higher rate; and level 3—summer businesses have an even higher rate.

Residents in particular should should see a direct reduction in their tax bill by showing evidence of what they paid in on pay-as-you-go and reduce their tax bill accordingly.

How would you try to create more trust and transparency between people and the town?

Once again, this where it is important that community members need to be proactive in being involved.

I do not think that things are being hidden from the public. On many occasions people are surprised by actions being taken projects or policies enacted and are shocked that it is happening, and they did not know about it. Their reaction is that something sneaky is going on. There is a lot going on in town constantly, and it would be a full-time for anyone to keep up with it.

At times, there will be an executive session, which my involve personnel issues, which could cause harm to an individual, or a contract negotiation which could give the other side an advantage if disclosed.

Since having been serving, albeit briefly, I was very pleased to see that the town manager generates a report weekly that outlines what each town department and division had accomplished in the past week to keep the Town Council up to speed on what has been going on. I am happy to report, that because of this question, I have asked that this report be made readily available to the public. Moving forward, this will be posted online, and made available to the public.