"What starts here, changes the state"
Small business week, first cruise ship arrives, PeekyToe Provisions and Rodick Street Business Updates
BAR HARBOR—When Bo Jennings was working for the University of Texas’ basketball team, he noticed the university’s motto: What starts here, changes the world.
“The same could be said about Bar Harbor,” the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce board president told the crowd at the organization’s event at its Main Street visitor center last Thursday. The event was meant to celebrate National Small Business Day.
“What starts here, changes the state. This small town is the number two tax revenue generator for the state. That is a huge accomplishment for our town and the countless small business owners and leaders that drive that revenue,” Jennings said.
Tax revenue from Bar Harbor businesses end up in the state’s coffers. The state then redistributes that income throughout Maine.
In 2021, the Maine Office of Tourism said that tourism spending brought the state $1 billion in tax revenue. In 2020, the National Park Service wrote, “A new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 3,437,286 visits to Acadia National Park in Maine generated $380 million in the state in 2019. That spending resulted in 5,474 jobs and had a cumulative benefit to the state economy of $511 million.”
In 2020, the state had 12 million less visitors, and decreased spending from 2019 by 27 percent, or $4.8 billion rather than $6.5 billion.
At Thursday’s event, Deputy Director of the Maine Office of Tourism Hannah Collins stressed that small businesses are the backbone of Maine’s tourism industry. “Right now thousands of businesses in Maine are preparing to welcome millions of visitors to the state.”
The Chamber event came during a week that many seasonal businesses opened their doors. It also came on the same day as the first cruise ship visited Frenchman Bay. Town voters had approved a citizen’s initiative capping passenger’s at 1,000 a day. That was challenged by some businesses in federal court where the town came out victorious. That federal court decision is being appealed and the town is now being sued by the lead petitioner, Charles Sidman, for its failure to immediately enact the ordinance and because, he alleges that they have made that decision outside of the public realm.
“Vibrant Maine communities thrive with locally owned shops, cozy inns, and historic downtowns,” Collins told the crowd, adding that generations of skilled artisans uphold Maine’s quality products.
“Over 99% of the businesses here in the state of Maine are what the SBA considers small. We take great pride in being able to support small businesses,” Senior Area Manager of the Small Business Administration James Pineau said.
Jennings thanked the Chamber staff, small business leaders, community members, and visitors to Bar Harbor for supporting each other.
“Bar Harbor is a special place to call home and to have a career,” Jennings said. “I am so grateful for that opportunity and know that we need support locally, state-wide, and federally, in order to keep that opportunity alive.”
“Small businesses,” he said, “are the backbone to the success of Bar Harbor. I challenge all of us to show our thanks and support to small businesses so that they can continue to positively impact our town, our island, our state, and our country.”
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SOME BUSINESS UPDATES
It isn’t exactly out with the old and in with the new in the Bar Harbor business world this year though with the transfer of ownership of the Minutolo brothers’ Bar Harbor Bike Shop, it may seem like it.
Two stalwart anchors of lower Main Street are celebrating anniversaries this year.
Geddy’s is fifty. Galyn’s is 49. And then there’s Testa’s, which began in Bar Harbor in 1934, which makes it 90 years old.
And then there’s Sherman’s, the book store and gift shop across the street. Maine’s oldest bookstore was established in 1886.
Over on Cottage Street and established in 1976, Jordan’s Restaurant’s age might require a calculator, but it’s 48, and its website gives some advice to others who hope for long-standing, long-surviving businesses.
“Jordan’s Restaurant was started in 1976 by the Paine family to fill a need in Bar Harbor for a local, home-style restaurant. The idea was to feature wild Maine blueberry products. As the town changed over the years, Jordan’s expanded along with it. All the while staying true to the core value of a welcoming place for locals and tourists alike. Many friends have been made and it is a delight to see those smiling faces come through the doors each year.”
Here are some quick updates about some of the businesses that have made town news or are making news lately. If we’ve left anyone out, please let us know in the comments because we’d love to include them in this or an upcoming article.
MEET ME AT GEDDY’S
“Meet me at Geddy’s” has been a bumper sticker on a car. It’s been stuck on a pole. It’s even been plastered on the hull of the Queen Elizabeth 2, for fifty years, Geddy’s the tavern on lower Main Street has been the place where people meet.
At a Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Hours in April, people celebrated those forty years and the community that the establishment has built, one dinner, one drink, one show, at a time. Roadside navigation signs hang from the wall. License plates keep them company.
Within these walls Bonnie Raitt played. Thelonius Monk hung out and made music. Paul Winter did, too.
Geddy’s applied for a liquor license in 1975, April, and it was approved. The Ellsworth American reported that Gerry Mitchell would operate it and that it “will be located in the building once operated as the Fish Net by Filliettaz. Mitchell said that he is planning the operation primarily for an ‘older’ group—25 years and up. He formerly operated the M’Sail on North Main.”
Geddy’s made the Ellsworth American again in September, 1975, for a short release about a day-long jamboree the pub hosted for the Sheltered Workshop. Gerry Mitchell owned Geddy’s then Wendy Knickerbocher, the manager. Staff included Tom Emlen, Mary Elizabeth Campbell, Maddie Henry, and Bill Griffith.
Something was always happening at Geddy’s. Maybe some dancing. Maybe some singing. Maybe some dumping out of all 27 bottles of Russian vodka in protest of the Soviets shooting down a Korean commercial jet.
In the 1980s, Geddy’s built up steam, so much that the renewal of its liquor license made headlines. The Bar Harbor Town Council found that the pub did not threaten the public health, safety, or well-being after a neighboring restaurant owner alleged that Bar Harbor officers had to go to Geddy’s too many times because of noise complaints. Another restaurant owner said that the pub was an asset to his own business. An art gallery owner also said the noise never bothered her and Joseph Testa who had a restaurant and hotel quite close by told councilors that he’d never had a hotel guest complain about any noise from Geddy’s.
It was shuttered in the summer of 1986 and then Arthur Davis and Steve Shelton bought it from Mitchell. The pub’s sale had been negotiated for six months. Gerry Mitchell died at 66 after battling cancer.
GALYN’S
Galyn’s began in 1986 and has been an anchor on Main Street ever since.
As the website relates, “Galyn’s was established in 1986, but the building dates back to the 1890s when it was constructed as a boarding house for local seafarers. Old-timers tell us it has a colorful past. An illegal speakeasy occupied the downstairs during the prohibition era, and some say there was a gambling casino as well.
“Original architectural details include window and door trim, and an exceptional pressed tin ceiling. The curved wooden bar was once a teller’s counter at the First National Bank, and the diamond windows came from a Rockefeller estate that was being torn down. The Galley Lounge is constructed with paneled doors and other materials salvaged from local estates. At Galyn’s, we are dedicated to preserving this classic Maine building.”
Back in the early days the Leisers would take turns sleeping in an upstairs office.
Rick and Gail Leiser had worked and managed multiple restaurants before they ended up in New England.
According to a 2015 Mount Desert Islander article by Nan Lincoln, “While camping out at Blackwoods in Acadia National Park, they found an empty building on lower Main Street with a beguiling view of Agamont Park and the harbor beyond. After jumping through some hoops with a bank and convincing family and friends to buy shares, the Leisers became the proud owners of a century-old, three-story building that was gradually sinking into the sloping earth beneath it.
“They shored it up with new pilings, spruced it up with plaster, varnish and paint, and named it in the traditional manner of Maine lobstermen after Gail and their daughter Lindsey. On May 16, 1986, Galyn’s opened its doors for business. It has since become one of the most popular eateries on Mount Desert Island.”
Many of their employees stayed the course with them or moved on to begin their own restaurants. Larry Jones, Steve Piskura, and John Duley, are three long-time employees.
TESTA’S
Its website says, “There has been a Testa’s on this same Main Street location since 1934, but times change, and we have, too. We have kept a few old favorites from the menu for our long-time, faithful customers, and reconnected with our local fishermen and farmers to provide fresh seafood, meat, and produce. There is the same welcoming lounge and upstairs harbor view seating. If you have not been here lately, stop in and have a meal. We are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner—dine at a table, or cozy up for a meal at the bar. Cocktails, beer on tap, and a good choice of wine, too, of course.”
Testa’s has a significant anniversary this year, and we’ll have an article about that soon.
THE CHART ROOM, THE READING ROOM, AND OTHERS
Since the 1980s, the Chart Room has served locals and tourists. It was once on West Street and you would enter at the Golden Anchor Hotel. Old newspapers that list restaurants from that time, also mention the Bay View, the Brick Oven, the Fin Back, the Dry Dock, George’s, the High Seas, the Harborview, La Cadie, the Lobstertrap, the Log Cabin, and Maggie’s Classic Scales.
A paper from 1988 mentions the Opera House, Miguel’s, 124 Cottage, Poor Boy’s, the Quarterdeck, Roaslie’s, the Bar Harbor Inn’s Reading Room, Ryan’s, Testa’s, and the Starlight Cafe. The Bar Harbor Inn was established in 1987 after being the Hotel Bar Harbor, but the Reading Room’s past history as a social club.
The Bar Harbor Inn has been undertaking an extensive rebuild and renovation of its portion of the Shore Path which was seriously damaged in storms this past winter.
PEEKYTOE PROVISIONS
Starting in early May, the restaurant and fish shop will share Rogue Cafe’s space at 1 Main Street in Southwest Harbor.
According to its newsletter, “We plan to serve a revised version of our menu, wine & beer, [maybe even cocktails...] oysters, and have a small space set aside for retail items. We won't have a full fish case on display, but we will be weighing, cutting and wrapping fish to order just like always (just not in full view, due to space constraints.) There will be indoor and outdoor seating and PLENTY OF PARKING!
They’ll start by being open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. There is currently no set opening date.
“Hopefully we will be able to add more days and hours as spring transitions to summer,” they wrote. “Our new building likely won't be ready for us until early August.”
PeekyToe’s spot on Main Street in Bar Harbor has been undergoing a massive rebuild project.
TAP AND BARREL
Justin and Josh Forcier of the Tap & Barrel will now be at 41 Rodick Street, too, at the Norton Building. They are now going to be next to Side Street Cafe. They are also keeping the current location on Mount Desert Street.
HIDDEN BARN BOOKS
Hidden Barn Books will be at 31 Kennebec Place. It is owned by Genie Thorndike.
MAMA DiMATTEO’S
The Bar Harbor Food Pantry has purchased Mama DiMatteo’s. Chef Eric Olson had owned the restaurant at Kennebec Place since 1985. Before that, he’d owned Vagabond’s.
THE INDEPENDENT
Tim Rich sold the Independent Cafe on Main Street to Acadia Perk owners and husband and husband team of Ron Wrobel and Corey Vanskike.
BAR HARBOR BIKE SHOP
Peter and Jill York purchased the business itself. College of the Atlantic purchased the buildings. Al and Joe Minutolo had owned the shop for 46 years.
DESTINATION HEALTH
The wellness center on Cottage Street has closed and been purchased. It has partnered with The Bar Harbor Club Spa to offer weekly yoga classes, private Reformer Pilates and personal training.
SIDE TREATS
Silk LLC. owners Jeff and Jena Young have a new plan for one of their Rodick Street buildings, creating a frozen yogurt shop, Side Treats.
Jeff Young told the Design Review Board earlier this month that they’ like to make a frozen yogurt bar next to Side Street at 47 Rodick Street. The intent of changes to the building, Young, told the board members is to make the ramp to contain people and then have a commercial door. “Basically, that’s all we’re doing. We’re leaving the trees where they are.”
The shop will now serve frozen yogurt with mix-ins. We’ll have an article about this soon as well.
MERCHANT AND FRYE
The 70-set restaurant and building is currently for sale for $2 million.
PORCELLI’S
Porcelli’s is now at the site of Salt and Steel at 321 Main Street. Porcelli’s is not yet open, but is scheduled to open this May. It will offer Italian food.
RL WHITE AND SON
RL White and Son carpentry and construction business’s current site in Hull’s Cove is for sale for just under $3 million.
CONVENIENCE STORE BUSINESS
For just under $800,000, a multi-use, high traffic location business is for sale at the head of the island.
ISLAND AUTO AND TOWING
The garage, office space, and customer waiting area as well on 3 Indian Point Road is currently for sale for $850,000.
Correction! Due to the fact that I fail at all things involving simple math, I had that Geddy’s was turning 40 rather than 50. Many, many thanks for the correction!
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