Nothing gets people talking like business and the economy, and 2024 sparked some big conversations in Presque Isle.
The closure of a health-care facility and the Nordic Heritage Outdoor Center left many residents devastated and sparked outpourings on social media. But downtown growth and the rebirth of a shopping center spurred a brighter outlook.
Here are just five of the past year’s larger business stories.
No snow? No kidding
Last winter was historic, and not in a good way for businesses that depended on cold-weather tourism.
Snowmobiling contributes more than $606 million to Maine’s economy each year, according to a University of Maine study. Aroostook County depends on snowmobilers, whose dollars keep local hotels and restaurants going largely through March.
But warmth and early snowmelt killed the 2024 sledding season.
Some businesses were hit so hard they sought state relief. Dean’s Motor Lodge in Portage, normally full, was empty at the end of February. She and other business operators appealed to Gov. Janet Mills for assistance, but no resolution surfaced.
Warm and muddy conditions also affected the second annual SnowBowl. Snocross races couldn’t be held at Spud Speedway in Caribou because the track had melted into mud. Organizers trucked some 600 loads of snow to build a track at the Aroostook Centre Mall parking lot in Presque Isle.
The effort was so successful that the upcoming 2025 SnowBowl will feature racing at the mall along with events in Caribou.
New airport terminal, new airline
The Presque Isle International Airport unveiled plans in 2023 for a new terminal, and in April received $20.46 million in congressionally directed spending for the $30 million building.
The project will nearly triple the space of the existing terminal. Additional projects will include groundwork, utilities and construction of an aircraft parking area, or apron.
The airport’s two-year Essential Air Service contract also came up for renewal. Officials and residents weighed existing carrier United Airlines, which had served the airport for six years with flights to Newark, New Jersey, against JetBlue, which would fly to Boston.
The U.S. Department of Transportation chooses carriers for airports under its Essential Air Service program, and pays subsidies to carriers to serve smaller airports. Still, community input is accepted. The city’s Airport Advisory Board supported United, while the council favored JetBlue.
County residents debated both sides at public meetings, in newspaper letters and on social media.
Federal officials named JetBlue the city’s carrier in June for a two-year contract. United unsuccessfully appealed to the department to remain in Presque Isle. JetBlue made its first flight into the airport on Sept. 5.
Resurrecting a mall
The Aroostook Centre Mall boasted around 14 new businesses under the direction of local developer Dana Cassidy, who bought the facility in 2023.
New local tenants have included Flannel & Barrel Couture and Cushman’s of Presque Isle, who moved from downtown locations; the new Children’s Museum of Aroostook County; Mom & Me Pizzeria; Outlaw Detailing; Omni Fitness; and Crafters’ Creations.
Soon to open pending final inspection is Trampoline City II, a 30,000-foot recreation area with 200 trampolines worked into about 13 different events for both kids and adults.
Cassidy and Newport restaurateur Lalo Dedi Sutanto will add a restaurant to the mix. Japanese-style steakhouse Shogun Hibachi Grill will open at the former Crow’s Nest across the street from the mall, which Cassidy also owns.
Though many people associate malls with national chain stores, Cassidy touted keeping it local. Big-box store money goes to the corporate office, but stores owned by local people have a better chance of sticking around, he said.
Elder care troubles
Pandemic aftereffects throughout Maine and the nation hit the local long-term care industry hard when a family-owned nursing home closed in August.
The Presque Isle Rehab and Nursing Center was among several Maine nursing home shutdowns blamed on staff shortages and lack of state funding. A part of the community for 48 years, its owners, the Cyr family, also owned Caribou Rehab and Nursing.
Both centers had suffered from lack of nurses’ aides since the pandemic, and state MaineCare/Medicaid reimbursement was much lower than operational costs, spokesman Phil Cyr said at the time. One of the facilities had to close.
In all, 120 employees were affected, along with 49 residents and their families. Residents were placed mostly at the Caribou home or at Northern Light Continuing Care in Mars Hill, with some staff going to Caribou.
News came in November that the facility would reopen with a new owner. South Portland-based First Atlantic Healthcare will partner with Northern Light Health System in 2025 to buy and operate the 61-bed facility. Northern Light will close its continuing care facility in Mars Hill and transfer the 45 residents to Presque Isle.
First Atlantic also bought Caribou Rehab and Nursing.
Growing Main Street
Presque Isle’s downtown boomed as the city explored its first redesign in more than 40 years.
Along with multiple businesses seeing success in the booming cannabis industry, several new storefronts joined the Main Street lineup in 2024. Among them were the Maple Pig Bar and Grill, clothing store Designer Refind, Maine heat pump company Dave’s World, artisan co-op Someday Comes and insulation contractor Installations Unlimited.
Main Street could see updated infrastructure and a new look thanks to a collaboration with the Maine Department of Transportation’s Village Partnership Initiative. MDOT would kick in $27 million of the $30 million project, with the city responsible for the rest. The goal is to get more people downtown and inspire further growth.
Public meetings gathered community input and revealed engineers’ suggestions, which have included bike and walking paths, a proposed three-lane traffic route and safer access for pedestrians.
The momentum will carry into 2025 with a new event: a New Year’s Eve Star Lighting Celebration, culminating in the raising of a 6-foot star with a thousand lights, symbolic of the Star City.
