Editor’s Note: The following is the first of a two-part series that looks back on some of the more memorable business-related stories of 2010. This article covers January to June, while the second installment will feature July through December.
The first six months of 2010 featured many memorable events in the business community. From the arrival of organic MOOmilk in the dairy cases of stores throughout the state to the completion of a nearly $2 million expansion of the Katahdin Valley Health Center, the first six months were bountiful with business news.
January
• The spirit of business was alive and well in the Houlton Industrial Park as Twenty 2 Micro Distilled Vodka began production for public consumption. Twenty 2 Micro Distilled Vodka is produced in Houlton, by the husband and wife team of Scott Galbiati and Jessica Jewell. The two founded the Northern Maine Distilling Company in 2006, and released their first batch of Twenty 2 Micro Distilled Vodka in September 2009. The decision to locate their business in the Shiretown was made after extensive research.
• While the economy continues to create uncertainty, the U.S. Census Bureau is providing opportunities for individuals to supplement their incomes with flexible, good-paying jobs —hiring hundreds of temporary workers in the local area to ensure the 2010 Census is a success.
• Area farmers were encouraging support for continued funding of the Southern Aroostook Soil and Water Conservation District (SASWCD) knowing the Legislature is looking for places to cut expenses and close a $438 million budget gap. The district gets $17,500 from the state’s Department of Agriculture. It also shares space at the USDA’s service center in Houlton where some 30 farmers convened to urge support from state representatives for the district.
• Planning and community involvement paid off for the Northern Katahdin Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce with their first of five information booths. A volunteer team managed to pull together a donation of supplies and labor to build an eight-foot by eight-foot freestanding log cabin. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week with business cards and brochures about local businesses in addition to tourist information about places to visit, the booth was located in Sherman at Kelly’s Shell gas station on Route 158 off exit 264 of I-95.
• Irving Oil, a Fort Reliance company, partnered with the Red Cross to provide aid to the Haitian disaster relief effort. The company planned to donate $50,000 and committed to match all donations collected by Irving Oil employees in January.
• Maine’s Own Organic Milk (MOOMilk) hit grocery store dairy cases throughout Maine, and in selected stores in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Produced by 10 Maine family organic dairy farms in Washington, Aroostook, Penobscot and Kennebec counties, the milk will be trucked by Schoppee Milk Transport of Holden to Smiling Hill Dairy in Westbrook for processing, then distributed by Oakhurst Dairy of Portland and Crown O’ Maine Organic Co-op of Gardiner. That made it the only organic milk available in Maine that was produced, trucked, processed and distributed exclusively by Maine family businesses. The farms shipping to Maine’s Own Organic Milk Company are HB Farms, Woodland (Aroostook); Griffin Family Farm, Perham; Kauffman Family Farm, Smyrna; Oliver Farm, Hodgdon; Chase Organic Dairy Farm, Mapleton; Tide Mill Farm, Edmunds; James Pond Dairy, Charlotte; Rocky Ledge Farm, Perry; McKusick Dairy Farm, Dexter; and Windy Acres Farm, Clinton.
• Emily’s Qwik Stop, formerly Ferris Qwik Stop, had a grand opening under new management as Manuel and Robin Simas took over the convenience store on 135 Military St. The store was re-named in honor of their daughter, Emily Simas.
February
• Fashionable name-brand merchandise normally found in large city department stores could be found in the Shiretown thanks to Marie Hutchinson’s boutique — Heart to Heart Gifts and Specialty Clothing on North Street. According to Hutchinson, the store was “the best kept secret in town.” What started out in 1985 as a convenience store evolved into a boutique-type shop by 1998 with a wide range of chic gifts and clothing from lingerie, collectibles and children’s wear to shower gifts, toiletries and imported handmade apparel.
• The Houlton Rotary Club presented a check to the Houlton Little League in the amount of $14,000 for a total of $20,000 over the past two years to sponsor the Houlton Rotary Field.
• Tourism representatives of Aroostook County successfully pitched an idea at the Governors Conference on Tourism that Aroostook County was a great place to vacation, whether you’re looking to adventurously steer an ATV around backwoods trails or aimlessly drift your way down a river on a warm, sunny day. They accomplished this by actively discussing all The County has to offer and by having, hands down, the best display at the conference.
• The slow economy was being blamed for the decision to close one of a handful of gas stations between Houlton and Presque Isle. Porter’s Cash Fuel, located on U.S. Route 1 near the intersection of Station and Shaw roads, closed Feb. 12, according to owner Galen “Bob” Porter. “We just were not doing enough business to keep it open,” Porter said. “It had been really slow for a while. There just are not as many trucks running out of the County anymore.” The closure has no effect on Porter’s Cash Fuel of Island Falls, which sells oil and conducts furnace maintenance. Porter founded Porter’s Cash Fuel in 2005 when he started with one truck delivering fuel to southern and central Aroostook County.
• Local business owners once again showed their support for the annual Moosestompers Weekend with stunning results. Jim Brown, event chairman, said “if we didn’t have our sponsors for support, we wouldn’t be able to do it. Sponsors supported the event. It just takes a phone call and everybody is willing to help me out.”
• Economic growth in Houlton was looking very good for 2010 with numerous projects on tap. “I think it will be a very busy summer and I think a lot of things could come to the forefront which is pretty exciting considering the economy,” said Jon McLaughlin, executive director of the Southern Aroostook Development Corporation (SADC).
• Business owners were in danger of being at the mercy of the trucking companies if they lost rail service in northern Maine, according to Robert Elder, MaineDOT director of freight and business services. MaineDOT lost its bid last week for a $23 million federal grant to purchase 240 miles of railroad tracks from Millinocket to Madawaska. Those tracks are owned by Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway (MMA) which has filed a “Notice of Intent” to abandon them. The state was looking at other options to rescue the imperiled rail service.
March
• Officials at Northeast Publishing Company in Presque Isle dedicated the March 2010 issue of County Crossroads magazine to the USSA Cross-Country Junior Olympics held March 7-13 at the Nordic Heritage Center. In order to help promote this major Aroostook County event, expected to draw 400 of the nation’s best young cross-country ski racers who hope to become the next national champions, every page of the March issue will be devoted to the Junior Olympics and its impact on the region. The special issue wasfilled with feature articles on the important series of ski races and competitors, as well as information on the local organizers and army of volunteers who represent Maine Winter Sports Center and its world class Presque Isle venue, the Nordic Heritage Sport Club.
• A new open-access clinic opened March 9 with a full complement of services to meet patients’ medical needs when their physicians are unavailable. The new clinic as an expansion of Katahdin Valley Health Center (KVHC) at 59 Bangor St. Durward Humphrey, CEO of KVHC, said it was opening “because access to providers is overwhelmed during the normal course of business. Physicians’ schedules are double booked and triple booked.”
• A confluence of events, generosity and opportunity turned into a winning combination for all concerned with $1,000 going toward East Grand School’s (EGS) senior trip fund. Tri-County Upholstery owner Billy Potter decided to help the students with their planned trip to Orlando, Fla. with a donation of his time and labor.
• After several years serving as an Assistant Attorney General, specializing in child protection and child support cases in Caribou, Michele Dawn Lozier Kenney has opened her own private practice in Houlton. Located at 18 Market Square, Suite 5, Kenney launched her practice on March 1 and saw steady business almost immediately.
• Thanks to a store renovation, Dunn Furniture of Houlton, became a La-Z-Boy Comfort Studio. That meant the store could sell more of the manufacturer’s products than it had access to in the past.
• The Greater Houlton Chamber of Commerce held its 2010 Annual Dinner and Gala Event at the Houlton Lodge of Elks. Serving as the annual business meeting, four major awards were presented on the evening — Lifetime Achievement Award, Business of the Year, Community Service and Community Spirit. Smith & Wesson was selected as the Business of the Year, while John Fitzpatrick was chosen for the Community Spirit Award and Houlton Regional Hospital Auxiliary won the Community Service Award. Walter Goodrich was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award. “Each year I am overwhelmed by the response we receive for this event,” said Chamber Executive Director Lori Weston. “For me, this event reflects on just how wonderful our community is. Not only is it a time of fellowship with your fellow peers, but it’s a celebration of the people and business that have an enormous impact on our lives and the community.”
• Commercial potato grower Daniel Corey of Monticello sent seed potatoes to Epcot, the Walt Disney World Resort theme park. Corey donated Lachipper, Atlantic, Peter Wilcox, Harley Blackwell, Red Lasoda, N.Y. 129 and Yukon Gold seed potatoes. These varieties consist of reds, whites, yellows, purple, potato chip, and table varieties. Corey said he was excited about working with Epcot, namely because it was one more way to promote Maine’s potato industry and to educate people around the world.
• A $5,000 check completed KeyBank’s $15,000 pledge over three years to the Houlton Community Arts Center. As a result of the donation, Robert Faulkner, Houlton branch manager and KeyBank vice president, said the bank would have naming rights for two rooms.
• The Sides Family Farm label was to be placed on naturally grown pork products in meat cases at various Hannaford Bros. stores, thanks to a deal inked between a young farmer from Sherman and the supermarket chain located mostly in New England. Sam Sides said his first shipment of hogs was on its way to Charleston this week for processing. The final products bearing the Sides Family Farm label “will be every type of cut – bacon, sausage, all your smoked meats, smoked shoulders, loins, boneless loins, whole loins, pork chops, bone-in, bone-out, ribs,” said Sides.
• The Maine Restaurant Association honored Edwin “Hunk” Degenhardt of Houlton with its 2010 “Bill Zoidis Lifetime Achievement Award” at its annual banquet in Portland.
• Individuals who were either unable to get out of their home or just too busy to run errands could call on a new business to come to their rescue. Lending a Hand in the County, owned and operated by Kathie Smith, started offering her service to local individuals and businesses. What are her services? Completing tasks on a person’s to-do list to give people more time in their busy day.
April
• Some local flower shops and retailers were seeing a spring sales boost from customers buying flowers and plants for their churches, homes and friends. Other business owners are getting supplies in and ready for customers who will be planting when the warm weather rushes in and seriously warms the earth.
• The Northern Maine Distilling Company of Houlton announced that its ultra-premium Twenty 2 Micro Distilled Vodka was honored with a gold medal for vodka in the 2010 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
• After a national search, the Board of Directors for the Maine State Employees Association, Local 1989 of the Service Employees International Union, hired Aroostook County native Chris Quint as the union’s new executive director. Quint was to direct a union representing over 15,0000 publicly and privately funded workers in Maine.
• For the second time in three years, York’s of Houlton has earned the highest award Toyota presents to its dealers — The President’s Award. Jerry York, general manager of the dealership, said: “We are pleased on behalf of all our employees and our customers who recognized us for providing superior customer service. Our employees are the backbone of our business. We appreciate the fact that they work really, really hard to make sure the customers are happy here.”
May
• The grand re-opening of the Ellis Family Market in Patten kicked off with deep discounts on selected items and giveaways in an expanded store that is in its second generation of ownership within the family. The 11-day event celebrated a major renovation and expansion that nearly doubled the store’s square footage to the tune of “well over $1 million” according to Jon Ellis. “We went from 8,000 to 14,000 square feet — almost double. The customers love the wide aisles and being able to see the products that are easier to reach,” said Jon about the eight-month renovation that started last fall.
• Houlton Regional Hospital hosted an Employee Recognition Banquet at The Linneus Sno Club. There were 73 honorees recognizing 860 years of service.
• Hot, crispy fried clams in a “basket” with mounds of French fries snuggled up against homemade onion rings and a family recipe for fresh coleslaw have been a tradition in Patten was drawing locals and seasonal residents to Craig’s Clam Shop.
• Houlton joined several communities around the country experiencing sewer problems from clogged sewer lines and backups into homes due to so-called flushable wipes. According to John Clark, general manager of the Houlton Water Company (HWC), “a lot of these wipes are cloth-like. They do not decompose and they clog up the sewer system. So, the sewage backs up into people’s houses which creates a lot of problems for us.”
• Nancy Lynch opened Broadway Cuts on Broadway Street in Houlton. Lynch brings more than 30 years of hair-cutting experience to her job and specializes in men’s haircuts. She owned several shops in the Kittery area, before relocating to Aroostook County.
June
• Pioneer Broadband of Houlton announced that the ConnectME Authority approved co-funding of 17 grant applications to provide Internet service into unserved areas of eight Aroostook County towns. Pioneer’s rural broadband expansion projects will allow more residential and business customers to obtain high-speed access to the Internet. The grant will cover up to 50 percent of the capital construction costs. Without the grant, the projects would not be feasible due to the size of the rural areas served and the low potential number of customers. Expanded service was to be offered to residents in Amity, Cary, Hammond, Hodgdon, Linneus, Ludlow, New Limerick, and Orient will be able to get high speed Internet access via a DSL connection on existing telephone lines. New Fiber Optic Lines were also in the works.
• Vicki Hagerman, a licensed life and health insurance agent, was presented with the Insurance Woman of the Year award during an All Industry Night in the Shiretown Inn Banquet Room.
• A $1.9 million renovation and expansion of the Katahdin Valley Health Center (KVHC) drew praise from executives and guests at the official unveiling last Thursday during an open house for the community. Tents provided cover from the rain for some 100-150 invited guests and community residents who arrived to tour the 8,000 square foot facility and listen to remarks from Goodall, CEO Durward Humphrey and other guests. As a federally qualified health center, it serves approximately 2,500 patients a year accounting for 12,000 visits a year,
• If tattoos were your thing, then Mainiak Ink on Union Square in Houlton was the place for you. Located inside Infinity hair salon, Mainiak Ink opened for business has seen a steady stream of customers. Owned and operated by Houlton native Sammie Carmen, Mainiak Ink is the realization of a two-year dream.
