What do you appreciate about Mount Desert?
Diversity, mix of people year-round
Open space, ruralness, wildlife
Accessibility
Historic values
Plan is on-going process, open discussion
What are your concerns about Mount Desert?
Transportation – Traffic, Speed, Cut-throughs
Village lost to through-way
Lack of children
High land & housing costs
Ground-water availability & quality
General tendency to restrict access to ponds, paths
Services suffering as YR population erodes
High property taxes
Deer population, particularly related to health
Businesses must rely on employees off-island
Would like to see:
DSL / high-speed internet access
Affordable housing for families
Focus on community use and needs
Pursue working with local health organizations
Home-rule, focus on town needs, not Augusta’s
Maintain identity – localize major businesses
Sidewalk connections
Maintain property rights
Maintain residential nature
Increases access to local foods
Preserve water access
Local businesses sustain community
– should be integrated
Island-wide vision & efforts for growth
Better enforcement of zoning,
more consistency from town
Housing
How to define workforce?
Concerned about isolating segments of populations
Might be best to have in village, but costs prohibitive
Owning homes is primary economic engine
Pursue loan program for affordable/workforce housing
Use impact fees or the like to underwrite costs that steal from individual housing budgets (i.e. transportation, daycare)
Public Services
Need DSL / cell phone coverage
Increased public transportation
Home occupation reinforces diversity
Create sidewalks connecting existing walks
Trans. for kids to YMCA etc. YR
CP should include user fees
Historical Resources
Need to identify
Preservation important
Natural Resources
Like inclusion of health & civic participation
Should have stronger recognition of ag. land/prime soils
Traditional uses at risk due to taxes, e.g. MD campground
Marine Resources
Must ensure managerial accountability
Fair access for all, not just a few
Fishermen should be more involved in decision-making
Need increased NEH opportunities for fishermen in summer
Economic
Zoning too restrictive for home-based occupations
Particularly Pretty Marsh
Should control growth of non-local businesses
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