Tourism

My Four-Point Plan to Grow Maine’s Vibrant Tourism Industry

Saturday, September 25th, 2010

The following speech was delivered at the Maine Tourism Association’s Gubernatorial Forum on 9/9/2010 at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport.

I am delighted to be with you, here at the Haraseeket. This family-owned Inn sets a benchmark for Maine tourism. The Gray family – Nancy and Chip – have been exceeding guest expectations for years!

I have traversed Maine for more than a year, and I can tell you that Maine’s Number One industry is strong and vibrant and growing. Our next governor needs to help you grow stronger and bigger and better.

I have seen the enormous potential for our entire economy of a reliable 4-season industry.

I am convinced that we can tie tourism more closely to our burgeoning creative economy and to our places and towns of character and quality.

I have learned how urgently we need to educate and train young people to work in the tourism industry and help to build it.

And all it took was my trip down Route 175 to Castine or one of my rides up Route 15 from Guilford to Greenville to drive home the importance for tourism of paving our roads and fixing our bridges.

I know that we need to spend more money to develop and promote tourism. But right now our state is broke, and we have to fix that first.

I have not made any promises to any group anywhere in this state about more money, and I won’t do that today — because in good conscience I can’t.

Yet, you and I need to be partners from the beginning in jumpstarting and rebuilding Maine’s economy. So here is my ante, my good faith bargain with you –

First, the Cutler Administration will develop and sustain the Maine brand, one that embraces everything about Maine, from who we are to what we sell. It is one of our most important assets and competitive advantages.

Second, A centerpiece of the government restructuring plan that I proposed a few weeks ago is a new department in which we will consolidate the economic development functions that are now scattered all over state government. We will call it the Department of Commerce and Tourism.

Third, I have called for a longer school year as a part of my education reform proposal. I also think that in a state where tourism and hospitality is the number one industry, we should make every effort to start our school year after Labor Day, and I will try to make that change all across Maine.

Finally, I will give you the respect that you deserve as Maine’s number one industry. When I am Governor, you will have not just a friend in the Blaine House, you will have a tireless advocate and a staunch defender.

Let me tell you what that means.

I have heard my friend Paul LePage tell two recent forums that he is disappointed that tourism is our number one industry. He said that’s “unfortunate.”

Disappointed? Unfortunate?

Do you think, Paul, that the Town of Freeport or the 161 employees who work here – 102 fulltime – are “disappointed” with the Inn’s $4 million payroll?

Compare it with Marden’s, Paul. As Nancy Gray explained to the Legislature last year, here at this Inn there are only 4 minimum wage positions out of 161. The Haraseeket employees receive paid vacations and a $500 education stipend.

Like Marden’s, the Inn pays 75% of the cost of health, life and dental insurance. But at Marden’s, Paul, only 29% of Marden’s employees can afford their share; 80% of the Haraseeket employees can afford their share

The fact is, Paul, that every inn, every restaurant, every campground and every tourist destination in Maine helps to support the economy and their community’s schools.

And one more thing, Paul . . . Like most people who were there or read about it, I was appalled when I heard you tell a forum in Brewer last week that if you had been governor when President Obama and his family came to vacation in Maine, you would have told him to “get out of my state.”

Well, first of all, Paul, it’s not your state. Not now, not ever. Maine belongs to all of us.

When President Obama came here last month the hits on Maine’s tourism websites skyrocketed. And I’ll bet that Chris Fogg from the Bar Harbor Chamber would tell you that no amount of advertising could match the value of the nightly images on television news shows.

As far as I am concerned, any president of any party – Roosevelt or Eisenhower, Kennedy or Bush or Obama – any President who wants to come to Maine should be welcome – anytime and anyplace.

I respect the tourism industry and I value it. Maine is a better and stronger place because of you folks and your businesses. I’m proud of you and grateful for what you do. And I can’t wait to start working with you next year.

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RELEASE: Independent Candidate for Governor, Eliot Cutler, Says Consistent and Adequate Support for the Maine Brand is Key to Tourism Growth

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MAY 20, 2010
CONTACT: TED O’MEARA
207.699.4401
ted@cutler2010.com

PORTLAND, Maine – Independent candidate Eliot Cutler said today that a strong and healthy tourism industry depends on ample, consistent and sustained support for the Maine “brand.” He pledged that as governor he will take the politics out of funding for tourism promotion and will give the industry the respect that its members deserve for all that they contribute to Maine’s economy and quality of life.

“We need to stop taking tourism for granted,” Cutler said while attending the 89th Annual Meeting & Awards Luncheon of the Maine Tourism Association in Northport. “People come to Maine because of our natural beauty, our distinctive and welcoming communities and our abundant recreational and cultural opportunities. That’s our brand. It is our greatest asset, and we must protect it, invest in it and promote it.”

Cutler said Maine does not spend enough to promote itself as a tourist destination, that Maine does not devote enough attention to the development of a four-season recreation and tourism industry and that tax revenue set aside for tourism promotion too often has been threatened or raided in order to fund other programs.

“I want Maine people to know that in my administration we will find the money to adequately promote Maine and we will protect those funds from the politics of the moment,” Cutler said. “Every dollar we spend promoting Maine yields many additional dollars in visitor spending. Tourism promotion is a way to invest in Maine’s competitive advantages, and promoting our brand and Maine’s reputation for quality will benefit the entire Maine economy and help to create jobs.”

Cutler also said that his three-point plan to lower electricity costs, lower health care costs, and lower the cost of government will help all Maine businesses grow and succeed, including the thousands of small businesses that make up Maine’s tourism and recreation industry.


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Support and Promotion of Outdoor Recreation and Activities

Monday, May 3rd, 2010

Eliot received the below question from Bruce Bourgoine via the campaign website. Please see the question and answer below:

THE QUESTION

Looking at conservation of both land and energy, how do you envision prioritizing the promotion and any funding support of non-motorized outdoor pursuits and motorized outdoor activities?

ELIOT’S ANSWER

Bruce,

I believe that the key is responsible use, not the distinction between motorized and non-motorized use. We have to have mixed use overall.

Both forms of recreation are important and have long traditions for many people in Maine. There are places where snowmobiles and ATVs are key recreational pursuits, and, particularly in the case of snowmobiles, major tourist attractions. Under the Land for Maine’s Future program, we have rails to trails, which include some ATV trails on former railroad beds.

We also should have — and do have — plenty of locations where motorized vehicles are prohibited. The same is true for bodies of water: some have outright prohibitions on all motorized watercraft; others have limits on horsepower; while still others prohibit personal watercraft.

(As far as energy conservation is concerned, when we succeed with my objective of making electricity more plentiful and considerably less expensive in Maine (see http://www.cutler2010.com/issues/energy), then perhaps we will have electric-powered snowmobies and ATV vehicles. Then we’ll have solved the entire dilemma — or at least most of it!)

Maine’s great outdoors and largely unspoiled natural environment are a major competitive advantage for Maine. The most important thing is to hold people accountable for responsible use, and to spread what funding there is as equitably as possible, while protecting what is special about Maine.

Best regards,

Eliot

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VIDEO: How Casinos Harm Recreation and Tourism in Maine

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Here is a YouTube video in which Eliot discusses his opposition to casinos and why he believes Maine should invest in its people and places of character instead:

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Investing in Tourism, Recreation and Maine’s Places of Character

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

We call ourselves Vacationland, and tourism is our largest industry, but it also is an industry that for too long has been taken for granted and underappreciated. We will change that. People come to Maine from all over the world because of what we have to offer: a beautiful coast, pristine lakes and ponds and miles of rivers for fishing and recreation. We also have vast tracts of wilderness areas, majestic mountains, and communities filled with history, culture and warm and friendly people. In addition to our great outdoors, we have vast creative and cultural assets that are equally important magnets.

People come here to hunt and fish, to go sailing, kayaking, canoeing, bicycling, hiking, skiing, snowmobiling and a host of other outdoor pursuits. Many people own second homes in Maine. And Maine is an increasingly popular place for people to retire, bringing with them disposable incomes and valuable skills, while placing few demands on our schools and state services. What draws these tourists and permanent settlers alike is not only our pristine natural resources, however.

In addition to our traditional sources of tourism dollars, Maine is now host to burgeoning year-round cultural tourism that attracts visitors from around the globe to our outstanding museums, galleries, performance venues and historical landmarks, as well as to our statewide festivals and fairs. Our local farms are themselves becoming destinations and our farmers’ markets, as well as our artisanal local food products, wines and beers, all figure prominently in the success of our nationally recognized restaurants. People are coming to Maine and spending money to take advantage of these diverse cultural assets, but we have so far failed to promote them as effectively or aggressively as we should.

Like any industry, tourism requires investment. We are competing for visitors with other places around the country and throughout the world. We cannot simply take it for granted that people will come here because they always have; we must promote ourselves aggressively, continually search out new markets and find ways to help our tourism, recreation and sporting businesses invest in the kind of infrastructure and amenities that will keep people coming back to Maine.

Lowering the cost of doing business in Maine will help our tourism-related businesses, just as it will all other businesses, and investing in education, especially arts, technology, hospitality and recreation management programs, will make sure that the industry has trained workers and is developing the next generation of industry leaders.

Finally, people come here because Maine is special – what has come to be called quality of place. Maintaining that quality experience is the most important investment we can make. That means respecting and protecting our natural environment and our wild and scenic places. It means preserving farmland, forests, working harbors and downtowns. It means reinvigorating those historic downtowns by attracting creative entrepreneurs with favorable living and working conditions. It means welcoming investment in our state, but doing so on our terms, not someone else’s.

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Cutler Opposed to Casinos in Maine

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Eliot recently outlined his position on casinos in Maine in a written response to a questionnaire from CasinosNO!, a group opposed to the expansion of casinos in Maine.

Please see Eliot’s answers to the questionnaire below:

1. Do you support or oppose the construction of more gambling casinos or racinos in Maine? Why or why not?

Eliot Cutler: I oppose the construction of more gambling casinos or racinos in Maine. People come to Maine for our quality of place. Offering more gambling is not a way to differentiate Maine from other places. In fact, it runs counter to – and dilutes – the strong brand that we enjoy as a state. My campaign is all about helping to create productive, sustainable economic activity in our state. Gambling doesn’t contribute to that. Most of the excessive profits from gambling go out of state, and the people who stand to lose the most money are Maine citizens, not visitors.

2. If the Legislature passes a casino bill, will you veto it?

Eliot Cutler: Absolutely.

3. Do you believe that any decision to have a casino in Maine should be made by voters in a statewide referendum?

Eliot Cutler: Yes. As you point out, the people of Maine have voted down casinos several times in the past decade and therefore it would be presumptuous and irresponsible for the Legislature and Governor to go off in a different direction without letting the voters have their say again.

4. If you favor more casinos, how do you justify your position given the fact that Maine voters have turned down slot machines and gambling casinos in statewide referendums four times since 2000?

Eliot Cutler: I don’t favor more casinos.

You can also download a PDF of the original questionnaire and Eliot’s answers here: CasinosNO! Questionnaire – Eliot Cutler.

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BLOG: Maine’s Competitive Advantages

Monday, October 19th, 2009

Campaigning in Maine is a great way to spend the day – meeting smart, resilient and innovative people, seeing absolutely gorgeous fall scenery, and listening to great ideas from frustrated, but hopeful, Mainers all across our state about to make the most of Maine’s competitive advantages.

  • I drove up to Danforth late last month to see the Fairwinds 55 MW wind energy project on Stetson Ridge, spending a couple of hours there with Angus King III, David Wilby and Mike Cianchette from Fairwinds. Mike is one of the luckiest guys in Maine, sitting atop the Ridge, and sometimes atop the towers, looking out over God’s country. The machines are strikingly beautiful and quieter than I had expected. And the drives up and down Routes 169 and 6 on a clear fall day make campaigning a joy.
  • Later that same day I stopped in Bangor to meet with Sandy Ervin (former Bangor superintendent), Dan Lee (Brewer superintendent) and Murray Schulman (Bangor system special education) to hear their ideas about how to improve performance and quality in PK-12 education in Maine. Last week I spent three hours in Portland with Bob Hasson (SAD-51 superintendent), Derek Pierce (Casco Bay High School principal) and David Silvernail (USM professor and researcher) listening to their thoughts.
  • I had interesting conversations last week with George Smith of the Maine Sportsman’s Alliance and with Vaughn Stinson and Carolyn Manson, who are working hard at the Maine Tourism Association. All three are doing great things for Maine and their members.Tourism is Maine’s largest industry, and it deserves a lot more attention – creative and focused attention – than it has been getting.
  • I did a half-hour taping at the Capitol Area Technical Center with Augusta Superintendent of Schools Connie Brown for her cable television show. Connie asks good questions, and it was more good discussion about how we can keep our kids in Maine. But the best part of doing the show was watching her crew – all students at the Tech Center – work like pros in the studio. Impressive! The crew changes for every show, and these young men and women are learning great skills. And I spent a great day in Biddeford listening to ideas from developers Greg Bennett and Diane Doyle and City Manager John Bubier about how to reinvigorate this great river city, which has a special Maine character and sense of place about it. The Saco-Biddeford area is going to be a gem of a growth area as we rebuild Maine’s economy.

These are Maine’s competitive advantages. When we have a vision, and when we focus our investments tightly and in a disciplined way on these assets – our natural resources, our places and our people – we can make Maine work again for all of us!

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