Acadia Advisory Committee September 2021

Duration:

1 hour, 33 minutes, 22 seconds

A recording of the virtual Acadia Advisory Committee Meeting hosted on September 13, 2021. Updates shared by park officials, Friends of Acadia, and Schoodic Institute.

 

ACADIA NATIONAL PARK ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING

Meeting Platform: WebEx

September 13, 2021 1:00 p.m.

ATTENDANCE:

Jacqueline Johnston, Vice Chair (Acting Chair)

Matt Horton, Member

Carolyn Gothard, Member

Howie Motenko, Member

Dexter Lee, Member

Ken Smith, Member

Kendall Davis, Member

Stephen Shea, Member

G. Bruce Wiersma, Member

Kevin Schneider, Superintendent, ANP

Kevin Langley, Acting Deputy Superintendent, ANP

Rebecca Cole-Will, Chief of Resource Management, ANP

John Kelly, Management Assistant, ANP

Therese Picard, Chief Ranger, ANP

Keith Johnston, Chief of Facility Management, ANP

Laura Cohen, Chief of Visitor Experience & Education

David MacDonald, President & CEO, Friends of Acadia

Nick Fisicelli, President & CEO, Schoodic Institute

Chris Rector, Regional Rep, Senator King

Carol Woodcock, Regional Rep, Senator Collins

Members of the Public

Staff Members of ANP

News Media

ABSENT MEMBERS:

Fred Ehrlenbach, Chair

Katherine Heidinger, Member

Ben Worcester, Member

Ken Cline, Member

OPENING REMARKS

The Commission Vice Chair, Jacqueline Johnston, called the meeting of the Acadia National Park Advisory Commission, Monday, September 13, 2021, 1:00 p.m. to order.

APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA

A motion was made by Ken Smith to accept the agenda for the September 13, 2021, meeting; seconded by Callie Gothard; all approved as is, no opposed. Motion carries.

APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES

A motion was made by Ken Smith to accept the minutes of June 07, 2021. It was seconded by Kendall Davis. All approved, no opposed. Motion carries.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT – Kevin Schneider, Superintendent

WELCOME Park Operations with COVID

• Share in Jackie’s regret for having to meet virtually and not meeting at Schoodic today

• Back to requiring masks indoors and we have occupancy limits in place as part of the protocol for dealing with COVID. We are in a substantial or high transmission rate. Secretary’s Visit

• We were honored to have Secretary Haaland make her first official visit to a national park here in June. The visit included Shannon Estenoz, Assistant Secretary for Fish Wildlife and Parks. The visit included a sunrise performance by Yo Yo Ma and Wabanaki musicians at Schoodic. Because of the name profile of Yo Yo Ma, we didn’t want to overwhelm the site, so we did not announce this in advance, and it was a very small group that attended. The Secretary also met with staff here on MDI and visited Cadillac Mountain. We went across Frenchman’s Bay for a view of the park.

• The entire Congressional delegation and Governor Mills was here as well, particularly for a press conference highlighting the Great American Outdoors Act. We were able to show some of our GAOA priorities to the group, including the accommodations on the Schoodic Institute campus, which remains a very high priority for the park.

• Yo Yo Ma played a series of “pop up” performances around the park, some of which included Wabanaki musicians; a performance at Jordan Pond and one at Ocean Drive. The performances were a delight for visitors. Climate CODEL

• Last week had a group from the House at Acadia led by Congresswoman Chellie Pingree. They all stayed at Schoodic Institute. The meeting was focused on Climate. • Thank you to Schoodic Institute and Friends of Acadia, who were very involved in the visit. Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA)

• Completing the design, expect to break ground in spring

• Schoodic water and wastewater was included in the FY22 budget

• Competing for projects for FY23-25. American Aquafarms

• Proposed salmon farm in Frenchman’s Bay

• At 120 acres, this is of a size and scale that is different from any other aquaculture projects around the park

• 2,000 feet from the park – Long Porcupine Island

• Sent a letter to Maine Dept of Marine Resources (DMR) with many questions

• Reviewing this from all angles to determine potential impacts

• We will stay engaged throughout the process Town Hill Housing

• Held a meeting a couple weeks ago with representatives from the towns on Mount Desert Island (MDI) and the Acadia Disposal District

• Trying to build consensus around using the site for workforce housing. The vision would be that Island Housing Trust could take ownership of the majority of the parcel for workforce housing, 10-15 acres for NPS use for our employee housing Water Quality at Otter Cove – (Response to a question raised by Kendall Davis) R. Cole-Will

• Thriving Earth Exchange – The Thriving Earth Exchange works with the park service to connect a scientist who will engage and answer questions surrounding an issue to bring resolution to solve local challenges to natural resources. We have submitted a proposal regarding the Inner Cove at Otter Creek. 2021 Visitation and Vehicle Reservations

Visitation (A. Gibson)

• Current visitation is about 22% above the 5-year pre-pandemic average

• Beginning in October 2020, every month has set a visitation record.

• Maine Dept. of Transportation (DOT) data suggest an increase in Maine visitors travelling to Acadia. A greater percentage of which are entering the park in cars.

• Results from analyses of visitation indicate the increase in visitation is just as dramatic as the volume of visitation (i.e., the slope of visitation curves is increasing). Visitors are arriving earlier and in greater numbers causing a strain on park operations

• Visitation is not evenly distributed throughout the park. For examples, some areas (e.g., the Schoodic district) are seeing a smaller increase in visitation while other areas are seeing a larger increase (e.g., Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse).

• Analyses of Cadillac Mountain visitation indicate a dramatic drop in visitation due to the reservation system. Were it not for the visitation system, Cadillac could be overparked by as many as 1,000 vehicles.

• This has resulted in:

▪ Close to 500,000 more visits to the park than in previous years.

▪ About 190,000 more vehicles entering the park than in previous years.

• Of the 10 most visited parks, Great Smoky Mountains, Zion, and Grand Teton all have similar visitation increases.

• Three parks (GLAC, ROMO, and YOSE) have reservation systems in place which limit their visitation.

Visitor Rescue Stats (T.Picard)

• A rescue includes more than a walkout. This year we have seen double. It usually requires 15 – 30 people to do a carryout. We have help from all divisions of the park system, and a long-standing partnership with Mount Desert Island (MDI) Search & Rescue (SAR). We have great partnerships with three ambulance services on MDI, one on Saint Croix, and one on Isle au Haut.

• A major SAR is defined as over $500 in cost. We are up to 15 so far this year. Calendar Year thru August 31 2021 2020 2019 2018 SAR 50 24 27 24 EMS 116 44 79 113 August SAR 18 9 3 4 EMS 37 22 21 23 Calendar Year through 12/31 SAR pending 38 40 36 EMS pending 60 114 135 MAJOR SAR 15 so far 9 3 3 *Major SAR= more than $500 in unprogrammed time (overtime) and funded through regional accounts than out of Acadia’s budget Island Explorer Operations & Cadillac Vehicle Reservations

Island Explorer (J. Kelly)

• Did not operate in 2020

• 2021 – Routes are reduced to 6 routes on MDI

• Reduced service in 2021 - capacity was set at 12; updated to 30

• Masks always required in all transit vehicles o 120 drivers needed down to 83

• Ridership was 202,000 through August; down 300,000 YTD from 2019

• Bike Express did not run; they are planning for new location for the Bike Express in Bar Harbor in 2022

• Back to normal service in 2022 Vehicle Reservations

• 2019 Transportation Plan decision o 2020 Planning and pilot

• 2021 Implementation o Designed and constructed entrance station

• Hired and trained 15-20 seasonals

• Worked with Recreation.gov, which administer the website, to make improvements

• Improved communications (chambers, state visitor centers, lodging) - rack card, website, FOA

• Reservation System operating May 26 - October 19 this year (floating dates)

• Sunrise – 2-hour timed entry; 1 reservation per 7 days o Daytime (through sunset) – 30-minute timed entry; 1 per day

• Tickets are released 30% at 90 days + 70% at 2 days

• $6 fee per reservation = $2 to Recreation.gov for administration and $4 to NPS for staff/infrastructure

• 263,000 reservations available for this year

• To date (3/4 of season): total sold 155,000 (84%) - 100% of Sunrise, 82% of Daytime reservations

• 4.4/5-star rating; 85% gave 4 or 5 stars

• Concerns: people arriving and unaware (30%), only online purchases, technology challenges, Rec.gov glitches

• Some overparking (15 cars) mostly toward the end of day; targeting 90% efficiency

• Success = the only place in Acadia that we can guarantee a legal, safe place to park

Bass Harbor Head Light Station (J. Kelly)

• Continue to see high use and traffic congestion - closed 13 times
• Working with town and neighbors to alleviate problems to the extent possible
• Park ranger presence and new signs
• Park has begun planning with staff support from Denver Service Center (DSC)
• Preliminary project planning = initial step to prepare for DCP
• Establishes the scope, schedule, and cost estimate for DCP
• Identifies issues and opportunities, data needs, previous guidance and decisions, and the environmental review process
• Input from stakeholders
• Report due November 2021

OLD BUSINESS

None

NEW BUSINESS

• Kendall Davis brought items to be addressed at a future meeting requested by the Town of Mount Desert:

o Prospect of NPS providing fresh water at the Fish House in Otter Creek

o Grover Avenue Town Dock- Increasing the size as there is no way to turn around. Jackie Johnston replied they will be discussed at the committee meetings and put them on the agenda for the next meeting

*ANP Advisory Commission proposed meeting dates for FY2022 Monday, February 7th, 2022 Monday, June 6th, 2022 Monday, September 12th, 2022 *

Approval of the Advisory meeting dates for FY2022 was overseen during the meeting and voting was completed following the public meeting. The motion was made to accept the dates for 2022 by Fred Ehrlenbach; seconded by Howie Motenko; all approved, no opposed.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Lands Committee – No Report

Science & Education Committee – No Report

Park Use Committee – No Report

History Committee – No Report

FRIENDS OF ACADIA – David MacDonald, President & CEO

The busy season has affected all of us. Seasonal staff have been carrying on. We are normally doubled in size during the season. Our seasonal positions are no longer 3 months, but 6 months now. The Congressional Delegation was at Acadia, meeting on Climate Change. They wanted to understand what we were doing around the natural resource, terms of the science, and how we communicate it to the public. We talked about the parks own carbon footprint and how to help visitors make climate-friendly choices on their own visits here.

The Benefit Auction was held virtually. This year our Greening Acadia Fund was established to make Acadia more climate friendly. We hope this will, also, help leverage federal funds. We continue to work with Climate to Thrive in a partnership.

We have been active on the American Aquafarms proposal. The board did vote to oppose it, along with many stakeholders around the bay. We are working with Frenchman Bay United and Partners around the bay to understand the park interests and to best compliment interests of those stakeholders around the bay. There are many constituencies, well beyond the park, that have addressed concern. We are working hard to plug into those and make sure we are working alongside each other the best we can. We put an op-ed out this weekend and we will be working to push some messages out; and we will put some forums on online for FOA members to answer questions; and give them options on how they can be more active on this.

Teams are visiting from EPLEY Institute, working on an accessibility study in the park. We are getting a sense of what the issues are, where there are barriers and what the priorities are moving forward. So, as we work with funding sources, like the Great American Outdoors Act, we can look at accessibility and make sure this is a primary priority. There are sites not friendly to folks with limitations. We are looking at not friendly sites and working to find resolutions for those issues. Last, another important issue is worker housing; Acadia reached out to FOA for ideas, creativity, and help. We want very much to do that, along with other groups like the Island Housing Trust and MV365. This is not new news to anyone. It is affecting every employer on the island. The scale at Acadia is significant. They usually hire approximately 150-175 seasonals; at best the park has housing for 60-70. We need to look for solutions. Most are looking at year-round housing. We are focusing on seasonal housing. This affects every aspect of the park’s operations. This might be a future topic with more detail. Thank you for this meeting and this forum. Jackie Johnston: Thank you for all your continued efforts for the park and for being such a vital partner to Acadia.

SCHOODIC INSTITUTE UPDATE – Nicholas Fisichelli, President & CEO

We were hopeful to see you all at Schoodic this year. It isn’t happening this time but, hopefully, we will see you on campus sometimes soon. It has been a busier year on the Schoodic Peninsula. Cars and bikes are up 10% with 15,000 visitors. Overnight guest numbers were down. There were 4,000 guest nights and 1,000 more planned for the remainder of the calendar year – 50%-75% of the norm. Larger groups take about 6 months of planning, and we are now planning for 2022. Staff more than doubled to about 50. We have 6 education teaching assistants brought on for K-12 programming There have been several groups and visitor stay on campus to include,

• We have had an eighth grade ‘Girls in Science’ group

• A group of high school science teachers – Teach Earth Fellowship Program

• 8 college interns

• The Secretary of the Interior and Assistant Secretary came in June

• 7 members of Congress We have a partnership with the University of Maine. The president of University of Maine visited Schoodic last week. Science has been happening this year.

• Worked on the Cadillac Summit Restoration Project

• Bird Watching Migration, 75-100K heading south

• Hawk Watch, the 27th year

• Intertidal – looking at ecosystem health and biodiversity

• Soft Shell Clam; boosting population on Gouldsboro We are requesting proposals for the 2022 Stewardship Fellows Scholarships. For more information go to www.scsparkscience.org Due to the Delta variant of COVID, they cancelled the overnight Education SEA programs but did engage in day trips and remotely. It was relatively safe with students working in an outdoor setting. We have added outdoor classrooms. Check out our calendar at www.schoodicinstitute.org We are very busy at Schoodic Institute, not as busy as pre-COVID, but busy.

ADVISORY COMMISSION COMMENTS

None

PUBLIC COMMENT

Jackie Johnston: I would like to acknowledge we do have some staff from Senator Collins and Senator Kings office with us today. Would you have any comments or questions for the group?

Chris Rector, Representative from Senator Kin’s office – We were very fortunate to join with others at Schoodic Institute when the Secretary of the Interior was visiting and we appreciate that, and we appreciate hearing all the updates here and especially how the reservation system is working and all the work that Friends of Acadia and everyone is doing.

Carol Woodcock, Regional Representative Senator Collins – I second everything that Chris said.

CLOSING COMMENTS

The Commission Vice Chair made closing comments. Please remember to send any suggestions for agenda items for the February 7th, 2022, meeting to Fred Ehrlenbach.

ADJOURNMENT

The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 7, 2022, 1:00 p.m. and will be a virtual meeting as published in the FEDERAL REGISTER. (This is based on the Secretary's Decision that all meetings be held virtually until further notice due to COVID-19. Notification will be published if the meeting is changed to an in-person meeting).

Motion was made by Ken Smith to adjourn, seconded by Kendall Davis, and approved by all, no opposed. Motion passed. Meeting adjourned at 2:33 pm.

Minutes Submitted by Kathy Flanders