Boothbay Harbor voters will go to the polls on Friday, May 5 at the Boothbay Harbor Municipal Building between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. to choose two selectmen for three-year terms. Incumbent Denise Griffin is running against Mark Gimbel and Mark Osborn.

Below are profiles of each candidate in alphabetical order.

Mark Gimbel

Residence: 14 Commercial St.

Occupation: Owner of several businesses

Education: Exeter High School, University of New Hampshire bachelor’s degree in business administration, minor in history

Political history: Town of Newcastle Park Committee (result next to Congo Church). Advisor to Great Salt Bay Community School.

Clubs/organizations: Former: Rotarian, board member for Boothbay Harbor Region Chamber of Commerce, founding member Boothbay Region Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Deacon First Congo Church, Second Congo high school youth group leader, trustee. Boothbay Region Student Aid Fund. Current: One of the founding directors of 501C3, Friends of Windjammer Days.

Considering the position you are running for, what do you feel are the three most pressing issues?

1) Helping Chief Snyder fill the empty officer positions.

2) Wider range of housing options – our peninsula needs a bigger inventory of single family homes in the $199K-$299K range, more apartments, and workforce housing. This is an urgent issue that will require the cooperation of the boards of selectmen, planning boards, and possibly the Water and Sewer Districts, if affected in their zone. Not everyone wants to buy a house, so there should be reasonably priced apartment options for those folks. Zoning changes will be necessary. The key is doing it with common sense and getting it done quickly. The problem is acute and the issue can’t be kicked down the road any longer.

3) Parking. As in any dense downtown there are limited options. However, there are creative ways to solve the problem. Here is a past example. Six to seven years ago, the old Pratt farm first came on the market for $250K. I suggested to the town fathers that the town buy it, subdivide and keep one acre, then resell the remaining 4.25 acres for $400K. That acre could have been used for employees and buffered by substantial greenery. Thus, a lot of new spaces created with no net cost to the taxpayers. That would free up dozens of spaces downtown. There are more opportunities out there but action is required. These things do not solve themselves.

Any other thoughts on why you are running or what you can bring to the office?

I am a glass is half full kind of guy. The positives far outweigh the negatives in Boothbay Harbor. We have one of the best public works departments in Maine that does a great job keeping town assets updated and looking good. Parks, sidewalks, parking lots, etc. I love our old tagline, Boating Capitol of New England, and am always working toward that being a legitimate claim: bringing in fun and exotic ships Draken, Santa Maria, Trinidad and Oliver Hazard Perry, as well as keeping Windjammer Days exciting. Look forward to a visit from Bluenose II in 2024. I want to work with the Port Committee to create plans for updated public dockage and boat launch option.

Denise Griffin

Address: 195 Atlantic Ave., Boothbay Harbor

Occupation: HR Consultant (and retired HR Officer for First National Bank)

Education: Bowdoin College, bachelor’s degree; Boston University, MBA

Political History (Board, Committees): Selectman for Boothbay Harbor; Budget Committee for Boothbay Harbor

Clubs/Organizations: Coastal Counties Workforce Board

Considering the position you are running for, what do you feel are the three most pressing issues?

I am seeking re-election to the Boothbay Harbor Board of Selectmen. I have been a property owner in town since 1980 and a full time resident since 2007. I am recently retired from the First National Bank and currently run a part-time HR consulting business. In addition, I have been fortunate to serve the public on the BOS for several years and understand the various needs of the community.

We have a great board right now that works well together. We've made great progress towards our goals. I want to continue that forward momentum. Several projects will be coming to a successful conclusion this year and a big part of that is due to the excellent and experienced town staff. The staff has played a large role in managing the new footbridge project as well as renovating sidewalks.

We have an amazing town with many opportunities. Schools, housing and jobs are the key issues facing us today. Children and our schools are the foundation of our future. This past year I worked collaboratively with the Boothbay Selectmen and the School Board/Trustee members to bring the school/town charter agreement into the 21st century. We need to continue to work together to determine how to best reinvest in our school facilities, have updated curriculum options, and offer competitive salaries so that we have terrific graduates in an affordable way which local taxpayers can afford.

Housing continues to be a challenge in the region. The town needs to find the right balance between commercial and residential property; seasonal and year round. We must find some ways to balance everyone’s needs whether it be for employee housing or general residential housing. We are an amazing vacation destination with many short term rentals but we need homes for year round residents, too.

I would be remiss not to mention the one challenge the town has like all other towns in the country and that is lack of job applicants. I and the rest of the board support the Town Manager in recruiting more job applicants for all open positions. We need to be creative and we need to be open to doing things differently in the future.

Any other thoughts on why you are running or what you can bring to the office?

What I value most about this town is its diversity of residents, the natural beauty, the character and history - all which makes for an appealing place to live. We need to work together to keep it this way. We can do this, we are resourceful, generous and industrious!

Finally, I am in town year round and am committed to serving the public at all meetings - including those such as wharves and weirs hearings which can’t be served via Zoom. My boots are on the ground year round!

Mark Osborn

Address: Greenleaf Lane, Boothbay Harbor

Occupation: Inn/Motel Owner (Topside Inn & Mid-Town Motel)

Education: BS Business, Ithaca College, Culinary, Boston University

Political History (Board, Committees): Board positions: Boothbay Harbor Chamber of Commerce (past), Hospitality Maine, Maine’s Restaurant & Innkeepers Association, Named Innkeepers of the year 2020 (current), Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (current).

Clubs/Organizations: Supporter of Boothbay Region Food Pantry,

Considering the position you are running for, what do you feel are the three most pressing issues?

A successful community, one where people feel safe, connected, proud and hopeful is one where multiple facets of life are all working together. These facets include, but are not limited to, employment, affordable housing, transportation, healthcare, life-time education, cultural heritage, natural environment, and opportunities for sound business development and growth. These aspects of a community are interconnected and need equal attention and consideration when making a plan for the future.

Safety is something many of us take for granted; we shouldn’t. Of all of the aspects that define a successful community, safety has to be the priority. Without a feeling of safety, or should something happen and we are not prepared to address it, it could shake the foundation of our community. We need to address the issues facing our police department and offer them the support they need to keep us safe.

Affordable housing is the foundation to a year-round community and needs to be a top priority. Without adequate housing we will not have enough local labor to work in our businesses, children to go to our schools, families to support local restaurants and shops.

Preserving our cultural heritage and way of life needs to be the basis of all of our decisions. Yes, I was not born in Boothbay Harbor, but as a fourth generation Boothbay Harbor summer person and a twenty-year “year round” resident and business owner, I am passionate about respecting and preserving what makes our town unique; without it we lose our identity and what makes us special, basically everything.

I know these issues seem impossible to fix, but they are not. We need information, create options, make a decision, formulate a plan and take action. I’ve done it many times and I would be honored to do my part to make that happen for our community.

Any other thoughts on why you are running or what you can bring to the office?

Twenty years ago, I moved to Boothbay Harbor, the town I spent every summer, where my parents lived and my brother and his family now live. I purchased my first business, the Thistle Inn; I am so proud that I was able to bring this iconic local business back and made it a place everyone can enjoy to this day. We purchased Topside Inn in 2014 and after much hard work, Topside was named the #1 small hotel in the country and #7 in the world, bringing positive attention to Boothbay Harbor. We recently purchased Mid-Town Motel from Tim Lewis, preserving another iconic local establishment.

I am hardworking, driven, an experienced problem solver and passionate about making things better, it’s who I am, it’s what I do. I am committed to improving life in Boothbay Harbor and, if given the chance, to making our local government work for everyone. MOsbornBBH@gmail.com