Island Explorer, YMCA Funding Survive Budget Recommendations
Feb 26, 2026
The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Havana.
BAR HARBOR—Round One of the Bar Harbor budget process is pretty much complete and it saw the town’s warrant committee split on recommending to not fund the Fourth of July, two other Chamber-run events, and propose not funding three new town positions.
On February 24, the town council heard those recommendations and tentatively adopted the approximately $29 million budget and sent it to public hearing.
It’s the first group of steps before the budget eventually goes before town voters in June and it comes after hours of warrant committee meetings this winter.
The warrant committee itself can’t make changes to the budget that will eventually go before voters at town meeting. That’s the town council’s responsibility, but it does make recommendations prior to the council moving that budget forward. It also eventually votes to recommend or not multiple pieces of the budget. Voters hear that vote during the June budget vote.
The town’s warrant committee is made up of subcommittees. Those committees also met in workshops prior to the committee as a whole making recommendations.
Warrant Committee Chair Christine Smith gave a summary of the warrant committee’s budget recommendations to the town council, February 24.
Suggestions varied from not supporting three proposed new positions, reevaluating the use of a survey company, and taking out money for community events that is usually given to the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce to help with the Fourth of July and holiday events.
One suggestion was reevaluating the use of Polco, an online survey tool, and rename the item so that it doesn’t specify the provider.
A discussion of town support for community celebrations took up most of the time during the joint meeting on February 24.
COMMUNITY EVENTS
This year, the warrant committee members did not recommend funding the community events line of $24,000. That line has typically supported community celebrations and events such as the fireworks on July 4 and the Village Holidays. A split (9-3) warrant committee chose not to support it.
Kevin Knopp, who was recently appointed to the committee to replace Barbara Dunphey, argued that since those are Chamber events the town is already supporting them via police and public works presence as well as that the Chamber is a member of APPLL, which has sued the town over cruise ship disembarkations.
Secretary Louise Lopez said that the line item before them wasn’t whether or not the money goes to the Chamber, but whether to support the community events.
“I don’t think it meets the level of usage by the community,” Knopp said.
Warrant committee member Carol Chappell added, “It has come to our attention that most likely the Chamber is still a member to the APPLL organization.”
She said it doesn’t mean she or others don’t want fireworks. She does, however, want to know that money isn’t filtered down from the town into another organization and used to sue the town.
Later in the meeting, Councilor Earl Brechlin said support for Chamber-run events could free up Chamber money for “political misadventures.”
“Simple solution, the Chamber decides they’re not a member of APPLL,” Chappell said.
The worry for some is that the money might defray the Chamber’s costs, which allows it to be a member of APPLL. While it’s not known what kind of membership the Chamber has in APPLL, the APPLL website lists individual memberships at $150 and business memberships at $250.
Town Manager James Smith explained during the February 24 meeting, “The Chamber has to invoice the town for direct cost. We would reimburse direct cost. We’re not writing a blank check.”
James Smith said that an option would be the town could increase the funding and the town could coordinate the fireworks itself.
“I think that there’s quite a few people that might (appreciate it if) the town did it directly and the money didn’t go to APPLL towards the Chamber,” Councilor David Kief said. “I’m sure we could get some kind of a drive going and people would contribute and make up the difference in that. There are a lot of people that are opposed to funding in that direction because they feel that it’s a shell game anyway with money.”
Bar Harbor Chamber Executive Director Everal Eaton said Wednesday that the Chamber is grateful for the town’s effort and support in making the community events happen.
For the town to take on the events without the Chamber, it would require staff hours and extra financial funding from the town.
On the day of the event, three to four Chamber staff members meet at 6 a.m. on the pier, set up the pier for fireworks and the entertainment. By 9 a.m., two-three staff members rush over to the parade staging areas to line up participants.
“One staff member must always remain at the pier since that becomes an active blast site to make sure no one crosses the barrier (at least a dozen or two try each year),” Eaton said.
The parade then runs from approximately 10 a.m. to noon. Then staff go to the pier to get ready for entertainment management, which usually runs from early afternoon to 9 p.m. Between 9 p.m. and 9:15 p.m., the fireworks start and go off for about a half-hour show. Chamber staff stays behind after the show is completed to continue to safeguard the blast zone until the fire department and/or fire marshal declares the blasts no longer active, and begin clean up once that is the case.
“We often don’t finish until 11:30 p.m. or midnight,” Eaton said.
The total cost of the event is estimated to be just under $49,000. The Chamber has asked Bar Harbor for a $16,300 contribution. Expenses include advertising, dumpsters, entertainment, Wallace Tent fees, fireworks, lobster scavenger hunt and parade expenses. There is a fee for Anah Shriners’ participation. The Chamber already splits the port-a-potty fee with the town.
Seaside Cinemas has also historically had town support. The Chamber has two staff members set up the screen, start and serve popcorn, and clean up. This tends to be a time commitment of 3.5 nighttime hours six times a season.
The cost to the Chamber is just under $3,000. The town has been asked for $1,550 in support. Costs include the town’s parks and recreation permit fee, licensing (approximately $415 per movie), popcorn, and supplies.
Bar Harbor, Maine on Instagram
For the Village Holidays, most of the preparation occurs before Santa arrives on the Village Green and includes procuring and decorating a tree, decorating the lamp posts, the fountain covers, and the buoy tree. The storage fees are included in the ask. The storage unit is at Acadia Storage and costs approximately $1,600 each year and exclusively holds the holiday decorations.
The Chamber has asked the town for $6,150 to support the event, which has a total cost of just under $8,000. Those costs go to the storage and decorating expenses, activity costs at the YMCA after the tree lighting, the town’s parks and recreation fee, the buoy tree transportation and decorating cost, as well as the costs for decoration replacement.
None of the Chamber costs include paying for Chamber staff’s salary for time during the events or for the preparation time for the events.
“Outside of the town funding, we make up the difference through donations and sponsors. Last year, we received about $8,000 in donations from the community and about $17,500 in sponsorship for the Fourth. Seaside Cinema operated at a loss to the Chamber of $134. This was also the first time in three years we were able to secure sponsors for the Village Holiday event and sale,” Eaton said.
If the arrangement continues with the Chamber, James Smith said he expects to be invoiced with the fireworks vendor for that activity.
Finance Director Sarah Gilbert said the town has supported the Fourth of July events since 2008.
“This is a town commitment to fireworks,” Chair Valerie Peacock said. “I don’t think we’re offsetting something that they weren’t funding.”
It’s a relationship and expectation, she said though she’s not comfortable that the Chamber is a member of APPLL, but doesn’t think the support of community events that the chamber organizes allows APPLL to exist.
The fireworks are important. ”It’s something that we’ve built up together over time.”
She understood the politics, she said, but taking out the money would mean that the Chamber would have to fundraise it all itself and that the town has no interest in funding that, which she didn’t agree with.
“They aren’t making from money for this,” she said. “It’s an epic part of who we are as a community. It’s something that my family loves.”
Because the Chamber once advertised a thank-you for sponsors with the Bar Harbor Story, which is the newspaper that Shaun Farrar is the managing editor of, he declared a conflict of interest and was recused from the discussion and vote.
NEW EMPLOYEES
The split committee also voted against recommending a proposed staff member for public works. Another employee, which was covered in the part-time wages line for the public works portion of the budget was not recommended. It also did not recommend hiring a purchasing agent for the town.
ISLAND EXPLORER FUNDING
The bulk of the questions and discussion within the warrant committee discussions prior to meeting with the council on February 24 has been about the Jesup Memorial Library, Island Explorer, and MDI YMCA’s current flat funding requests.
Rather than presenting to the council and committee, these three agencies are instead going through a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) process negotiated by James Smith.
Warrant Committee members Chappell and Knopp both expressed that they didn’t have enough information to support the MOU requests for the Island Explorer and the YMCA.
“I don’t have any more answers other than last year’s work,” Chappell said. “I don’t know what the YMCA’s wishes are at this point…. I feel frustrated that I don’t have information that I asked for and I wonder how I could have gotten that information.”
Chappell said she was frustrated with the process and didn’t feel like she had enough information.
During last year’s presentation, Downeast Transportation Director Paul Murphy said that about 20% of the rides are from residents throughout Mount Desert Island for 2024. Some years, it’s been higher. The Island Explorer serves all of the towns and ferry terminals and they all contribute to the system, he said at the time.
That number, he said, Tuesday, was 14% for 2025.
“14% of 506,000 is about 71,000 passengers. This is a big number for a rural transit system in Maine that operates for five months of the year,” Murphy said.
Chappell had previously asked why the bus system was free. There are many teens on the island, she’d said, who could afford to pay a fare.
This year the committee discussed if the transportation was truly a community transportation system.
“I hear from so many people that they do not want to fund the Island Explorer with taxpayer dollars. They don’t want to pay for tourists to ride the bus when they’re on vacation,” committee member Tammy Bloom said. “I hear that more often than I hear, ‘Let’s keep the funding status quo.’”
Committee member Elissa Chesler, who was also appointed this year, said that she supported ramping it down, but didn’t think the committee should get ahead of the sustainable tourism process and that the parking revenue is a good way to offset some of the expense.
“It’s helping to reduce that congestion on the streets,” James Smith said and also helping to reduce that type of vehicular crowding.
There had been a fee for some routes in the past, but the thought was that paying a fare might be an impediment. To see if this was true, Friends of Acadia replaced the $3k in fares with funding, allowing all routes to be free. Ridership increased by 600% the next year. The system collects about $50k a year in donations from riders.
Getting on and off the bus without monetary transactions, John Kelly said, increases both the efficiency of the bus and its use.
Knopp said that he’d like to reduce the funding by $50,000 this year.
Chappell seconded Knopp’s motion to fund the free bus service at $260,544. The Island Explorer’s request is for approximately $310,500.
Knopp said that he wanted to decrease the funding each year.
“I think we should start reducing it annually in tiers and hope that other organizations have time to step up and fill the void,” Knopp said.
John Kelly said the town’s voter-approved comprehensive plan supports the Island Explorer. There is a specific goal for the town to support a transportation system and improve it for residents.
“To get there, I think we need to continue to support the Island Explorer,” John Kelly said.
A recent presentation to the town’s sustainable tourism task force said the free bus has reduced traffic congestion by 15%.
“I’m not saying that it shouldn’t be supported and the service should be impaired,” Knopp said on Monday during a warrant committee meeting.
He didn’t believe cutting a “token amount” of $50,000 would impair the service. He just didn’t think that it should be funded by tax payers to that extent.
That would be a 16.1% reduction in the funding from the town, James Smith said.
The Island Explorer, the town manager said, is both a tourism management asset and a service for residents. “It is having an absolute positive effect on current traffic congestion.”
John Kelly explained that the cost to operate the Island Explorer is $90 an hour.
“If you cut $50k, that’s over 500 hours of service and that will be felt,” he said.
Without details in the budget, Knopp said, it was hard for the committee members to do their job in a responsible manner.
“I want to see in writing what we as a town get for the money,” Knopp had said at an earlier meeting.
The motion to reduce it by $50,000 failed with four warrant committee members— Bloom, Chappell, Chesler, and Knopp, voting to cut that out of the funding.
The recommendation for full funding passed with the same 8-4 split. Brooke Blomquist, Kevin DesVeaux, Farrar, John Kelly, Meg Kelly, Louise Lopez, Allison Sasner, and Christine Smith voting in favor.
JESUP MEMORIAL LIBRARY
Though the library is also now working under an MOU like the Island Explorer and YMCA, its request was approved by the warrant committee and didn’t require a second meeting for discussion.
MDI YMCA
At the beginning of the discussion, Farrar disclosed that the Y had recently donated to the Bar Harbor Story. There was no second that he had a conflict of interest.
The committee ended up supporting $180,000 in flat funding.
Chappell said that she’d sent in specific questions. She read the town charter about the warrant committee’s task.
“I asked specific questions as other people have in open meetings and I don’t have any more answers other than look at last year’s work,” Chappell said.
She’s heard there’s no changes in scope of services.
“I don’t know what the YMCA’s wishes are at this point. I asked if there was information from the YMCA that would help the voter decide if this request was needed. I don’t have that information. I feel frustrated that I don’t have information I have asked for,” Chappell said. “I’m frustrated with the process.”
“I feel the same way,” Knopp agreed. “I think the process is pretty flawed this year. I think the committee needs to stand up for itself.”
James Smith said that the town has been explicitly clear and that it is a status quo service approved by voters last year. There’s no change in the services or the funding request.
“It’s the same questions that we’ve answered previously. Nothing’s changed here,” the town manager said.
James Smith said it was important to have the agreements between the YMCA, Island Explorer, and the Jesup hammered out.
John Kelly said this was a transitional year—the first year the MOUs are being used.
“I don’t think there’s anything being purposefully hidden or kept from the committee,” he explained.
MOUs are often long and drawn-out processes and works of cooperations that have to be hammered out.
“I’m sure they’ll be in place next time we meet next year,” Kelly said.
The committee recommended the YMCA funding be approved with Chappell and Knopp voting against.
SASNER LEAVING WARRANT COMMITTEE
Sasner is moving from Bar Harbor and the committee will have to appoint someone to fill her seat for the season. Applications can be sent in through March 13. applications are available via the town clerk’s office. Chris Smith encouraged people who are interested to attend on March 9 as a member of the public.
Sasner’s term expires in June along with Christine Smith’s, Chappell’s, DesVeaux’s Knopp’s, Farrar’s, and Chesler’s. There are 15 seats on the committee.
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
FY27 Budget
Presented by the Town Manager and Finance Director January 22, 2026
Budget Review Process
Council/Warrant Committee Budget Workshops:
January 22 – Introduction of the municipal budget by Manager and Finance Director
January 27 – School Budget
January 29 – Discussion of outside agency requests
To watch the most recent meeting and others, head to Town Hall Streams.
All file photos: Carrie Jones/Shaun Farrar/Bar Harbor Story. Video courtesy of Johnathan Robles/Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce.
Disclosure: Shaun Farrar is (as you know if you’ve read the story, so this feels silly, but we’re annoying about this sort of thing) on the town’s warrant committee. He is also married to Carrie Jones. His views often do not reflect hers particularly about tomatoes, avocados, and spinach.
Correction! As soon as I sent this out, I read it again and realized that some sort of autocheck weirdness had happened with Alison Sasner’s name. I apologize and it’s been corrected at 8:10.
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