ACADIA BYWAY CORRIDOR MANAGEMENT PLAN Prepared for the Corridor Advisory Group and the Maine Department of Transportation By The Hancock County Planning Commission (Revised: April 12, 2000) jhf c:\my documents\byway\sb3\doc\sb3cmpl5.doc TABLE OF CONTENTS WHY A BYWAY? WHY THIS BYWAY?................................................................................................................... 5 INTRINSIC VALUES................................................................................................................................................... 5 IMPORTANCE OF THE PROPOSED ACADIA BYWAY ........................................................................................ 6 WHAT’S IT LIKE? TRAVELING THE ACADIA BYWAY..................................................................................... 8 ACADIA BYWAY RESOURCES................................................................................................................................ 8 THE PARK LOOP ROAD............................................................................................................................................. 8 SCENERY................................................................................................................................................................... 11 NATURAL RESOURCES .......................................................................................................................................... 13 ECOLOGICAL RESOURCES ..................................................................................................................................... 14 CULTURAL AND HISTORIC RESOURCES ........................................................................................................... 16 RECREATION............................................................................................................................................................ 28 WHERE ARE WE GOING? OUR VISION AND GOALS ...................................................................................... 30 VISION........................................................................................................................................................................ 30 GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND STRATEGIES ........................................................................................................... 31 Goal 1. Protect and Enhance Scenic, Historical, and Natural Resources. ............................................................ 31 Goal 2. Insure Health and Safety for Movement Along the Byway ........................................................................ 32 Goal 3: Promote Community Support and Participation in the Acadia Byway ..................................................... 34 Goal 4: Promote Education on the Need for Resource Protection and Preservation ............................................ 35 Goal 5: Promote Sustainable Economic Development and Tourism Management................................................ 37 WHO IS COMING WITH US? PARTNERSHIPS, AGREEMENTS ..................................................................... 39 COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION PROGRAM ....................................................................................................................... 39 Public Relations / Marketing in the Communities .................................................................................................. 40 ONGOING MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION ............................................................................................ 42 THE CORRIDOR MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE.................................................................................................. 43 Responsibilities ....................................................................................................................................................... 43 THE ROLE OF LOCAL COMMUNITIES ................................................................................................................. 44 Town Council (Bar Harbor) and Board of Selectmen (Trenton) and Acadia National Park................................. 44 Planning Boards ..................................................................................................................................................... 44 THE ROLE OF PUBLIC AGENCIES / INSTITUTIONS........................................................................................... 45 Federal.................................................................................................................................................................... 45 State ........................................................................................................................................................................ 45 County..................................................................................................................................................................... 46 THE ROLE OF PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS ......................................................................................................... 47 THE ROLE OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS ................................................................................................. 47 HOW DO WE GET THERE? OUR BYWAY ROAD MAP..................................................................................... 49 PROTECTION TECHNIQUES .................................................................................................................................. 49 Bar Harbor ............................................................................................................................................................. 50 Acadia National Park ............................................................................................................................................. 55 Future Protection Techniques................................................................................................................................. 55 ADOPTION IN THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN...................................................................................................... 57 Bar Harbor ............................................................................................................................................................. 57 ACADIA BYWAY MARKETING - A QUIET APPROACH.................................................................................... 58 MARKETING RESEARCH ............................................................................................................................................... 58 COMMUNICATION AND INTERVENTION ......................................................................................................................... 58 2 ARE WE ALMOST THERE YET? A SIX-YEAR ACTION PLAN........................................................................ 59 PRIORITIES FOR ACTION PLAN ...................................................................................................................................... 59 Goal 1. Protect and Enhance Scenic, Historical, and Natural Resources. ............................................................ 59 Goal 2. Insure Health and Safety for Movement Along the Byway ........................................................................ 60 Goal 3: Promote Community Support and Participation in the Acadia Byway ..................................................... 61 Goal 4: Promote Education on the Need for Resource Protection and Preservation ............................................ 61 Goal 5: Promote Sustainable Economic Development and Tourism Management................................................ 62 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.............................................................................................................................................. 65 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Acadia Scenic Byway Points of Interest .............................................................................................................. 7 Figure 2 Historic and Cultural Inventory ........................................................................................................................ 27 Figure 3 Bar Harbor Zoning Map ................................................................................................................................... 51 Figure 4 Land Under Acadia National Park Protection.................................................................................................. 55 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Outstanding Scenic Resources ........................................................................................................................... 12 Table 2 Natural Features ................................................................................................................................................ 13 Table 3 Registered Critical Areas .................................................................................................................................. 14 Table 4 Cultural and Historic Inventory.......................................................................................................................... 18 Table 5 National Register Information For Bar Harbor.................................................................................................. 26 Table 6 Acadia Hiking Trails - Distances are in Miles and Kilometers and round trip .................................................. 29 Table 7 Participants