There are three open Rockport Select Board seats up for election June 9 at annual Town Meeting. Four candidates are seeking election to two of the seats that carry three-year terms. Those candidates are incumbents Kimberlee Graffam and Michael Thompson, as well as Samantha Appleton and Darren Robbins.

The one-year seat will fill out the remaining three-year term vacated by Select Board member Michelle Hannan, who resigned from the Rockport Select Board last winter. For that one-year seat, there are three candidates: Linda Greenlaw, Craig Mitchell and Geoffrey Parker.

Penobscot Bay Pilot has posed questions to each candidate, providing the opportunity for the public to better understand their positions on issues. Here, candidate Michael Thompson responds:

Please provide a brief biography of yourself, explain why you decided to seek a seat on the Select Board, and what you are hoping to accomplish.

I’ve always been proud to say that I am a native Mainer; born in Bar Harbor and raised and educated in the MDI – Ellsworth area schools.  In my late 20s I enrolled at University of Southern Maine and a couple years later transferred to Cornell University and graduated from its Hotel School in 1990.  Since then, I’ve lived in Southern California, upstate New York, and coastal Maine enjoying a wide-ranging career in hotel and restaurant management, with most of my years dedicated to management and service of several private estates. While in California, I joined the Coast Guard Auxiliary in Marina del Rey and was an active member for a number of years. 

I moved back to Maine in 2010 when Matt Simmons hired me to manage his recently purchased upper Fox Hill property in Camden.  Rockport became my home in 2014 when I purchased a fixer-upper on Spear Street.  I’ve been happily living there and slowly making improvements to the property since then.

Being a first-time member of the Select Board these past three years has been an education and an experience I truly value. There were some big issues we had to tackle in a short period of time, and my hope is to work towards improving the efficiency of our town operations and the assets we now have as well as rebuilding the connections and relationships with our neighboring towns that are so important to all of us. 

What are Rockport’s greatest strengths, and how do you hope to support them?

The first things that come to mind are the incredible location and natural resources we are blessed with, specifically the harbor, undeveloped and protected lands, and proximity to Camden and Rockland.  We also have a highly regarded school system, great hospital and medical facilities, and top-notch EMS, Fire and Police services, and a dedicated team of town employees working to serve all of our residents and property owners.

What are Rockport’s greatest issues to address?

There’s no way to avoid acknowledging the financial burden of property taxes and the increasing costs of everything everyone of us needs to purchase.  It’s a real struggle that many, if not most residents face, including myself.  

But with that said, I would argue one of the greatest issues our town government faces, and has the power to improve, is lack of communication and public perception.  Let me give one example:I often hear that our new EMS department is a prime reason our town budget has increased and that the Select Board was needlessly spending money. 

There’s no doubt it does have an impact on the budget.  However, these things are not always simple black and white issues. There are many factors that go into making a decision as important as starting our own EMS operations and some of those factors can change at any time and for reasons beyond the control of anyone in our Town’s decision-making team.  And so in this example I am confident the right decision was made at the time, but I can see the communication could have been better.

Rockport has several land use ordinance and subdivision ordinance amendments on the June 9 Annual Town Meeting warrant, including adjustments to the zoning map. Have you read through the proposed amendments and do you approve the changes?

As a current member of the Select Board I have read the proposed changes and voted to include them on the Town Meeting warrant.  I do support approval of the changes.

The current Select Board has discussed establishing a Regionalization Task Force (April 13 SB meeting, conversations starts at 1:55:34). What is your perception of what that means, and do you have ideas of how Rockport could collaborate with other municipalities to improve on best practices, collaborations, and/or reduce the annual financial load on taxpayers for town operations?

The task force is intended to research the potential ways and methods Rockport can collaborate with our neighboring towns primarily to save money and improve efficiency for the long term benefit of our taxpayers.

The wastewater system might be the biggest project with the greatest potential to save money and support the availability of increased affordable housing in Rockport.  Other areas could potentially be combining police and emergency service operations, public works equipment sharing, or other town staff sharing. 

As a Select Board member, how will you help ensure all villages (Rockville, Glen Cove, Simonton Corner, West Rockport and Rockport Village) all receive equal attention and investment by the town? 

I do like the idea of hosting public meetings on certain topics at various locations throughout the villages.  And naturally, giving all residents the respect of listening and acting on concerns or suggestions they may have is the right thing to do. 

The town has received a 90/10 grant from the Maine Dept. of Transportation to design (not build) a pathway from the intersection of routes 1 and 90 to the high school, as outlined in the 2024 Sewall Transportation Infrastructure Study for Rockport. Do you support investing in the design and build of a Route 90 pathway?

Yes, I wholeheartedly support this project that has been discussed and desired for many years.  I see no reason why we wouldn’t want to improve the ability for children, or anyone for that matter, to safely walk or ride bikes along Route 90. 

What is your opinion on the Rockport budget process, and the working relationship between the Select Board and the Budget Committee?

I was pleased to see, what I believe is an improved and stronger collaboration between the Select Board and Budget Committee this past year.  I think things are looking up for a successful relationship to continue.

How will you advocate for the Rockport taxpayer as you help shape and govern a municipal budget, and juggle various interests that request municipal funding throughout the year?

As a taxpayer myself, as are all members of the Select Board and other town committees, I tend to treat every expenditure as if it were coming out of my own bank account.   Decisions should be made based on urgency or critical need, overall usefulness and public desire for the item or project, and amount of the expense, among other factors.

Have you read the Rockport Municipal Charter and does it need amending?

The Charter has been updated and amended several times in the past few years, most recently April 2025.  I don’t see any changes needed at this point.

Rockport and Camden signed a five-year wastewater agreement in May 2025, which terminated lawsuits between the two towns, and “emphasized their mutual commitment to cooperation and shared goals,” said a two-town press release last year. Do you think Rockport should, for the long term (four years from now), continue sending its wastewater to Camden (and Rockland) or focus on building its own wastewater facility, as it proposed to voters in 2024? That measure failed at the polls but the idea is not forgotten.

I am optimistic that Rockport will be successful in working with Camden and Rockland to develop a long term solution that would eliminate any need to consider building our own separate wastewater facility.  I believe that will be best for all of us. 

How do you see Rockport fitting into the greater regional economy and culture?

Geographically, we are somewhat of the crossroads to the area and can be considered strategically located to capitalize on our location.  Our harbor and village area have wonderful facilities that already draw people to visit and the opportunity for more entertaining and recreational events.  Our hospital and medical facilities and our schools are essential to support our region.  And with a good amount of undeveloped land, we have a potential opportunity to attract more reasonably priced housing than our adjacent neighbors.  I would hope to see our potential in this area become reality.

What is the importance of local government, and how do you see yourself, as a Select Board member, in it?

Local government is where everything starts for most people. In a sense, I think our decisions can have the greatest impact on the daily lives of residents. We need to consider the impact and opportunities state and federal government has on us, so we can’t operate in a bubble, but we can make a difference.  Think global, act local.

What municipal committee(s) would you like to be a liaison to, and why?

Currently, I am liaison to the Pathways Committee, Conservation Commission and Recreation Committee, and I am on the board of MCSWC.  I like the work these committees are doing and would be happy to continue supporting these. 

Free space! Is there anything else you'd like to say to the voters that we haven’t considered?

I absolutely love our town, and it’s almost like wearing a badge of pride when I get to tell someone that I live in Rockport.  By nature, I tend to stay out of the limelight, but I’ve enjoyed being on the Select Board and attempting to be a voice of reason when I see the opportunity.  I hope I’ve gained your trust and support to be reelected for another three years.