NORTHPORT — Travel just a few miles up Beech Hill Road in Northport and the landscape is old Maine: hardscrabble farms, stone walls, and small homes tucked behind trees. As the road rises, generous views spread over Penobscot Bay to the east and the Camden Hills to the southwest. There are woods and pastures, cows, lobster pots, and chicken barns. And at the crest of the hill approximately 3.5 miles from Coastal Route 1 is a striking blueberry field, still crimson from last season's splendor.

It is that field, plus another one across the street, that has prompted almost 300 citizens to sign a petition hoping to halt a proposed development that would site there — in Phase I — 20 RVs and three geodesic domes. Phase II would add more RVs and domes, with an eventual possible build-out of 60-80 RV sites.

The development, Ithilmere, Beech Hill Resort and Estate, was first introduced to the Northport Planning Board at its February 10 meeting. That presentation was informal, according to Northport Town Administrator James Kossuth, and the town, as of March 16, had not heard further from the property's new owners, Michael Ruggiero and Ariel Savitz.

But in a March 18 phone conversation, Ruggiero said he will request to be on the Northport Planning Board's April meeting agenda to continue discussing his ideas for the land he just acquired.

He said he is saddened by the petition, which he only learned was circulating just a few hours after closing the real estate purchase of the 115 acres that comprise two parcels — 554 and 562 Beech Hill Road — on which the blueberry fields partially sit.

Ruggiero, who lives in Belmont, Mass., provided the Northport Planning Board with a preliminary plan for the project in February. He has since retained Jamie L. Garland, P.E., of Main-Land in Falmouth, to help with the formal planning and engineering process.

"The February packet was largely intended to give the planning board an early sense of the concept, learn whether my idea was in violation of any municipal rules, and share some of my broader vision," he said, adding that the final engineered proposal is now being refined.

The vision is not for a conventional campground, "but as a carefully constrained proof of concept for land-based hospitality," wrote Ruggiero, in the preliminary plan.

According to the plan, RVs would be arranged as wedges, or pads, that spread radially along a road, with the pads facing outward toward the surrounding landscape. The geodesic domes would be interspersed among the RV pads and would, "serve as premium guest accommodations."

Image courtesy Ithilmere RV Resort and Estate plan, as submitted to the Northport Planning Board in February 2026

Each dome would contain a small bathroom, sleeping quarters and a kitchenette.

"At [$]150 per night, they offer an alternative for guests without RVs — couples seeking a unique glamping experience, visitors who want to test Ithilmere before investing in an RV, or simply travelers who appreciate architectural novelty and sweeping panoramic views," the plan said.

Ruggiero said over the phone that he wants to teach tai chi and to incorporate agricultural tourism at the RV resort and estate. He and his family operate a berry farm in Massachusetts, he said.

"I'm fully planning on doing food stuff with seniors," he said. "I donate to the senior groups here."

"This project is not a casual or speculative venture," he said later, in a follow-up email. "It has been a serious dream of mine for years, one that has required real personal risk and commitment, which is part of why it has been disheartening to see it received this way."

The concept comprises a, "premium, owner-operated RV resort that combines land stewardship, active restoration, and carefully designed operations," wrote Ruggiero, in his business plan. "The site supports commercial wild blueberry agriculture alongside guest use, while programming and infrastructure are designed to encourage movement, learning and rest without imposing a fixed retreat model."

He hopes to build this coming summer, with excavation in May and June, and open for business in July.

"It's not like we're some faceless private equity company that's just trying to put in a KOA campground in Northport," said Ruggiero, adding that he feels he has been mischaracterized on Facebook on posts relevant to the petition.

He is a former elected official in the city of Medford, Mass., he said, "I know how quickly things can turn."

He is skeptical of labeling the existing fields as wild, referencing online comments.

 "Calling this a 'wild blueberry field' gives the impression of untouched wilderness, when it is in fact a commercially managed agricultural field that has been actively worked and sprayed over the years," he wrote. "The former owner has not been willing to tell me exactly what was applied there. My aim is not to treat the land as aggressively as it has been treated in the past, but to steward it more thoughtfully over time, moving toward organic use and incorporating teaching elements such as community tai chi, gardening, and other land-based programs."

In the past, the land had been treated with fungicides and wildlife deterrents.

"It is not wild by any means," he said. "It's as wild as a 100-acre cornfield in Ohio."

He welcomes conversations about the project, and said he would be willing to present at a library talk about his plan.

Opposition grows

Since the plan was introduced, residents have voiced their own skepticisms, and signs against the development have sprouted alongside Beech Hill Road.

Larry Wagner lives adjacent to the blueberry fields on a 1,000-acre farm where he raises cows and grows vegetables.

"I’m not too happy about it," he said, in a March 17 phone conversation. "It is more about about the size of vehicles on our little rural road."

He is leery of multiple vehicles going up and down the road every day, and fears what might happen in his cows get out into the road.

And he cited practical considerations, such as the lack of electricity infrastructure in the area immediately around the blueberry fields.

Central Maine Power terminates its power lines at the east end of the road a half a mile short of the blueberry fields, and three-quarters of a mile from the west side, said Wagner. The gap in power lines, "makes for a pretty scene, with blueberries in the background," he said.

Wagner put his own bid on the two properties that Ruggiero acquired when he learned they were for sale. He wanted to buy the land, which abuts the Coastal Mountains Land Trust's Newman Preserve to leave as is, but was outbid. He had hoped it had been sold to someone who would, at the most, build a house there and enjoy the views.

Instead, he faces a future of RVs rumbling past his farm and setting up camp on the hill beside him.

Northport has ordinances — shellfish, shoreland zoning, subdivision, and zoning for Northport Village, the area around Bayside. The town has a site plan review process, which the Planning Board follows, but it does not have an extensive land use/zoning ordinance for the rest of the town. 

That is what worries other residents, including Judy Berk, who also lives on Beech Hill Road. She and others crafted the petition, which continues to circulate online and at public spots, including the transfer station.

An ad hoc group has also drafted moratorium language that will be presented to the Northport Select Board at its Monday, March 23 regularly scheduled meeting at the Northport Town Office, at 16 Beech Hill Road. The meeting begins at 6:15 p.m., and citizens are planning to attend.

The languages proposes a 180-day moratorium on planning board approval of change of use/development on vacant undeveloped land except single family homes that are not part of a subdivision.

Wagner hopes Ruggiero takes time to get to know the land, its ecology and the climate before developing the fields. 

"It might be wise to move here first," he suggested.

Berk, who has lived in Northport since 1978, said she has not seen such a groundswell of public concern, "to this degree," than what she is witnessing now of Ruggiero's proposal.

The ad hoc group opposing the project had organized quickly.

"This blueberry hill is an important feature of our community," she said. "We do not have the kind of protections or ordinances to guide this or any development."

The blueberry fields are not a good place for an RV development, she said, questioning whether the steep slope of the field could even accomodate a fire truck.

"We believe our town is worth conserving and it is becoming a desirable place to live," said Berk. "We ask the Planning Board not to approve change of use of the land from agricultural blueberry field to an RV park."

"Northport has to put on the brakes, have a moratorium, and figure out what Northport wants to do," said Berk. The town is currently a, "sitting duck for people from away who have money."

Ruggiero said he has made efforts: "to communicate with abutters in good faith. I have offered multiple times to meet in person, listen carefully to concerns, and consider neighbor input as the design has developed. I was open to adjusting aspects of the project based on those conversations.

"My goal has not been to impose something carelessly, but to work through a real planning process and shape the proposal thoughtfully. That is why it was disappointing to see a public petition begin circulating before some of those direct conversations had taken place."

He emphasizes that he wants to establish: "a thoughtful, phased project tied to the land and to the agricultural history of the property. I believe one of the few meaningful ways to resist the industrialization and abstraction of our food system is to reconnect people to working land through agritourism.

"Part of that vision was to help visitors better understand the surrounding agricultural landscape, including neighboring farms. A carefully designed RV park can give families and visitors direct experience with what it actually takes to prune, weed, and harvest blueberries, rather than treating farming as something distant and invisible."

He outlines a $985,000 investment in the project for Phase I, which includes the $650,000 real estate purchase of the combined 115 acres. He anticipates additional investments of $150,000 to $250,000 in Phase II of the project. The latter includes a farm store and dedicated workshop spaces, in addition to developing more RV capacity.

In his plan, he also cites goals of growing potatoes, rhubarb, cranberries and other root vegetables on the land. The septic system would be designed to serve a bathhouse with showers and restrooms, laundry facilities, and a lodge with a bathroom. Ruggiero expects the build-out to generate 1,900 gallons per day of wastewater and sewage, under the 2,000 gallons per day Dept. of Environmental Protection threshold before a development is required to install a large capacity septic system with additional engineering and state permitting.

To Wagner and Berk, the ever-increasing real estate values across the country is driving a newer trend of purchases made over the internet, without first setting foot on the land.

"Peple come to this area and it looks cheap compared to what it is down in Massachusetts," said Wagner. "But they have never seen the land, like when those blueberries turn red in the fall."

Berk is likewise protective of the land, and the community.

"We believe our town is worth conserving as it becomes a desirable place to live," she said.

Ruggiero said he has hoped to talk with concerned Northport residents about the plan, and ask, "If you don't like it, like how can I change it?"

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Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657