ROCKPORT — The Rockport Select Board will convene at 4 p.m. May 11 in the Parker Meeting Room of the Rockport Opera House for a workshop on Opera House repairs. At 6 p.m. the Board will commence its regularly scheduled monthly meeting with an agenda that includes a public hearing on the June 9 annual Town Meeting warrant, consideration of the Five Town CSD warrant, act on Opera House repairs, the creation of a regionalization task force, and consideration of a sewer payment abatement. See the full agenda and Select Board packet here.

Rockport Town Manager Duke is suggesting the Regionalization Task Force consist of  five members (a Select Board member, a Budget Committee member, and three at-large residents), who would be asked to review existing regional collaborations and explore new options for regionalization. A proposed mission statement: “The mission of the Regionalization Task Force is to identify and evaluate opportunities for interlocal cooperation that enhance municipal efficiency and/or service quality. The Task Force shall be committed to a transparent, community-driven process that respects Rockport’s unique identity while leveraging regional strengths to build a more sustainable and inclusive future which strives to stretch property tax dollars.

He further suggests: "The Task Force’s process shall be organized into three sections (Select Board meeting due dates to report back on findings of each task):

"• Internal review of existing Town of Rockport regionalized efforts (September)

" • Idenify areas for potential regional collaborations (November)

" • Explore with regional partners feasibility of regional collaborations. (January)”

Town Manager's Report

In advance of the May 11 Rockport Select Board meeting, Town Manager Jon Duke issued the following report.

Town Clerk

June 9 Election: Information regarding the June 9th election is available on the Town website. The ballot is set for the town offices open for election, among the positions available:

2 - 3-year terms Select Board: Kimberlee Graffam, Michael Thompson, Samantha Appleton, and Darren Robbins

1 – 1-year term Select Board: Craig Mitchell, Linda Greenlaw, Geoffrey Parker

1 - 3-year term Library Committee, Lee Goss

3 - 3-year terms Budget Committee: Bill Bow, Terry Abrams, Richard Mitchell, Clark Doran

1 - 3-year term School Board: Cricket Fuller

Absentee Ballots Requests: Absentee ballot and in person voting will be available starting Monday, May 11. You can access an application online or call the Town Office and request one for yourself! The last day to absentee request an absentee ballot is Thursday, June 4, at 4 p.m.

Dog Licenses: If you have yet to license your dog for 2026, you will be subject to a $25 late fee.

Visual Budget

I’m pleased to announce the launch of the Town of Rockport’s initial Visual Budget! Modeled off of the format Knox County has utilized for the last few years, this online tool allows our voters to quickly view the key factors of the Town’s budget as they consider approval of the budget on the June ballot.

Go to RockportMaine.gov/VisualBudget and click the link so you too can see how this proposed municipal net budget of -0.48% came to be.

Cemeteries

The Town’s cemeteries are now open for the season. Our mowing contractor will be completing our spring cleanup through the month of May and removing sticks and debris that has accumulated through the winter. Residents are welcome to begin their own seasonal cleanup and flower placement, and visitors are encouraged to help keep the grounds neat and respectful throughout the year.

Check out our new web page for our updated rules and fee schedule.

In Lieu of Taxes

Many thanks to the Coastal Mountains Land Trust for their payment of $2,034.34 in lieu of taxes. CMLT owns and manages over 1,000 acres of land in Rockport and this payment signifies the role of the services provided to the land trust by the Town of Rockport.

Planning and Community Development

Permitting: In April, 26 permits were issued by the department totaling $28,415 of revenue.

We are expecting a busy May, but with the cost of fuel increasing there is a chance the permitting projections could fall below expectations. Fuel increases will drive up the cost of building materials and might postpone a few projects from happening this spring. We do believe projects that have already started will continue.

The Planning Board has reviewed a pre-application for an apartment complex on Cross Street. This is a two building, twenty-four-unit development, geared for housing for households who possess 100% of Adjusted Median Income. The developer is anticipating returning for their Site Plan approval at the Planning Board meeting in May.

Project Updates

The Route 90 multi-use pathway project funded through the MaineDOT Bike & Ped Grant will go under contract at the end of this month, or early June. This project is for the engineering of this pathway from the Rt 90 & US 1 intersection to the high school. Maine DOT is funding 90% of this effort.

The Goose River Bridge Sewer Relocation project has received three recommendations for Federal funding from Representative Pingree's Office, Senator Collins' office, and Senator King's office. 

MaineDOT is replacing/repairing the Goose River Bridge but due to Maine DOT policy, the sewer line under the bridge must be relocated at the Town’s expense. This cost is approximately $840,000 which would be a tremendous burden to Rockport’s taxpayers, but we are grateful for the support of our Congressional delegation in attempting to fund this unfunded mandate. The project will be considered by the Appropriation Committees in the House and Senate and we are hopeful our project will remain standing through this scrutiny.

The Traffic Infrastructure Study. MaineDOT has submitted a Congressional District Spending request to fund the remaining portions of Rockport's Traffic Infrastructure Study. This request will not be known until the Senate has approved their budget, in October.

The Sewer Infill Project, consisting of sewer extensions on Commercial Street and Union Street, has been placed out to bid with hopes of awarding a bid at the end of May. This project is funded, in part, through a Northern Boarders Regional Commission grant of $1 million dollars.

Once the bid has been awarded, this project will commence immediately with a timeline of completion by fall of this year.

Rockport Common is moving swiftly ahead. The Town has awarded the bid to Farley, Inc., to construct the park and efforts are progressing with regard to construction of the buildings and structures within the park. The Lesher Family Foundation and the Town are working closely together with Farley to finalize the contracts for the project with hopes of beginning construction this month. So, expect to see some heavy equipment roll out in the next couple of weeks!

Police Department

Staffing: The Police Department continues to work on staffing efforts and is hopeful that a new officer will be hired and on board by July.

Training: Officer Dustin Hedgpath will be attending firearms school in June as part of his ongoing training and professional development.

Public Works

Public Works crews have been busy with a variety of spring projects throughout Town. Work included opening up the entrance to Marge Jones with extensive brush cutting, as well as brush cutting on Main Street, Beauchamp Point, and the end of Warrenton Street from the sharp corner to the Samoset Resort.

Crews also installed the floats at the Harbor and removed sanders and plows from service, preparing them for storage. Additional work included spring cleanup at intersections damaged during winter plowing, repairing roadside washouts caused by winter melt-off and heavy spring rains, and cleaning ditches on the Point. 

Staff have also been coordinating with the cable company and CMP regarding the new fiber installation coming to the Village, with the goal of eliminating the double-pole situation.

Public Works has also launched its own Facebook page called Rockport Public Works Department.

On this page will be latest updates about progress on road projects and hazards that occur on Rockport’s roads. In addition, the Public Works Department has spruced up their section of the Town website to include information on projects occurring on Town roads and listed by each road, respectively. You can visit the Public Works Department’s website.

Public Works worked with Meg Rasmussen at Midcoast Council of Governments to submit three applications for culvert projects on Porter Street, Gurney Street and Mt. Pleasant Street. The total project cost for these three projects exceeds $1.5 million. We should know by end of June the result of these grant applications.

Library:

Programs: For information on our events, check out the library website.

Opera House:

Events:

For information on our events, please check out the Opera House website. We also have Yoga or Dance classes several days a week, click here for more information.

Sponsorships: If you wish to participate in helping make these shows part of our calendar in 2026, please visit RockportOperaHouse.org/Sponsorship to learn more. Your sponsorship will make a difference and will bring even more vibrancy to our ongoing programming!

Take a moment right now to give to the Rockport ACE Annual Fund – Arts, Culture and Entertainment for all. Make a potentially tax-deductible donation of any amount to support the work we are doing to revitalize the arts in Rockport and bring the community together.

Individuals or businesses can choose to make a one-time donation or recurrent monthly contribution of any amount using the custom feature on our giving page. Businesses may also choose from already crafted levels which each include visibility for your business as a gesture of gratitude for giving.

Harbor

Deputy Harbormaster Rob Parent has stepped up to fill in for Abbie and has been doing a great job keeping things running smoothly. All harbor floats are now in the water, and anyone who has not yet paid for their mooring is encouraged to do so as soon as possible.

Fire Department

Want to join the Fire Department?

Rockport Fire and EMS are always looking for individuals who want to join our crew! We are always looking for Per Diem Paramedics and Per Diem Firefighters EMT/AEMT and volunteers of all types!

For those interested in learning more about joining the fire department, please contact Chief Jason Peasley at jpeasley@rockportmaine.gov.

Civic Ready

We encourage all residents to sign up for this, if you are interested in knowing what is happening in the Town of Rockport. What is great about this system is that you decide which types of information you will receive whether it is a reminder when property taxes are due to information on an upcoming event at the library, opera house or when a public works project is happening in your neighborhood; Civic Alert can keep you informed. Those interested can also sign up for alerts on our website at https://rockportmaine.gov/civicready

Maine Water Assistance Program

This is a federally funded program to help support eligible households in having access to drinking water and wastewater utility services. Households will be required to have water liability to be eligible for the drinking water/wastewater program. To receive an application, you can call 888-623-6762 or email water@mainehousing.org.

Rockport Resource Newsletter

If you would like to receive the Rockport Resource Newsletter via email you can sign up through our website.

Marge Jones Fields

Spring is here, if you would like to plan ahead and reserve the use of a field for this year, email rockportrec@rockportmaine.gov.

Reservation Policy:

4• Reservations can be made for a single month/month or entire season.

• Anytime when the court is not reserved it is “first come first serve play."

• The usage fee will be $250 per month, up to $1000 for the entire season.

• No reservations on Sundays. This day will remain first come, first serve all day.

• Groups that pay the monthly or annual fee may reserve the full court area or half (one tennis court) up to three hours of court time per day each week Monday - Saturday, not to exceed 15 hours total per week. No more than three total hours in a day, and you cannot reserve the same time block for more than 3 days in one week. This allows others to utilize these time slots for first come first serve play.