Sebec Lake camp owners opposed to national park

DOVER-FOXCROFT – If southern Maine residents think their counterparts in northern Maine favor the creation of a North Woods National Park, the Sebec Lake Association would like to set them straight.

The association, which represents about 900 lake property owners in Dover-Foxcroft, Sebec, Bowerbank and Willimantic, went on record this weekend in opposition to the proposed national park concept being touted by the environmental group RESTORE.At their annual meeting Saturday, association members voted 44-1 against the park concept. The move was made after news outlets published a poll that indicated most Mainers were in favor of such a park, according to Tom Lizotte, association secretary.

“It really struck a chord with people,” Lizotte said Wednesday of the poll.

The members declared that the poll in no way reflected the views of people who actually live in the region that will be affected by the park.

Because the projected park boundary would start just north of Sebec Lake and encompass much of Piscataquis County, members felt it necessary to make their voices heard, according to the association official.

Another opportunity for residents to express their opinions on the proposed park will be at a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, at Greenville High School. Greenville town officials scheduled the meeting to offer RESTORE a chance to explain its proposal and for residents to respond.

Like most residents in northern Maine, Lizotte said the majority of lake association members strongly favor the existing private ownership of the Maine woods, with its unique tradition of public access and multiple use. Members are fearful that if the federal government becomes involved, the changes might not be for the best, he said. In addition, members worry that such a park would change the characters of the local towns.

Most of the camps on Sebec Lake have been owned by generations of families who like things just as they are now, Lizotte said.