Consider alternatives to Quimby’s park plan

I was one of that large crowd attending the meeting Dec. 4 with Roxanne Quimby, her supporters and detractors. Let there be no mistake, I was and remain one of the latter.

It is obvious the Bangor Daily News sees Quimby as a shrewd businesswoman, entitled to her land purchases and any use that she may choose to make of them. I, too, respect private property rights and have advocated as such for years, but there are contiguous concerns to the recent purchase of T5R8 that should be addressed. I number among these the following, which were glaringly omitted from the coronation at Jeff’s Catering in Brewer.

There was no question-and-answer period, which would have allowed those people present to directly address their specific concerns. Instead, written questions were given to a moderator who, in turn, self-selected those to be asked of Quimby. In the role of moderator there falls the responsibility for probing inquiry beyond the initial question and this certainly was not done. This process allowed her plenty of leeway in which to equivocate and generally avoid answering the hard questions that were on the minds of many of those present. Granted, she did respond to the question of logging road access by saying that she would swap access for land and she made it quite clear that leaseholders should not expect that they would be passing those leases on to their offspring.

By so saying, however, she cleverly avoided the straight answer of how much longer those leases would be honored.

In response to questions about snowmobile access and hunting she replied that she had not put any of her other 16,000 acres off limits to those activities. It made for a great sound bite but certainly contradicted previous statements Quimby made, and again avoided the direct answer that many were looking for.

In a recent interview with Phyllis Austin, a writer for the Maine Environmental News, Quimby said that her intent for T5R8 was to create a “wildlife sanctuary.” She also said that in keeping with her policy for her other conservation lands, there will be no timber harvesting and no hunting, and motorized access will be limited. It would naturally follow that those of us that trap for a living or recreation will definitely not be tolerated on her lands. As she said, she kills only houseflies and mosquitoes, certainly an indication that anything larger would be off limits as well.

In her interview with Austin, Quimby also said that snowmobile use would have to be re-examined in light of her goals for the land. In that same interview she further said that camp lot lessees will be prohibited from cutting trees for firewood and from hunting, as well as a number of other restrictions. The context of these earlier remarks is in contrast with the benign responses prevalent in the Dec. 4 meeting.

Speaking of benign, that could best describe the BDN’s editorial, “A bee of a different stripe” (BDN, Dec. 8), when it portrayed the land purchases of Haynes and Gardner as a greater threat to access than Quimby and her methodical acquisition of the north Maine woods. We, who value private property rights and the pursuit of our recreational interests, don’t have to worry about losing them with landowners that practice sustainable forestry. There are no such guarantees with preservationists of Quimby’s ilk. Speaking of preservationists, I find it somewhat ironic that when asked whether she would consider herself a preservationist or a conservationist she didn’t know the answer.

Also in reference to the editorial, it said, “given the lack of congressional and National Park Service support for such an endeavor here, the park remains no more than a dream. In the meantime, it sounds like not much is going to change in T5R8.” If the BDN really believes that, I’ve got a little bridge just the other side of Mud Brook that I’d let go of cheap. Whether the land that Quimby is purchasing ultimately becomes a national park, the outcome will be the same – no logging, hunting, trapping, ATV’s or snowmobiling.

Hopefully, Gov. Baldacci’s Legacy proposal for the North Maine Woods will bear fruit and ensure that our traditional use of this land will be protected. In the meantime, all those who are opposed to conservation easements or state ownership of land may want to take a second look at these alternatives to a national park and private playgrounds. You haven’t come up with an alternative yet and there’s been plenty of time to do so.

Loren Ritchie lives in Greenville.