VEAZIE – Is the Penobscot River part of the solution to this region’s economic malaise?

That’s the theory behind the Penobscot River Restoration Project, an ambitious $50 million plan that would restore a 6-mile span of the lower Penobscot to its natural state. The project involves towns from Veazie to Howland.

Along with removing two dams, the project calls for making improvements to fish bypasses at five other dams, including in Milford and Howland, which would allow fish to reach spawning habitat upstream for the first time in decades.

The project aims to improve access to more than 500 miles of river shoreline, allow for recovery of native species of sea-run fish and their habitats, and create new recreational and economic opportunities for the area. Combined, these efforts should lead to more and better jobs, enhanced incomes and increased property values.

On Saturday, area residents, local officials and representatives of statewide conservation and sporting groups met in Veazie for what was billed as an economic visioning session.

Saturday’s session in Veazie was the fourth in a series that began in January. During the first three previous sessions, participants received background information on the Penobscot River’s culture and history, natural setting, and on existing developments as well as business opportunities on the river.

On Saturday, roughly 30 people took part in a session aimed at developing a common economic vision that can be sustained over time. In the morning the participants broke up into small groups to brainstorm ideas. Later, when the participants gathered again, they ranked the ideas by priority. Each participant could cast up to five votes, but not more than two for any one category. Here’s how the votes broke down:

. Tourism and recreation, 30 votes.

. Planning and documentation of existing conditions, 21.

. Education, research and learning, 20.

. Quality of life that stimulates business opportunities, 13.

. “Branding” the river and the region, 11.

A steering committee consisting of representative from participating communities will be formed by May. The priorities brought forward on Saturday will be presented to the committee, which will work with a marketing firm to see which are feasible.

Veazie Town Manager Bill Reed said Saturday that many of the towns along the river are too small to have much impact individually, so regional support is key to the project.

“We have this lack of getting the word out on things,” Reed said.

Eastern Maine Development Corp. and the town of Veazie have written to all the communities along the Penobscot to ask them to sign on to a regional community development block grant request to pay for development planning. Besides economic development opportunities, proponents are looking for ways to offset negative impacts, such as lost tax revenues from the dams being removed.

“I think that the great challenge is just to continue to involve more and more people,” said Laura Rose Day, project director for the Penobscot Partners, a coalition of conservation groups and the Penobscot Nation.

Day’s group will lead efforts to raise $25 million to buy the Veazie, Great Works and Howland dams from owner PLP Corp., and $25 million more for the removals, alterations, mitigation and economic development.

Howland already is at work on its contribution to the project, said Frank Kirsch, chairman of the town’s Board of Selectmen. Howland’s plans include a fish bypass and the sale and redevelopment of a defunct tannery on 12 acres.

Jeff Reardon, New England conservation director for Trout Unlimited, said the idea is to make the up to 80-foot-wide fish bypass “as much like a natural stream as possible.”

Three factors contributed to the depletion of fish in the Penobscot – overfishing, water quality and dams, he said.

“We’ve dealt with two, but we’ve never dealt specifically with dams,” he said.

Eastern Maine Development Corp. committed $4,000 in federal Economic Development Administration funds to assist in the project.

Gov. John Baldacci indicated his interest in finding $3 million to $5 million to support economic development along the river.