INDIAN ISLAND – Communities from Brewer to Lincoln are planning their economic future as an unprecedented initiative to restore the Penobscot River’s natural flow begins. The Penobscot River Restoration Project is a five-plus-year plan to purchase, remove and decommission key dams in the lower Penobscot. More than 90 percent of power generation will be maintained through starting or increased production at dams along the Stillwater and other areas of the Penobscot.

A comprehensive economic planning process led by Eastern Maine Development Corp. and funded through a Community Development Block Grant and the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration is under way to gather community insight and plan for development once the Restoration Project comes to fruition.

Community members are encouraged to attend a series of workshops and community discussions on the culture and history, natural setting and built environment and business opportunities along the river. An economic visioning session will follow these workshops to prioritize market opportunities that could range from river recreation programs or tourism businesses to infrastructure improvements.

The first workshop, Culture and History of the River, will be held 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 26, at the Penobscot Nation Community Building gymnasium on Indian Island. Panelists from Maine Historic Preservation, Maine Forest and Logging Museum, the Penobscot Nation and the University of Maine will speak for the first hour. Attendees will have an opportunity to share their knowledge of the river and ask questions of the panelists. That format will be used for all three workshops.

The Natural Setting of the River workshop will be held 6:30-8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 1, at the Eddington Salmon Club. Panelists include representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the Forest Society of Maine, the Penobscot Nation and other outdoor naturalists.

The Built Environment and Business Opportunities on the River workshop will be held 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 9, at the Old Town High School Cafetorium. Panelists are Steve Levesque of SHL Enterprises and former state commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development; Donna Fichtner, executive director of the Bangor Convention and Visitors Bureau; a landscape architect and other small business owners.

Those workshops lead up to an Economic Visioning session that any and all interested parties are encouraged to attend. The session will be held Saturday, March 5, at the Veazie Community School cafeteria.

For more information on the workshops, call Michael Bush or Laura Hoovler at EMDC at 942-6389, or e-mail lmitchell@emdc.org. Visit www.penobscotriver.org to learn more about the Penobscot River Restoration Project.