Anyone who has ever tried to answer some of the pesky questions about the esoteric aspects of Bangor’s business climate will welcome The Greater Bangor Profile, a 143-page compilation of information covering all aspects of business, culture, education and recreation in this region.

Wednesday, members of the Greater Bangor Chamber of Commerce gathered to tell about their new publication, completed with the help of grants from the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development and Peoples Heritage Bank.

Many area business concerns also contributed to the $10,000 cost of publication, said Dennis Haggerty of the chamber’s Business Attraction Committee.

Haggerty joined other committee members, Bangor Attorney George Eaton and John McCatherin of the New England Telephone Company to tell about the profile.

Imagine someone who plans to relocate a business to the city asking what the average apartment or office space in Bangor costs or how area imports and exports compare. The Bangor Profile has the answer.

Then imagine that person asking what child care services are available, where the golf courses and ski areas are or perhaps questions about crime rates among local towns.

The Bangor Profile has the answers. And they are a lot easier and quicker to find in the profile than they would be among the scattered sources of information that chamber members used to compile the publication.

The Bangor Profile is available only at the Chamber of Commerce office on Main Street and can be had by a chamber member for $25. Non-members will pay $35, but the price is considered worth the time it will save, and the money will be used to perpetuate the publication when it comes time to update the data.

Haggerty, of the Maine National Bank, said the cost of publication would have been about three times as much if the chamber had hired a firm to do the entire job. Instead, volunteers from the chamber’s membership took the research and writing upon themselves.

When the 1990 Census is complete, the profile will be updated to reflect the new information, Haggerty said. Not that the profile is outdated. Right up to publication time, changes were made to ensure that information reflected the latest trends and figures.

The publication may be used to attract new business to the region, not just to Bangor. All the towns represented by the Chamber of Commerce are included in the compilations of figures.

Beginning with a chapter on geography and demography, the profile continues with copious entries on the economic climate, labor and employment analysis, real estate data, transportation, utilities, the media, taxation and finance, education, tourism and attractions, and a section titled “Quality of Life.”

It is under the Quality of Life section that cultural resources, libraries, recreation opportunities and facilities, health care, child care and places of worship are listed and described.

These are things that businessmen often consider of primary importance to locating their companies in a community, according to many local community development professionals. If the employees are happy, the company may have a better chance to succeed.

No doubts about the thoroughness of the profile are likely after reading a list of 76 area eating places. Everything from wildlife refuges and sanctuaries to community parks are listed among places for family visits. Area beaches are listed and a calendar of community events is printed.

For the serious businessman, a section on financial assistance is provided. It lists such agencies as the Finance Authority of Maine and its programs, the Smart Bond Program, Maine Job Start Program and many other helpful offices.