Odd-Couple Retiring to Maine Summer, seek input areas (Ellsworth, Blue Hill: pharmacy, to live)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 1.5 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I don't think she's showing that at all. I think she's voicing her personal opinion, and that happens to be something that is encouraged on a public forum. Maybe you missed that.
Its alright to have a personal opinion on a forum. BUT.... I didn't miss the fact that on a forum whose title is called CITY DATA, we should be willing to allow our personal opinions to be tempered by the facts. I don't know what you call it when one has a personal opinion which is different than the facts of the matter. You can have a personal opinion that the sky is green, but when everyone knows that the sky is blue.... well, there is not much more one can say on that.
The FACTS are that most of the comments about MDI on this forum are just plain inaccurate. Sometimes the poster just doesn't know and is continuing comments made by others; other times the poster has some ax to grind about how land prices on an island that is 3/4 national park are more expensive than a place which is not mostly national park. These people apparently have issues with supply and demand and the capitalistic system.
But, in any case, I also have a right to dispel the myths and inaccuracies that are promulgated about MDI. And so I will, when I feel so inclined, but usually only for people who might actually want to MOVE THERE, which is one of the main purposes of the forum called CITY DATA. For the people who wish to keep their opinions that fly in the face of the facts, there is nothing I can do or say which can convince them that the sky is not green.
The fact is that there is ONE road off and on MDI, and that road is NOT a four lane highway.
THE FACT IS THAT WHILE THERE IS A CAUSEWAY THAT GETS YOU ON THE ISLAND, the bottleneck is not at the causeway, its on Route 3 north of the airport and south of Ellsworth. This bottleneck is cause by two traffic lights next to Home Depot.
The fact is that 2.5 MILLION people visited Acadia Nat'l Park in 2010 and most of those visits were between May and September.
THE FACT IS THAT THIS IS THE NUMBER THAT VISITS DURING THE WHOLE YEAR
The fact is that MDI is approximately 37 square miles. The fact is the year round population of MDI is a little more than 2,000 people.
THE FACT IS THAT MORE THAN 11,000 PEOPLE ACTUALLY LIVE ON MDI.
My point is: it's pretty obvious to see that while your particular street or a few places on MDI are "sparse",
THE FACT IS THAT YOU DON'T REALY KNOW AND REFUSE TO LISTEN TO SOMEONE WHO DOES, THAT THERE ARE HUGE PORTIONS OF THE ISLAND THAT ARE VIRTUALLY EMPTY OF TRAFFIC.
I know people who have turned down great jobs on MDI because of the summer traffic,
THIS IS TOO BAD THAT THEY LOST A GOOD JOB FROM FAILURE TO GET THE FACTS.
and I know contractors off-island who increase the travel time and gas expenses built into their bids during the summer months.
AND THESE CONTRACTORS ARE RIPPING OFF THE CONSUMER SINCE THERE ARE BACK WAYS INTO THE ISLAND THAT THEY KNOW FULL WELL.
It would be stupid not to. It's at least an extra hour travel time one way from Ellsworth. You might not realize that because you've only been a summer resident. Sure, if you arrive in May and never want to get off the island by road, you might be fine.
THE FACT IS THAT THIS IS SIMPLY WRONG, SINCE I'V ALREADY GIVEN INSTRUCTION ABOUT HOW TO GET ON ISLAND WITHOUT MOST OF ROUTE 3 AND WHERE THE ACTUAL BOTTLENECKS ARE.
If you live in Bar Harbor proper, you might even be able to get around all summer without a car. At least, you better hope so.
THE FACT IS THAT WHILE THE BUSSES OPERATE FOR VIRTUALLY FREE, UNLESS YOU LIVE IN WALKING DISTANCE OF THE MAIN GROCERY STORES IN SOUTHWEST HARBOR AND BAR HARBOR, YOU WILL NEED A CAR. THE ISSUE IS NOT A BIG ONE. EXCEPT ON JULY 4, AND ON SATURDAY MORNING, I'VE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM GETTING AROUND DUE TO TRAFFIC.
Bottom line for me is that I could never live there, and we've had the opportunity and turned it down. I don't even visit in the summer. I know a lot of people who don't. That's my opinion, but it's based in LARGE part on fact.
ITS TOO BAD THAT SO MANY OF YOUR "FACTS" ARE JUST PLAIN INACCURATE. I SUGGEST YOU LISTEN TO SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY KNOWS.
The fact is that there is ONE road off and on MDI, and that road is NOT a four lane highway.
THE FACT IS THAT WHILE THERE IS A CAUSEWAY THAT GETS YOU ON THE ISLAND, the bottleneck is not at the causeway, its on Route 3 north of the airport and south of Ellsworth. This bottleneck is cause by two traffic lights next to Home Depot.
The fact is that 2.5 MILLION people visited Acadia Nat'l Park in 2010 and most of those visits were between May and September.
THE FACT IS THAT THIS IS THE NUMBER THAT VISITS DURING THE WHOLE YEAR
The fact is that MDI is approximately 37 square miles. The fact is the year round population of MDI is a little more than 2,000 people.
THE FACT IS THAT MORE THAN 11,000 PEOPLE ACTUALLY LIVE ON MDI.
My point is: it's pretty obvious to see that while your particular street or a few places on MDI are "sparse",
THE FACT IS THAT YOU DON'T REALY KNOW AND REFUSE TO LISTEN TO SOMEONE WHO DOES, THAT THERE ARE HUGE PORTIONS OF THE ISLAND THAT ARE VIRTUALLY EMPTY OF TRAFFIC.
I know people who have turned down great jobs on MDI because of the summer traffic,
THIS IS TOO BAD THAT THEY LOST A GOOD JOB FROM FAILURE TO GET THE FACTS.
and I know contractors off-island who increase the travel time and gas expenses built into their bids during the summer months.
AND THESE CONTRACTORS ARE RIPPING OFF THE CONSUMER SINCE THERE ARE BACK WAYS INTO THE ISLAND THAT THEY KNOW FULL WELL.
It would be stupid not to. It's at least an extra hour travel time one way from Ellsworth. You might not realize that because you've only been a summer resident. Sure, if you arrive in May and never want to get off the island by road, you might be fine.
THE FACT IS THAT THIS IS SIMPLY WRONG, SINCE I'V ALREADY GIVEN INSTRUCTION ABOUT HOW TO GET ON ISLAND WITHOUT MOST OF ROUTE 3 AND WHERE THE ACTUAL BOTTLENECKS ARE.
If you live in Bar Harbor proper, you might even be able to get around all summer without a car. At least, you better hope so.
THE FACT IS THAT WHILE THE BUSSES OPERATE FOR VIRTUALLY FREE, UNLESS YOU LIVE IN WALKING DISTANCE OF THE MAIN GROCERY STORES IN SOUTHWEST HARBOR AND BAR HARBOR, YOU WILL NEED A CAR. THE ISSUE IS NOT A BIG ONE. EXCEPT ON JULY 4, AND ON SATURDAY MORNING, I'VE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM GETTING AROUND DUE TO TRAFFIC.
Bottom line for me is that I could never live there, and we've had the opportunity and turned it down. I don't even visit in the summer. I know a lot of people who don't. That's my opinion, but it's based in LARGE part on fact.
ITS TOO BAD THAT SO MANY OF YOUR "FACTS" ARE JUST PLAIN INACCURATE. I SUGGEST YOU LISTEN TO SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY KNOWS.
No local person takes route 3 into MDI. You take the back road, and then you avoid the traffic. You can see the back road if you get up on Google maps. I often go to The Big Chicken Barn in the summer. I timed it one time: normal driving time using the back road, more than an hour on route 3.
The bottle neck is not at the causeway into the island, its on the otherside of the airport north to Ellsworth.
But then, I was suggesting to the poster that they buy a house on-island. In that case its no big deal. I do really get tired of people posting stuff about MDI that is just plain not true. Its what people who live off-island think and perpetuate. But its just not true.
Of course, if you've moved to Maine to drive on roads where there is no traffic, then of course there is traffic into a national park. But, heck, I also live in the Pa Dutch Country, in PA, and there is traffic on Route 30 in the summer that takes forever too. Of course, no local person ever takes the tourist route 30, we all take the untraveled back roads that the tourists don't know.
And.... any contractor that increases their costs for 1 hour driving time into MDI in the summer is ripping people off, since it simply doesn't take an hour to get from Ellsworth to MDI except during July 4, unles you are hell-bent on taking route 3.
And here's even more myth: "And by the way, existing homes or just land on Mt. Desert Island seem especially pricey, too, and property with saltwater frontage seems much more expensive than most other places, as in you'd need to pretty much be rich even by New York City standards if you would like to buy and retire on a fairly nice one."
This is also simply NOT TRUE. I bought a house on MDI, that has 1.5 acres about 1.5 miles from the water, with 2 bath, and 5 bdrs for less than the same as a house in south central PA. You do not need to be rich to buy property on MDI. However, it is true that the property on MDI is about $75K more than the same property would be in Lamoine. But people who retire to MDI, WANT TO RETIRE TO MDI, not to some place near MDI. Go on to the multi-list and look at property and then look at the muti-list in Lancaster County, PA, andf make some comparisons. But you are right in one thing. Since supply and demand works in capitalistic economies everywhere, and since there is comparatively little saltwater frontage, most of which is either owned by the park service or somebody really wealthy from back in the early 1900's, frontal property on the ocean is very expensive because htere is very little of it available. And the taxes on it are off the wall(waterfrontal tax). Only the truly wealthy buy waterfront land on MDI because of the real estate waterfront tax. It is what it is.
First of all, the contractors I'm speaking of have a very good reputation. They have earned that, remaining in business in Maine, through difficult times and difficult economy, for more than 20 years. They are not "ripping people off". I don't know that you can "rip people off" in business in Hancock and Washington county and still be around 20 years later. I don't think I've seen it happen. We talk to each other here, and frankly, the year round population base just isn't big enough.
Also, if you follow the link I provided in my post, you will see that property on MDI is, in fact, MORE expensive.
I do take the "back roads" and avoid Rt 3 where I can, but that can't be done the entire way, and you know that. I meet a lot of traffic on those roads too, because ALL the other locals are taking the "back roads" as well. Which means, travel time isn't the same on those roads during the summer because they're more crowded as well. I don't need googlemaps! lol! I'm a Mainer and I either know the road or use my Gazzy.
Incidentally, you talk about where the "bottle neck" is. Is the area you're speaking of where those "back roads" feed back into Rt. 3. It's horrible there... pulling back onto Rt 3 isn't easy. Hopefully someone lets you pull in!
"I do really get tired of people posting stuff about MDI that is just plain not true." So do I. I've lived here my whole life, which on Friday will be 45 years. How long have you lived in Maine? oh. wait. you don't.
I didn't post this yesterday because I can't find a link to back it up, but it's from a conversation I had with a friend of mine a few years ago. I was living in Ellsworth at the time, and he was explaining to me why he was consistently late picking his child up from preschool in Ellsworth. Although he got out of work in time, traffic was so bad he couldn't drive the distance and still be on time for closing. He told me then that if you take the population of MDI, full-time residents, and multiply that out by *5*, you will get the population of MDI for the summer. I never questioned his credibility on that. He was a full-time officer for Bar Harbor police department at the time.
It would be nice if you would stop misleading people about MDI. I won't belabor this any further.
OK; now maybe I'm being dense; it has been known to happen with good frequency. Taking Christian Ridge Road, picking up Water Street right after the bridge in Ellsworth may get you past Rt 1 in Ellsworth but where is the back road to MDI from the Triangle on? Rt 230, maybe? Not sure I am following you T. That's the trouble spot I was referring tto. You can bypass some of it by cutting past Home Depot but from there through Trenton to the causeway I don't follow.
Water street in Ellsworth becomes Bayside road in Trenton. Then take the Goose Cove road back over to the Oak point road. This all brings you back to rt3 just below the airport. have to take rt3 onto the island, but then go down 102into Town Hill and take the Crooked road over to Hulls cove.
Theraflu, I'm done arguing with you about this. I've seen your above post. You must have been ranting while I was typing mine. All I can say is, you're still wrong, and I just don't understand why you want to mislead people. They are sincerely searching for accurate information.
Water street in Ellsworth becomes Bayside road in Trenton. Then take the Goose Cove road back over to the Oak point road. This all brings you back to rt3 just below the airport. have to take rt3 onto the island, but then go down 102into Town Hill and take the Crooked road over to Hulls cove.
Wow. Saw most of that route, driven some of it too, on the motorcycle. Seemed to take less time sitting in traffic. But then again, we were just out dubbin' and not wrried about the destination, just the trip.
To get back to the OP (before this gets locked up) I think you may not like trying to get out of Boothbay Harbor in the summer either. It does get packed with the tourists and all. Typical, old, New England town with narrow streets and lots of turns. I still say near Brooklin. Birch Harbor and Schoodic are nice too. All close to Ellsworth and nice areas. Hope the Sailor is still reading his thread.
And I agree, those are wonderful areas. I know I say it on here a lot, but the Schoodic area is one of my favorite places. I love it over there! Blue Hill, Brooklin, Penobscot... very nice too. I like Stockton Springs as well.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $53,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 1.5 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
