Residents seek to prevent sale of Boat School

Two Eastport residents are seeking court action to halt the sale of the City of Eastport property at Deep Cove Road that is currently under contract to First Perry Realty LLC and CPM Constructors. On October 21 residents Phyllis Bradbury and David Gholson filed a motion in Washington County Superior Court for a temporary restraining order and a complaint for declaratory judgment in order to prevent the sale, which is scheduled to close on Friday, October 28.
The complaint asks the court to enter a judgment finding that the city manager and/or the Eastport city council failed to comply with the requirements of the city charter to advertise the sale of the property before entering the sale agreement and that the agreement is therefore invalid. Bradbury and Gholson and their attorney, Kristin Collins of Belfast, believe the city charter's language requires that the city manger advertise property. In a section devoted to a description of the city manager's conduct and duties, the charter states that the manager "shall conduct all sales of property belonging to the city which is unfit or unnecessary for the city's use, but only after such sale has been authorized and advertised by the city council."
The two residents believe if the city and First Perry Realty are permitted to proceed to closing on the transaction, taxpayers in Eastport will suffer an unnecessary tax burden as a result of the city's failure to take adequate steps to ensure the best possible deal for the property.
The sale of the property where the Boat School is located has been subject to discussion at several council meetings. The councillors voted 3-1 to approve the sale agreement at their October 21 meeting. During the meeting a number of property owners questioned councillors about their decision in September to authorize the city manager to pursue the purchase and sale agreement. The property is under contract for $300,000 with various contingencies, including deeding a portion of the property to the Friends of the Boat School and deeding access to the pier and ramp for a number of users. Residents questioned the sale of the pier and ramp for what appears to be below market value. Those questioning the sale were in support of the Boat School and the transfer of a specific section of the parcel to the nonprofit, but they felt the rest of the property should be put out to bid, or at least the ramp and pier should be retained by the city for use by the public and Perry Marine & Construction (PMC), which is a partnership between CPM Constructors and Morrison Manufacturing Inc. of Perry. PMC plans to use the land for the fabrication of units for Ocean Renewable Power Company's TidGen Power System, along with adding a marine service and repair component to their operations.
Responding to the court motion, Dennis Mahar, the city's attorney, says that "the charter provision Bradbury and Gholson cite is taken out of context and pertains to the sale of tax‑acquired properties, and even if it is not, the widespread publicity that the city intends to sell that property and the public announcements of that intent complies with the charter provision." Mahar says unless temporary restraining orders or preliminary injunction are granted, it means that the parties can move forward if all the parties agree. Mahar notes that the "timeline is indefinite, but the parties to the purchase and sales agreements will be pushing to resolve the lawsuit as quickly as possible, as time is of the essence to the buyers and seller as well as the Friends of the Boat School."
Bradbury and Gholson's attorney does not believe the superior court justice will hand down a decision relatively soon and it would behoove the city and the proposed purchasers to wait. Attorney Collins believes that publicly advertising the property would garner additional interest in the property and result in a higher sales price, thus potentially decreasing the tax burden to other taxpayers.
Bradbury questions the business acumen of the city council. "They are giving away property at less than a third of the assessed value while Eastport property owners are paying the full assessment of their property." Gholson points out that the boat ramp and pier cannot be replaced anywhere close to its worth. He also believes that attorney Mahar's statement that the widespread publicity of the city's intention to sell the property complies with the city charter is like relying on the old town crier.
For over a year the fate of the property has been uncertain. In October 2010 David Marlow, a yacht‑builder based out of Florida and China, visited Eastport with an interest first in the former Guilford mill building and then the Boat School property. The motion for a restraining order states that Marlow Yachts initially submitted a proposal to purchase the property for $850,000. In June 2011 he withdrew from pursuing the property, further opening the door to other interested parties. Hinckley Yachts expressed possible interest in the property to Eastport City Councillor Mike Cummings.