Community Cruise Ship Survey 2024

This survey is intended to evaluate community members' opinions regarding opening Searsport to small (under 1,000 passenger) cruise lines. This survey is exclusively intended for residents, taxpayers, and non-resident business owners of Searsport, Maine.

Searsport has been approached by multiple cruise ship companies interested in using the town as a port. The ships would stay anchored in Penobscot Bay for under 24 hours at a time. This could offer notable benefits, such as increased revenue for local businesses, job creation, and additional income for the town (estimated at $8 - $12 per passenger) to help maintain the town wharf and offset taxes. However, they bring challenges such as the potential to overwhelm small coastal communities with an influx of tourists.

The Searsport Cruise Ship Committee and the Select Board will use your responses to inform the development of a cruise ship ordinance. The ordinance may restrict all cruise ships, or it may allow them with limits on passenger disembarkation, frequency of ship visitation, etc. Your input is greatly appreciated. Please submit the survey online or mail a completed paper copy to the Searsport town office by December 11, 2024.

Please note that all answers are confidential and data will be used only for policy-making purposes. If you have any questions about this survey, please contact Reed Silvers, MCOG planner at rsilvers@midcoastcog.com, or James Gillway, Town manager of Searsport at manager@searsport.maine.gov.

This survey was created by the Midcoast Council of Governments in partnership with the Town of Searsport.