ELLSWORTH, Maine — Michael Povich, 67, of Ellsworth says he doesn’t have a bucket list, but he will develop a “man cave” on Water Street this winter.
Povich, who has been district attorney for Hancock and Washington counties since 1975, had hoped that in retiring from his prosecutor position, he could transition from one public role to the next.
An Ellsworth resident, Povich ran this year for a seat in the Maine House of Representatives formerly held by his brother, the late Eddie Povich. But more residents in the three town district cast ballots for the prosecutor’s opponent, Louis Luchini, than they did for Povich, bringing to a close Povich’s life as a public servant.
Povich’s last official day as District Attorney, before his top assistant, Carletta “Dee” Bassano, takes over the position she won in the November election, will be Friday, Dec. 31.
This past week, as he was packing up his office before heading out of state to visit family for the holidays, Povich said he does not expect he will run for public office again. His unsuccessful bid for District 38, he said, was his last active bid in partisan politics.
“My future plans are quite flexible,” he said, seated at his desk with boxes piled around him. “I’m not unhappy about it.”
One thing that is certain, Povich said, is that he is not going to move 35 years worth of professional belongings — documents, law books, furniture or other memoribilia — to his house. His wife, Judith Povich, a local school teacher, made it clear he has to find another place to store it all, he said.
Povich said the fact that his deputy is taking over his seat makes the transition a little easier. He can leave his law books at the district attorney offices on State Street for Bassano and her staff to use, he said, along with other items such as the desk left behind by his predecessor. He said he has promised Bassano that he’ll be out of the building’s southeast corner office by the end of the year.
He plans to move much of his professional belongings to the Water Street house where his mother used to live, next to Mike’s Country Store. He joked that 90 Water St. will be his “man cave” as well as his office — but office for what exactly, he isn’t sure.
Povich said he is not opposed to practicing law again, but he said it would not be as a member of the criminal justice community. He will not become a defense attorney, he stressed.
“I’ve had my battles,” he said. “I want to do something nonadversarial.”
Povich said he is considering doing some pro bono legal work, which means giving away free legal advice and representation to those who need it. Mortgage foreclosure mediation, legal counseling for low-income wage earners, or even teaching at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy in Vassalboro or at Husson University in Bangor might be options, he said.
But even if he does free legal work, he said, he still would have to get malpractice insurance, which could cost up to $2,000 per year. That can be a hefty cost for a retiree, he suggested.
“I don’t know if I’m prepared to do that,” he said.
What he is prepared to do is ride his bicycle more, to continue developing his photography skills, and to spend more time playing music. He said that 90 Water St. might even become the rehearsal studio for the Fletcher’s Landing Philharmonic Orchestra, the ragtime music band he plays keyboards for.
And, he said, he plans to continue serving on Ellsworth’s Knowlton School Park Committee, which is developing plans for how to redevelop the State Street property for outdoor public use.
“There is no bucket list,” Povich said. “I’ve got reading to do, gardening to do. I get to play more bridge. That’s a good start.”
CORRECTION: Povich is 67.
