BOOTHBAY HARBOR, Maine — Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer, but some businesses on the midcoast say they aren’t quite ready.
Despite a couple of cloudy days, tourists turned out in Boothbay Harbor. And it’s only going to get busier.
Alan Baldwin, who manages the Rocktide Inn, said the holiday weekend was a success, but he’s not yet fully staffed for summer.
“We could use a few more employees for sure,” Baldwin said.
With more new businesses opening up, there’s a shortage of workers.
Baldwin said one of the biggest barriers is a lack of affordable housing in the area, and the commute can be a long one.
“It’s a small town, it’s one peninsula, you got one road coming in, so there’s always gonna be traffic,” Baldwin said.
A number of seasonal employees are foreign students on a visa allowing them to work and travel for a few months; but some are hesitant to commit without knowing if they’ll have a place to stay.
“There’s not a lot of rental property here, and if there are, they’re unaffordable for kids who come to work,” bartender Chris Gleason said.
Employees at McSeagull’s restaurant saw the struggle firsthand this season when a new bus boy recently arrived from abroad.
“[He] came in [and] was like, ‘I want a job but, like, I don’t have anywhere to stay,’” bartender Sara Durgen said. “I was just like, ‘Well, we’ll make a few phone calls,’ and we found him a roommate, but like, that happens all the time.”
The local chamber of commerce says housing is a problem, but it’s not a new one. The Boothbay joint economic development committee is taking it seriously and looking for a solution.
Baldwin said the season always has a way of working itself out, because the crowds will come regardless.
“Hopefully fully staff yourself and get ready for July and August when this place is crawling with people and the sun is shining and everybody’s happy,” Baldwin said.