Baxter State Park encompasses more than 200,000 acres of wilderness in northern Maine, far from coastal Harpswell. Since 1973, Harpswell has been home to a little bit of Baxter in the form of the Austin Cary Lot on Great Island.
That could soon change — on June 9, Maine Gov. Janet Mills signed a bill allowing Baxter State Park to sell the 228-acre property between Route 24 and Long Reach.
“The property must be used for the primary purposes of sustainable forestry or wildlife management,” the law states. “The property may be used for other scientific and educational uses that are related to these primary purposes and must allow for public recreational use that is compatible with these primary purposes.”
The property consists of 180 acres of woodland, 34 acres of salt marsh and 13.5 acres of freshwater wetland. The lot adjoins the Harpswell Heritage Land Trust’s 95-acre Long Reach Preserve, and together, they constitute the largest undeveloped area of wildlife habitat in Harpswell, according to the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
Austin Cary, a Bowdoin College graduate and pioneer in the field of sustainable forestry, purchased the land in the early 1900s, according to the property’s management plan. Two sisters, Dr. Virginia Bailey and Patricia Bousfield, bought it in 1964 and used it as a tree farm.
When former Maine Gov. Percival Baxter, who assembled and donated the land for Baxter State Park, died in 1969, he left money in his will for the purpose of acquiring land in Maine for recreation, reforestation or sustainable forestry. With $25,000 from those funds, the state bought the Cary property from the sisters in the 1970s.
In accordance with Baxter’s vision, the property came with deed restrictions stating that the lot “be used for a demonstration forest, wildlife management area or other educational and scientific uses for 99 years from the dates of the conveyances in 1973 and 1974,” according to the new law.
The property’s distance from Baxter State Park has complicated the park’s ability to manage the land. It is 180 miles from park headquarters and even farther from the park itself.
The Baxter State Park Authority works with a contracted forester and other state agencies to manage the property and demonstrate sustainable forestry practices. But the park has no staff in Cumberland County.
State Rep. Cheryl Golek introduced the bill allowing the park to sell the property.
Golek first met with park staff in September 2024 after residents of Long Reach Lane brought up issues with flooding and questions about responsibility for managing their private road, which runs through the Austin Cary Lot.
After that discussion, Nava Tabak, natural resource director for Baxter State Park, approached Golek in December 2024 to see if she would sponsor a bill authorizing the sale of the Austin Cary Lot.
Some residents of the road have concerns about the property’s sale, even with restrictions.
In testimony before a legislative committee, Scott Cowger said he would support selling the land to a local organization with similar values, but he feels the Legislature should be involved in the selection process for a new owner.
Cowger advocated for conditions such as permanent conservation of the property and cost-sharing for road maintenance, and for removing the bill’s language about public access. He said that requirement doesn’t align with language in the original deed.
“l believe that this particular piece of legislation is premature,” Cowger said in written testimony. “The Legislature needs to determine the specific new owner of the Austin Cary Lot and to put in appropriate safeguards and requirements.”
When the law takes effect, the Baxter State Park Authority will be authorized to sell the lot to a person or entity who will abide by deed restrictions. It may sell the land for “fair market value” or for an amount the park “determines to be in the public interest.” According to Tabak, the authority could choose to donate the land.
Any money from the sale will go into a fund at the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands for the purpose of acquiring more land in Cumberland County for sustainable forestry or wildlife management.
Tabak said this clause is a result of the Maine Designated Lands Act, which requires the state to replace any property it sells with a similar property to ensure the amount of public land in each county stays stable.
Tabak said she hopes to collect information about interested parties by late fall.
“We have no interest in just getting rid of it and letting whatever happen with it,” Tabak said. “We’re very much committed to making sure that its future still meets the original purpose [for which] the state acquired it.”
Matt Newberg, executive director of the Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, said the organization is interested in acquiring the property, but has questions about the price and its ability to manage the land.
He said an alternative option is a partnership between the land trust and another organization, wherein the land trust would hold an easement on the property and someone else would handle the forestry aspects.
Newberg said that if the lot sells for market value, the land trust probably would not be able to purchase it. Sustainable forestry practices and maintenance of the property would add ongoing costs to consider.
The land trust has had long-standing agreements with Baxter State Park in which it uses part of the Austin Cary Lot, alongside Harpswell Community School, for outdoor education and recreation with local students.
The 2019 Austin Cary Forest Management Plan, prepared by Barbara Brusila, a forester who has managed the lot for more than 28 years, states that “recreation is a use of the property that is neither encouraged nor prohibited.” There is a small parking lot on Long Reach Lane and there are informal trails established by the school.
Emma Balazs, lands and stewardship director for the land trust, said she would like to see the property become more accessible while balancing its forestry goals and deed restrictions.
Newberg said land trusts “understand that conserving land isn’t all about public access. But when you’re working in a small town like Harpswell … I think the public access question becomes a bit more emphasized in terms of ‘How are you as an organization relevant to me?’”
Golek echoed interest in having the land trust acquire the property. She also suggested the Wabanaki tribes as a potential owner.
“It’s a beautiful piece of property to be better managed with somebody closer with the ability to do it,” Golek said. “I don’t feel like the use is going to really change because of the deed restrictions.”