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I agree with the May 27 story in the BDN when Jules Walkup writes, “… this year, the cold and rain put a damper on things, and uncertainty about cruise ships and tariffs have made business owners pessimistic about the upcoming season.” This is one example of some of the difficulties that small business owners might face this summer.
If Bar Harbor is seeing a decrease in the amount of business during one of its busier times, what might this mean for other small communities? If this ends up being a trend across the state, it could potentially have negative effects for all who live here.
Without the business of tourists, it could prove it hard for small communities to obtain the necessary revenue from tourism to support themselves. While there are a variety of obstacles that small businesses face, tariffs are certainly having a large impact. Especially since many small businesses obtain the products they sell in their stores from overseas vendors. Without these products they are not able to earn the necessary revenue to stay open.
Whether you like how busy it is in small towns during the summertime or not, there is no question that this revenue is important to those local communities and our state. We need to work to find new ways of supporting small business owners.
Ben Bucklin
Searsport
