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A federal judge has ruled that the town of Bar Harbor can only enforce limits on cruise ship passengers during the months of July and August, and not during the rest of the year.
It’s the latest in a long-running legal saga over a citizen’s initiative that Bar Harbor voters approved nearly four years ago, which placed a 1,000-passenger daily cap on people disembarking cruise ships.
“It has been an abiding personal impression, rational in my view, that what may be fair and balanced for the peak season may not be fair and balanced for the shoulder season,” U.S. District Court Judge Lance Walker wrote in his ruling.
In a written statement, the Bar Harbor Town Council said it will not accept new cruise ship reservations until it establishes regulations that conform with the court rulings and the ongoing litigation is resolved. The town has formed a task force on sustainable tourism to study how best to manage visitation.
“Building on that good work, we are confident we can arrive at a data-backed solution that is consistent with Judge Walker’s guidance and will welcome public input throughout that process,” the Bar Harbor Town Council said.
Charlie Sidman, who led the effort to pass the 1,000-passenger cap in 2022 and has been involved in cruise ship litigation for years, said he sees multiple paths to challenging the judge’s decision.
He also disputes the characterization of Bar Harbor’s peak and shoulder tourism seasons, and that the fall months have grown busier over the last two decades.
“July and August were vastly the busiest months, and it fell off dramatically before and after that,” he said. “That’s not the reality anymore.”
Meanwhile, American Cruise Lines is making more than 50 visits to Bar Harbor between May and October, but the ships carry fewer than 150 passengers.
Two large cruise ships are also making several trips starting in August, but the towns said those reservations were booked before daily passenger caps went into effect.
This story appears through a media partnership with Maine Public.
