In partnership with the Outdoor Sport Institute and other local partners, and with funding from USDA Rural Development, the Center produced the Katahdin Region Recreation Investment Strategy to help guide development of the outdoor recreation economy in Maine’s Katahdin region.  

As in much of the Northern Forest, recreation has long been a part of the Katahdin region’s economic and community well-being – with the area’s vast woodlands, Baxter State Park, the Penobscot River, and other amenities attracting visitors and contributing to quality of life for local residents.  

The historic shift of the area’s economy away from its traditional reliance on paper and forest products manufacturing has made outdoor recreation an ever-more important contributor to the local economy and many groups are working to respond to this need and opportunity.  

In 2023, the Center engaged local partners to identify and prioritize key recreational investment opportunities through a process that included:  

• Inventorying and mapping the region’s existing outdoor recreation assets. 

• Identifying and mapping current and emerging recreation development projects.  

• Analyzing specific project opportunities based on factors including economic impact, community benefit, and readiness; and  

• Combining analysis of specific project opportunities with input from local stakeholders and assessment of regional and statewide trends and initiatives to articulate a strategic approach to regional investment in the Katahdin area’s outdoor recreation economy.  

“Investing in outdoor recreation is a massive opportunity for the Katahdin area – both as a way to support community health and as a driver of local economic development,” said Mike Wilson, the Center’s senior program director. “With so much great work going on in the region, this tool can help folks think about how to use limited investment dollars as strategically as possible.”   

The result of this work identified 20 specific projects that are poised to deliver important economic and community benefits to the region. Those projects fall into three categories:  

• Investing in completion and connection of key destination assets; 

• Activating community landscapes through investments in walkability, new trail systems, and community forests;  

• Investing in new user and visitor education systems to ensure quality experiences, minimize landowner conflicts, and promote environmental and community stewardship.  

The final Katahdin Region Recreation Investment Strategy is now helping to inform work by the Katahdin Collaborative and others as a public resource to guide regional outdoor recreation planning and investment. In the coming year, the Center will use seed funding from the RK Mellon Foundation to help activate projects identified in the regional strategy.