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January 20, 2020

Oakland's FirstPark partners with 'Greenlight Maine' as part of marketing push

A man, smiling, stands outdoors in front of a sign that says FirstPark Commerce and Technology Center. Photo / Maureen Milliken Jim Dinkle, executive director of FirstPark Commerce and Technology Center, in Oakland. As part of the 285-acre park's marketing stategy, it's partnered with the TV pitch show "Greenlight Maine Collegiate Challenge."
By Maureen Milliken

FirstPark Technology and Commerce Park has taken to the airwaves in its three-year promotional plan to increase visibility of, and tenants for, the 285-acre campus in Oakland.

FirstPark is sponsoring the televised pitch competition "Greenlight Maine Collegiate Challenge," as the latest move in an ongoing strategy to attract entrepreneurs and business leaders to the site. Other marketing initiatives have included a recent visit from Kim Yonghyon, the Boston consul general from the Republic of Korea. 

The $15,000 sponsorship includes a 30-second television ad about FirstPark that will run on the "Greenlight Maine Collegiate Challenge" during all eight episodes. The show's fifth season premiere aired Sunday, and seven other Sundays on Newscenter Maine (Channel 6) at 10 a.m. Episodes are also available on YouTube and GreenlightMaine.com.

The business and technology park, owned by the Kennebec Regional Development Authority, in 2018 undertook a major marketing push to attract site selectors and new tenants from Maine as well as throughout the country and the world.

"We feel the sponsorship of 'Greenlight Maine' is the perfect way for us to support local Maine students and entrepreneurs," Jim Dinkle, executive director, said in a news release. "This is also a great opportunity for us to reach business leaders and entrepreneurs that would be interested in locating to FirstPark."

Dinkle pointed out the park, which is off Exit 127 of Interstate 95 and on the Waterville line, is near three colleges — Colby, Thomas and Kennebec Valley Community College. "We feel strongly that this sponsorship aligns well with our brand and will raise awareness of our business park to Greenlight Maine's nearly 40,000 viewers who watch each week," he said.

Julene Gervais, host of "Greenlight Maine" said the show is proud to partner with FirstPark for the Collegiate Challenge. "The business park's close location to Thomas College and Colby College makes this a perfect fit," she said in the release. "Jim is passionate about supporting Maine's next generation of business leaders and entrepreneurs and we are very excited about this new sponsorship. We see it as a win-win for Maine's economy."

A man sits at a table, gesturing as he talks
Courtesy / Emma Dimock, Marshall Communications
Kim Yonghyon, Boston consul general of the Republic of Korea, visited FirstPark, in Oakland, in November at the invitation of Executive Dictor Jim Dinkle, part of the business and technology park's aggressive marketing plan.

'Casting a wide marketing net'

FirstPark was opened by the Kennebec Regional Development Authority, which represents 24 communities, in 2000 and was established by the Legislature in 1998, with predictions for 3,000 jobs. The recession, however, slowed development. Dinkle was hired in 2017, and a more aggressive marketing and community focus has followed.

Efforts in the past year or two include a new website, a new marking plan in partnership with Marshall Communications, of Augusta, and more outreach, including internationally.

In November, Yonghyon was in the Waterville area for two days touring business at Dinkle's invitation. The primary focus of his visit was FirstPark, which is in a foreign trade zone.

"We're casting a wide marketing net," Dinkle said at the time. That not only includes international businesses, but Maine and regional ones as well.

FirstPark's largest tenant is T-Mobile, which opened an 80,000-square-foot call center there in 2005 and employ 825. Some 16 businesses, including MaineGeneral, other medical offices, accounting services and more, are located on six of the 22 buildable lots at the site.

The park this year is expected to make more investments, including increased marketing, exploration of residential options, connecting with the Messalonskee Trail and creating a dog park, Dinkle said.

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