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With Port Clyde property donation, Colby College will expand midcoast footprint

An aerial view of buildings and water. Photo / Courtesy Jasper Lowe In the midcoast waterfront village of Port Clyde, Colby College is planning to build a Center for Resilience and Economic Impact to study environmental, economic, cultural and public health crises.
By Laurie Schreiber

Adaptation strategies for crises of all types — environmental, economic, cultural and public health — will be the focus of a research and education center that Colby College is planning to install in the midcoast village of Port Clyde.

The Waterville college acquired waterfront property in the small village of fewer than 200 residents, and plans to create the Center for Resilience and Economic Impact as a home for educational opportunities, outreach and community building, according to a news release.

The transaction included the purchase of the Seaside Inn and the Barn Cafe, both at 5 Cold Storage Road; a building that houses a café called Squid Ink Coffee at 6 Cold Storage Road and the site of the Port Clyde General Store at 4 Cold Storage Road, which was destroyed by a September 2023 fire that also destroyed the nearby Monhegan Boat Line terminal and the Dip Net restaurant.

Cold Storage Road is a short lane that provides access to the village’s commercial and recreational waterfront. Port Clyde is part of the town of St. George, the southernmost settlement on the St. George peninsula.

Collaboration

The acquisition was made possible by a donation from Port Clyde residents Daniel and Sheryl Tishman. The Tishmans’ NorthLight Foundation, headquartered in New York City, is supporting the establishment of the center, which is expected to begin operations in 2026. 

The Tishmans formed the foundation to address environmental, land conservation and community and climate resistance in Maine and around the country. 

“Community efforts in response to adversity must be supported by the collaboration of organizations and people with different areas of expertise who can work alongside communities to find a path to a sustainable future,” said Denise Bruesewitz, a Colby provost and professor of environmental studies.

The center will be a resource for planning, mitigation, recovery and student education related to catastrophic events, she said.

Property plans

Plans for the properties include: 

  • Build a structure on the site of the former general store, to house a restaurant at street level and the center’s offices, gathering and collaborative spaces above;
  • Maintain the Barn, across from the former general store, to continue to operate as a seasonal bar and community gathering spot;
  • Maintain the 12-room Seaside Inn, built in 1847, as housing for researchers and employees of the center and for student researchers who will live and work in Port Clyde.

It’s expected that waterfront operations and activity at the Squid Ink building will continue in 2026.

“This project has so many benefits, including helping to revitalize the Port Clyde waterfront so it will continue to serve as a hub of community life, and supporting communities and partners around the state in ongoing resilience efforts,” said Maggie Drummond-Bahl, Colby class of 1998, executive director of the NorthLight Foundation. 

Connection to Island Campus

The center’s mission will be to work with scientists, policymakers, economists and individuals and organizations impacted by environmental, economic, cultural and public health crises. 

There will be lectures, workshops and student research internships, along with interdisciplinary scholarship with Colby’s so-called island campus, which is accessible by boat from Port Clyde.

The island campus comprises Allen and Benner islands in Muscongus Bay. Allen and Benner are adjacent private islands five miles south of Port Clyde. Colby acquired the islands in 2022 from the Wyeth family as a “living laboratory” to research issues such as climate change in the Gulf of Maine, air quality and atmospheric pollution, and biodiversity, as well as the role of genetic structure in how species survive or become extinct.

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