A campaign by Friends of Acadia to raise $10 million to build housing for seasonal employees at Acadia National Park has received $2 million from the National Park Foundation/DOI file

The National Park Foundation is contributing $2 million to the effort to build housing for Acadia National Park employees.

Friends of Acadia last month announced its Raise the Roof campaign to raise $10 million to build housing for seasonal workers at two campuses in the park.

For the past several years, about 30 percent of Acadia’s seasonal jobs were left unfilled. As rental prices increase and housing inventory decreases, a dire housing situation is only getting worse. Building new housing units at Acadia is imperative for a meaningful and sustainable long-term solution, the friends group said in a release last month.

“Seasonal employee housing is critical to our workforce here at Acadia National Park. We need 150 summer seasonals, and yet for the last several years we’ve only been able to hire about 115. Part of that is because of the lack of seasonal employee housing,” Acadia Superintendent Kevin Schneider said during Friends of Acadia’s annual meeting.

Constructing buildings within a national park requires careful consideration to preserve park values and experiences, the nonprofit advocacy group notes. The National Park Service and Friends of Acadia have identified two suitable sites that could provide housing for 60-plus seasonal employees: the Harden Farm property in Bar Harbor and the Dane Farm property in Seal Harbor.  

The park foundation's $2 million contribution will help support the construction of additional housing units at Acadia’s Harden Farm property in Bar Harbor. Harden Farm is already home to eight existing housing units.

“Acadia National Park wouldn't be what it is without our dedicated seasonal workforce,” said Superintendent Kevin Schneider. “The  National Park Foundation's excitement around the Harden Farm project, in addition to Friends of Acadia's philanthropic support, is going to help ensure Acadia National Park staff will have a place to call home during their tenure with the park. It's humbling to see so many people rally behind our workforce and support such a critical issue for Acadia National Park." 

Friends of Acadia President and CEO Eric Stiles said the initiative needs both public and private support.

"We’re thrilled that our $10 million Raise the Roof campaign helped leverage federal support. And we’re incredibly grateful to the National Park Foundation, and the Maine Congressional Delegation—U.S. Senators King and Collins, and U.S. Representatives Pingree and Golden, for their support for funding the National Park Service.”  

This isn’t just an issue for Acadia, addressing workforce housing issues is a priority for the National Park Service and national parks throughout the country.