Kirk is a native of Greenwich Connecticut. After graduating from Amherst College and NYU Graduate School of Business, he and his father eventually purchased an industrial distribution business in Savannah Georgia, where he has lived since 1982. Upon the sale of the business in 2008, Kirk and his wife purchased a second home in Portland. Kirk had been previously acquainted with Maine on account of (1) numerous summer vacations,(2) a sister who has lived in Portland for 40+ years, and (3) servicing Maine-based companies on behalf of the Touche Ross accounting firm, for which he worked for 5 years out of their Manhattan office. Accordingly, unlike most seasonal visitors, he is well acquainted with Maine winters!

Kirk is a Rotarian who has regularly visited with Portland Rotary for many years. Additionally, Kirk is active in jail and prison ministry. Originally ordained a deacon in the Episcopal Church, Kirk now serves in an identical role in the Anglican Church of North America. He has served on various ministry teams in both Georgia and at the Cumberland County Jail and Maine State Prison in Maine.

 

As Cary started his presentation, he pointed out that most of his work is dealing with Parking, Pot, Poop, and Pee as those are the top issues his members want him to focus on. The friendlier and more inviting he can help make the downtown, the more people will visit. As part of the organization’s strategy to support the businesses, the group partners closely with the police and the public works departments to coordinate a response on these issues. Portland Downtown hosts a police cadet program in the summer to help expand the police presence and to de-escalate any issues; as well as supports 6 public works positions to keep the area clean. The top areas the group is working on is providing public restrooms (you may have noticed the new one near the art museum), hiring groups to clean graffiti, and advocate for needle and trash pickup.

 

Most of the work Portland Downtown does to promote the area businesses is events. They are responsible for the holiday lights we see around the city and parks. This is the largest initiative of the group. Other events that the group sponsor include a Valentine Day card program, closing streets in the summer, painting crosswalks and other structures to create a “details to delights” effect, and the Monument Square Tree lighting and associated activities. Anything the group can do to bring folks downtown to sustain their interest in the shops and restaurants is the goal.

 

Cary wrapped up his presentation talking about parking. He pointed out that there is plenty of parking spaces in the downtown area, but one of the problems is that much of it is controlled by a private vendor who uses surge pricing and that is beyond the control of the city and the group. Cary encouraged members to use the public parking lots to avoid price surprises. The group is looking at options to provide busing around the downtown, similar to the current effort with the cruise ships as a way to improve the parking experience. It was great to hear from Cary and to learn that there is a group focusing on continuing a vibrant partnership between the City and downtown businesses to keep Portland the fun city it is. (Pic -Dave and Cary)

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