Bar Harbor cruise passenger cap remains tied up in court
The Maine town is awaiting rulings on two state appeals as litigation continues over its limits on cruise ship disembarkations.
Bar Harbor remains involved in state and federal lawsuits arising from an ordinance designed to reduce cruise ship visitation. Voters approved the measure in 2022 with 58% support, limiting the number of cruise passengers who may disembark to 1,000 per day.
In May, Chief U.S. District Judge Lance Walker ruled that the cap is constitutional and enforceable only in July and August. The parties are also awaiting Maine Supreme Judicial Court decisions in two separate appeals.
The town recently issued a violation notice to a private pier owner, alleging cruise passengers were allowed to disembark without a permit. Eben Salvatore, operations director for Bar Harbor Resorts, two private piers and the town’s primary tender boats, said the ordinance had prompted hundreds of cancellations.
Cruise vessels are still calling at Bar Harbor, although in lower numbers than in previous years, according to the town. Bar Harbor also reached an agreement with American Cruise Lines and secured the required permits for the company to regularly disembark passengers at a public pier this year.