FORECASTER • July 28, 2020
The owners of the Desert of Maine, a Midcoast landmark since the early 20th century, want to make improvements to ensure its survival throughout the 21st century. To move forward with plans to expand, Mela and Doug Heestand, are asking the town to create a Desert of Maine District at their 95 Desert Road property, which is located within a rural residential zone. A commercial entity since 1925, the Desert was allowed to continue as such after Freeport adopted zoning in the 1970s. “We really want to … invest over $1 million in the property, but we can’t really do that unless we have a viable business model, which we can’t do unless we get the zoning changes,” Mela Heestand said.