USDA awards groomer grants

WAGM-TV8 • January 12, 2021

Promoting outdoor winter recreation is much easier to do, with well-maintained snowmobile trails. Thanks to the USDA’s Rural Business Development Grant program, three Aroostook County communities can now purchase new groomers. Recipients include the Portage Lakers Sno-Mobile Club, $65,000; the town of St. Agatha, $98,463; and the town of Fort Kent, $99,900. “The economy of the snowmobile industry in this state is about $600 million dollars. Drive around Aroostook County on a snowy weekend and see how many out-of-state plates are here, with people staying at our hotels and eating in restaurants,” says Tim Hobbs, State Director for USDA Rural Development in Maine.