28 September 2006
Bar Harbor to change name
New name will reflect local dialect
 Bar Harbor, Me. -- In a five to two vote, the city council
approved a measure last night to change the name of the town here to Bah Hahbah.
"The reason for the change," said Mayor Charlie Parker, "is to preserve
the local flavor of the town by protecting it from contamination of
foreign speech patterns. The change will help to preserve the charm of
the city and keep it competitive as a tourist destination."
Long time residents of Bar Harbor had complained for years that people coming as
far away as Bakersfield and El Paso to take up year-round residence in
the town were diluting the dialect that is a landmark of this Down East
community.
To show his commitment to these changes, the mayor announced that he has
filed with the Maine State Board of Records to legally change his name to Chahlie Pahkah.
In a related and more controversial matter, the council is considering an ordinance that would
ban all future businesses operating within the city limits from using "R's"
in their signage or in their advertising. Businesses already licensed would be exempt from the regulation
until their licenses had to be renewed.
Speaking out against the passage
of the ordinance was
Rory Rerirour, who for the past 16 years has operated Rory Rerirour's
Roaring Rower Rentals, a business that rents kayak's near the Village
Green.
Also opposing the new ordinance were Sheila Sapermann, spokesperson for the Toys "R" Us
retailer, and Wayne Puchilow, New Development Vice President for Burger
King. According to the Bar Harbor Business Journal, both companies had
ambitions to open stores here in the next few years, and passage of such
a measure would essentially prohibit the businesses from operating
within the city limits. When contacted by Travel Fox, neither company
would comment on what their plans are now.
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© 2006 Applied Psychology
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