Why We’ve Stopped Scheduling Weddings At Rockcraft Lodge
Karen and Larry give a toast at a family member’s wedding
Hello!
We’re Karen and Larry Markson, owners of Rockcraft Lodge in Sebago, Maine. We bought Rockcraft in 2011 and restored it as a labor of love. It wound up costing a lot more than we’d planned, so we decided to rent the Lodge occasionally to cover some of the costs.
We rent mainly to families, but also to couples who want a DIY wedding by the lake. On average, there are about 5 weddings a year. They’re joyful occasions, and we’ve loved sharing the Lodge with couples and their families over the years.
So it makes us very sad to say that the Town of Sebago has issued a Notice of Violation about the weddings. As a result, the Town is forcing us to stop renting to people who want to have their wedding at Rockcraft.
A Notice Of Violation? Are There Health Or Safety Concerns At Rockcraft Lodge?
Absolutely not. The violation has nothing to do with Rockcraft Lodge itself.
In the state of Maine, the Shoreland Zoning Ordinance (SZO) defines what kind of uses can occur near the water. It limits commercial activity near the water, but it also makes an exception to allow owners to rent their homes. That’s what we’ve been doing for years. The Town knew about the weddings, of course, and in fact issued liquor permits for them on many occasions.
The “violation” occurred because the Town very recently decided to interpret the SZO differently. It decided that our five DIY weddings a year are a commercial business that is not allowed under the SZO.
But Haven’t There Been Weddings At Rockcraft For Years?
Yes, it’s a tradition that started long before we owned Rockcraft. As mentioned above, there have been an average of five weddings per year, starting in 2015. The previous owners, the United Church of Christ, held events and weddings year-round for about 50 years. And the original owners of Rockcraft, the Spauldings, held a variety of events for the people of the Town for over 40 years.
So Why Did The Town Change Its Mind And Issue A Violation?
It may sound strange, but it’s related to the renovation of another building, an old boathouse that was falling apart. It’s a long story, but the short version is we obtained numerous permits from the Town and the DEP and began the work. We were 90% done when the Town fired Brandon Woolley, who was its Code Enforcement Officer for twelve years. The Town later decided we shouldn’t be allowed to finish the work because in their view, Brandon Woolley should never have approved it. And that’s when the Town started talking about the weddings.
The Town first said we’d need to go to the Planning Board to get approval to continue having weddings. We offered several times to do that, but then the Town said we had to resolve both issues together. If we didn’t come to terms on the boathouse, we couldn’t resolve the weddings.
How Are The Weddings Related To The Boathouse?
They’re not related. The boathouse isn’t included in rentals, but the Town has insisted on tying the two things together. We offered to go to the Planning Board a number of times over the past year, but the Town never responded to us. They waited until August and then said if we didn’t come to terms on the boathouse immediately, they would issue a Notice of Violation and we’d have to cancel weddings that were just weeks away.
We were shocked that the Town would threaten to ruin weddings. To avoid that, we offered to stop having weddings at Rockcraft as long as the Town would allow the weddings that were already scheduled to proceed. The Town didn’t respond to us and two days later, they issued the Notice of Violation.
What Happens To Weddings Scheduled For This September?
There are two weddings scheduled for September 2025. There isn’t enough time to appeal the Town’s decision, and we don’t want the weddings to be ruined because of Town politics.
If the Town won’t allow these two weddings to go on as planned, we will offer to refund each couple’s rental fee and then host the wedding as a private event held by us. Since no money is changing hands, it won’t be “commercial activity.”
Would We Ever Consider Having Weddings Again In The Future?
We love Sebago and we plan to retire here. We can’t tell you how many people have told us how much they love Rockcraft Lodge, and how it’s such an important part of the Town’s history. We love it, too. We love spending time here with our family, and we’ve loved opening up the Lodge so others can have their weddings at Rockcraft.
What happens in the future really depends on the Town. If they would support it, we’d still be happy to go to the Planning Board to talk about having weddings in the future. We’re here for the long term, so it really depends on what the Town wants.
A Final Thought
People in Maine are known for being pragmatic, sensible, and fair. We don’t understand why the Town is running up such high legal costs when we’ve been willing all along to sit down, negotiate and work with them. The Town’s legal fees are paid with our tax dollars and in this case, we really have to wonder how those high costs are benefiting the Town.