MaineHealth Receives a $777,292 Tax Exemption from Damariscotta. What Does the Town Get Back?
Damariscotta property owners subsidize MaineHealth to the tune of $777,292 every year — the value of the hospital system's charitable exemption on $42 million in real estate. That subsidy runs $2,130 per day. In return, the system claims a charitable mission. It is now considering ending the service that most directly defines that mission for this community.
What MaineHealth Would Owe vs. What It Pays
The commitment book records $42,015,800 in fully exempt Miles/MaineHealth parcels — the properties that pay nothing. At 18.500 mil, those exemptions are worth $777,292 a year in foregone local tax. Separately, the system's taxable and partially taxable parcels carry $10.2 million in assessment and pay $187,882. The full $52.4 million portfolio, if taxed with no exemptions, would generate about $970,000 annually.
Full potential: $52,432,600 × 0.0185 = $970,003/yr. Fully exempt parcels: $42,015,800 × 0.0185 = $777,292 — the annual Damariscotta subsidy (bracket). MH pays $187,882 on $10,155,800 in taxable assessment. FY 2025 Tax Commitment Book, pp. 51, 155, 167–168, 265.
1.755 Mil Added to Every Other Property Owner's Bill
When $42 million in assessed value is removed from the taxable base, the same levy requires a higher rate from everyone else. Without the exemption, Damariscotta's mil rate would be 16.745 instead of 18.500 — a 9.5% reduction.
(exemption in place)
What the Exemption Costs at Your Assessed Value
Drag the slider to your property's assessed value and see your share of the subsidy.
MaineHealth Holds Nearly Half of All Exempt Property in Damariscotta
The town's total exempt property is $91.6 million across all holders — churches, schools, and other nonprofits included. MaineHealth accounts for $42.0 million of that: 45.9%. No other single organization comes close.
Source: FY 2025 Tax Commitment Book — total exempt $91,580,700; MaineHealth system exempt $42,015,800.
Every MaineHealth Parcel in Damariscotta
Eight accounts carry full exemptions. Six related parcels are taxable or partially taxable — primarily medical office buildings, the Schooner Cove continuing-care facility, and one parcel at 8 Belknap Point Road held by Maine Medical Center / Miles Memorial Hospital.
Full parcel inventory — 8 exempt + 6 taxable/partial (click to expand)
| Acct | Entity | Use / Location | Gross Value | Assessment | Tax | Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 785 | Miles Properties, Inc. | Main hospital campus — 35 Miles St | $30,901,000 | $0 | $0 | 55 — Hospital |
| 786 | Miles Properties, Inc. | Coves Edge Intermediate Care — 26 Schooner St | $6,250,400 | $0 | $0 | 55 — Hospital |
| 1572 | Coves Edge, Inc. (c/o Miles Health Care) | Coves Edge Assisted Living — 51 Schooner St | $2,916,900 | $0 | $0 | 92 — Assisted Living |
| 1272 | Miles Memorial Hospital | Land & buildings — 4 Alewife Lane | $671,800 | $0 | $0 | 55 — Hospital |
| 1219 | Miles Memorial Hospital League | League building — 114 Church St | $376,100 | $0 | $0 | 48 — Charitable |
| 1134 | Miles Memorial Hospital | Land & buildings — 97 Bristol Rd | $404,200 | $0 | $0 | 55 — Hospital |
| 1271 | Miles Memorial Hospital | Land & buildings — 3 Alewife Lane | $293,600 | $0 | $0 | 55 — Hospital |
| 1082 | Miles Memorial Hospital | Land & buildings — 10 Alewife Lane | $201,800 | $0 | $0 | 55 — Hospital |
| 784 | Miles Health Care, Inc. | Schooner Cove CCRC — 35 Schooner St | $6,219,900 | $5,958,900 | $110,240 | Taxable* |
| 244 | Miles Health Care, Inc. | Webster/Vanwinkle Medical Bldg — 79 Schooner St | $1,629,000 | $1,629,000 | $30,137 | Taxable |
| 788 | Miles Health Care, Inc. | Medical Office Building — 5 Miles Center Way | $1,079,800 | $1,079,800 | $19,976 | Taxable |
| 789 | Miles Health Care, Inc. | Ortho Building — 39 Miles Way | $778,300 | $778,300 | $14,399 | Taxable |
| 1059 | Maine Medical Center / Miles Memorial Hospital | 8 Belknap Point Road | $485,300 | $485,300 | $8,978 | Taxable |
| 1510 | Miles Health Care, Inc. | Vacant land — Main St | $224,500 | $224,500 | $4,153 | Taxable |
| System total | $52,432,600 | $10,155,800 | $187,882 | |||
*Account 784 carries a $261,000 partial exemption covering individual resident homestead and veteran exemptions only. Exemption codes appear as labeled in the commitment book: 55 = "Leased/Hospital"; 48 = "Charitable"; 92 = "Assisted Living." The applicable statutory framework is 36 M.R.S. § 652. Source: Town of Damariscotta, Real Estate Tax Commitment Book — 2025 Tax Commitment, 18.500 mil, printed 03/12/2026. Parcel entries on pp. 51, 155, 167–168; town totals on p. 265.
Maine law exempts property owned and used by qualifying charitable and benevolent institutions. The public-policy bargain is straightforward: the institution receives tax relief because its charitable use is supposed to benefit the community. That is why the exemption matters here. MaineHealth reports $795 million in community benefit systemwide in its most recent Form 990 — drawn across a seventeen-hospital network. Damariscotta is carrying $777,292 a year in foregone taxes for a hospital system that may now remove the community's only birth center. A tax exemption is not a thank-you note. It is a bargain. The community carries the cost; the institution is supposed to carry the mission.
- Town of Damariscotta, Real Estate Tax Commitment Book — 2025 Tax Commitment, 18.500 mil, printed 03/12/2026. Parcel entries on pp. 51, 155, 167–168; town levy and exempt totals on p. 265. Available at the Town Office, 21 School Street, Damariscotta.
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Maine Revised Statutes, Title 36, § 652 — Property Tax Exemptions.
mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/36/title36sec652.html - MaineHealth, IRS Form 990 (tax year ending September 30, 2024). Community benefit at Schedule H Part I, line 7k: $794,649,248. Available via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
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MaineHealth, "Our Mission, Vision and Values."
mainehealth.org/about-mainehealth/our-mission-vision-and-values