Midcoast Charitable Foundation Awards $25,000 to 13 Local Nonprofits

MRRA’s Midcoast Charitable Foundation voted unanimously on Feb. 27, 2026 to distribute $25,000 in grant funds to 13 local nonprofit organizations that serve the Midcoast region. The board action was announced in a Feb. 27 press release and the foundation described the awards as part of an annual grant program funded through MRRA-related event revenue.

The Feb. 27 release lists Jake Levesque, Director of Innovation and Development, as the contact for the announcement. The press release copy on the Brunswick Landing site includes the header “2026 Midcoast Charitable Foundation Press Release” and a page timestamp of 2/27/26 2:53 PM, but the published text contains at least one truncated fragment: “On February 4th, 2026, the Midcoast…” with no continuation in the available copy.

The Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority, known as MRRA, oversees the Midcoast Charitable Foundation and frames the awards within its broader redevelopment mission. MRRA describes itself as “a public municipal corporation by State law established by the Maine State Legislature to implement the Reuse Master Plans for both NASB and Topsham’s Annex as they have been set forth by both the Brunswick Local Redevelopment Authority (BLRA) and the Topsham Local Redevelopment Authority (TLRA).” MRRA is governed by an 11-member board of trustees appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the legislature.

MRRA’s mission statements on its TechPlace/About MRRA page further situate the grants within local economic development goals: implement the Reuse Master Plans for NASB and Topsham Annex, manage the transition of base properties from military to civilian uses, redevelop former base properties to create new high quality jobs, and actively engage the private sector in the redevelopment effort. Those mission elements are cited verbatim in MRRA materials posted in February 2026.

MRRA also submitted a “2025 Annual Report to the Governor” dated Feb. 11, 2026; that report opens, “Subject: Annual Report of MRRA for the year ending December 31, 2025 Dear Governor Mills: Pursuant to 5 M RSA §13083-5, I am writing to update you on the activities…” This statutory citation and formal report underscore MRRA’s public governance and reporting obligations as it directs event revenue into the foundation’s grant program.

The Feb. 27 foundation announcement does not include the names of the 13 recipient organizations, the amount awarded to each nonprofit, project or use restrictions, selection criteria, or statements from MRRA officials or grantees. Contact information for Jake Levesque is limited to name and title in the press release header. Without a full list of grantees or award breakdowns in the published announcement, the $25,000 distribution stands as a verified, board-approved allocation of MRRA-related event revenue tied to the authority’s ongoing redevelopment work at NASB and the Topsham Annex.