AUGUSTA – Maine Economic & Community Development Commissioner Heather Johnson has announced that Jeff McCabe will be the director of Maine’s Office of Outdoor Recreation.

McCabe replaces Carolann Ouellette, who assumed leadership of the Maine Office of Tourism and its subsidiary offices as director of Tourism, Outdoor Recreation, and Film in June. McCabe has served as deputy director under Ouellette since November 2023.

“I am pleased that Jeff will be able to seamlessly continue and build upon the important work being done in outdoor recreation to contribute to Maine’s economy,” Johnson said in a news release from the department. “He is a strong voice for outdoor recreation in our state, an industry that is helping to advance our statewide goals of talent attraction, innovation, manufacturing, and rural economic development.”

“Maine’s Outdoor Recreation economy is strong and growing,” McCabe said. “It has been an honor to work with and to hear from those in the industry from across the state and I look forward to the work ahead.”

“I am pleased to see Jeff take on this new role and look forward to continuing our work together,” Ouellette said. “The intersection of Maine’s outdoor tourism assets and the outdoor recreation industry offers many opportunities for continued growth as well as terrific experiences for visitors to our state.”

Since its creation in 2018, the Maine Office of Outdoor Recreation has become an effective convener of the outdoor recreation economy, forging impactful public/private partnerships that make Maine an example for other states to emulate.

The department plans to post the deputy director position soon.