The man who promised the ‘Deflategate’ judge coffee for life owns Boothbay’s Dunkin franchise. Mike Connor of Lewiston owns four Dunkin franchises in Maine and hopes his newest one will open as soon as July 4, but mid-July is also a possibility. The former Clipper Mart on Route 27 is undergoing renovations. When it reopens, the Dunkin and Subway will occupy the store. 

Connor has a similar relationship in Richmond where he shares space with the Subway franchise. He was asked by the Richmond Subway franchise owner if he  was interested in opening a Boothbay Dunkin. Connor contacted corporate Dunkin officials last winter who sought a Route 27 traffic study in January. 

“You think of Boothbay as more of a summer destination, but the traffic study showed some surprising results, and we are very excited about opening a Dunkin in Boothbay,” Connor said. The new Dunkin is currently accepting work applications.

In 2015, Connor’s Lewiston Dunkin franchise made headlines with his offer of free coffee for life to federal Judge Richard Berman who lifted Tom Brady’s four-game NFL suspension. Connor placed the message “Judge Berman gets free coffee for life” on the Lewiston store’s sign. A Twitter post went viral and it ended up being national news. Connor learned about the message’s notoriety later in the day when his father called. “Turn on ESPN, Tedy Bruschi is talking about your sign,” Connor recounted June 20 about his father’s call. 

So far, the judge hasn’t accepted the offer. But Conner said if Judge Berman comes to Boothbay, the offer is still good.