WATERVILLE (AP) – Details mapped out in Gov. John Baldacci’s plan to include arts and tourism in Maine’s Pine Tree Development Zone program have left some questioning whether the move shifts the program’s focus.

Laying out new initiatives on economic development last week, Baldacci said the tax-incentive program will expand to include arts and tourism as part of the state’s efforts to grow a “creative economy.”

Coined by Carnegie Mellon University professor Richard Florida, the “creative economy” advances the case that economic prosperity depends on higher levels of diversity, arts, culture, universities, recreation and tolerance.

But while many praise harnessing the creative economy in Maine, some ask if the move shifts the program from its goal of creating higher-paying jobs.

“In theory, you have to make distinctions between arts and tourism as retail, and arts and tourism as something else,” said Kenneth Young, executive director of the Kennebec Valley Council of Governments.

The council coordinates the Kennebec Valley Pine Tree Zone covering Kennebec and Somerset counties.

Pine Tree Zones have attracted more than 90 applications so far in the state, said Jack Cashman, commissioner of the state Department of Economic and Community Development. Many applicants are in the manufacturing sector.

“The creative economy is going to be big and important,” Cashman said. “In terms of specifics of how we would promote it with Pine Tree Zone benefits, we’re still discussing that.”

But Cashman said the state is not likely to spend any more money to tweak the Pine Tree Zones’ marketing efforts, which has a budget of $100,000 this year.

Young asked what the inclusion of arts and tourism in Pine Tree Zones means for the state’s economy. The original targets included biotechnology, advanced forestry, and information technology.

“With Pine Tree Zones, you’re trading certain concessions in return for jobs,” Young said. “If you’re thinking of including arts and tourism, you’d probably apply the same kind of evaluation criteria: Will they create jobs?”

With finite state resources, development efforts should focus on awarding Pine Tree designations to those with the highest returns, Young said.

Lee Umphrey, a spokesman for the governor, said the creative economy could be in places such as Bar Harbor’s Jackson Laboratory, but proposals for creative economy growth also could include Rockland’s jazz and blues festival.

“With Pine Tree Zones, you’re trading certain concessions in return for jobs,” Young said. “If you’re thinking of including arts and tourism, you’d probably apply the same kind of evaluation criteria: Will they create jobs?”

The state’s eight Pine Tree Zones offer 100 percent corporate income tax credit for the first five years, followed by 50 percent credit for the next five.