Hyperion, June 2007 Quirky Characters, Deftly Handled Could this murder mystery novel by fishing boat captain Linda Greenlaw be any more contemporary? Set in a small coastal Maine town against a backdrop of commercial fishing boats, cod stern trawlers to be exact, gambling debts and an offshore windfarm project, Greenlaw crafts her first novel with
Family Connections
To the editor: …Yesterday I happened to come upon your paper with the article on the students at Phippsburg Maine and the work they have done restoring cemeteries in the area and the many great residents who have done so much. I descend from the Day, Blethen, Getchell and Perry families who were in Phippsburg
The Pesticide Blitz
To the editor: Thank you for the story on irresponsible pesticide applications to public lawn areas in Ellsworth (WWF Nov. 2006). Your readers are well served by your pointing out that “state-certified” pesticide applicators working for the school system are careless and/or ignorant of the rules, putting students and teachers at risk. Craig Idlebrook’s story
A Benchmark Anchorage
To the editor: …Falmouth has hired a consulting firm at a cost of $40,000 to aid the new harbor waterfront committee to deal with the ongoing issues plaguing its anchorage (1200 moorings)….Through hard work and dedicated people here in Falmouth we will accomplish an anchorage that other towns will use as a benchmark. As access
Sticking Together
To the editor: …The fact that one needs a boat to come and go from islands does, in some significant ways, make islands unique. But it does not follow that in all matters islands are unique. School consolidation is one of the latter. Issues. Your characterization (WWF May 07) that the governor’s “plan” is “ambitious”
Parallel 44: Gulf of Maine’s popular ocean observing system could be cut back
For the past six years, a network of high-tech buoys and radar stations has been providing a rich stream of data about conditions in the Gulf of Maine to fishermen, mariners, scientists and search and rescue personnel. But the Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMoos) — and others like it across the country —
Peaks secession movement encounters choppy water at the legislature
Although a two-year effort by Peaks Island to secede from Portland looked likely to be defeated in Augusta, the committee in charge of the secession bill did prod Portland to address some of the issues raised in the secession debate. In mid-May, the Joint Standing Committee on State and Local Government voted 7 to 5
A History of Island Problem-Solving
The Island Institute’s trustees voted in March not to take sides in Peaks Island’s independence effort, but Institute president Philip Conkling spoke at the public hearing, emphasizing all island communities’ ability to solve daunting challenges. Below is a portion of Conkling’s testimony: …We do not pretend to be experts on the complex financial and tax
Long Island town meeting addresses housing, honors a volunteer
Long Island voters gathered at the island’s newly repainted community center on May 12 for their 15th annual town meeting. Sustained by coffee, donuts and hot dogs provided by the Recreation Department, voters decided 52 warrant articles, elected a new selectman and a school board member, and heard presentations from the Cumberland County Sheriff’s department,
Coalition tackles Tree Growth tax
Tree Growth tax designation and its impact on property taxes and revenue was the topic at the May 11 Islands Coalition Meeting at the Island Institute in Rockland. And, like many issues, the implications of Tree Growth are very different for islands than for mainland communities. As Jeff Kendall from the Maine Revenue Service put