The parties involved in the Peaks Island secession process disagree on several major issues, raising questions about the effectiveness of the state’s secession law. But it’s a seldom-used law that is subject to differing interpretations. Two lawyers who are not involved in this dispute, who have worked on past secession efforts, reached differing conclusions about
Tales of TABOR How would this year’s taxpayer-rights referendum affect islands?
Voters on Election Day are being asked to decide a referendum question known as the Taxpayers Bill of Rights, also known by its acronym, TABOR. At first glance, Question 1 seems simple enough: “Do you want to limit increases in state and local government spending to the rate of inflation plus population growth and to
Rockport Film School Up for Sale
The International Film and Photographic Workshops (WWF Sept. 06) and Rockport College are up for sale. Workshops founder and owner David Lyman announced the sale on the school’s website this past month. Since its inception 33 years ago in the basement of Rockport’s Union Hall, the organization has grown to include more than 300 annual
Maine doctors take part in a medical mission
Back when Brian O’Donnell was in medical school, he and a classmate talked about doing medical missionary work. Then two years ago, O’Donnell, who’d trained at Walter Reed Medical Center and had been a family doctor before taking a dermatology residency, called his friend and said, “Let’s do it.” They and two of O’Donnell’s daughters,
‘Tis the season of out-of-place wildlife…
A gray triggerfish made an unexpected visit to Boothbay Harbor on July 21, managing to get caught in a net after being tempted by a hook baited with a crab, from the dock at Brown’s Wharf. Quite a few witnesses were present for the event, including Capt. Barry Gibson, who runs the Shark Five charter
“Vinalhaven A to Z” explores island history
Holly Walker, a 2006 graduate of Vinalhaven High School, autographed her new book, Vinalhaven A to Z: An Alphabet Book of Places, at the Vinalhaven Historical Society on July 30. The historical society provided photos and information for Walker’s book project. “While writing this book,” Walker said, “I learned information about Vinalhaven that I never
“I like to just let people say their thing” Islanders author reflects on the offshore life
Serendipity seems to be at the core of Virginia Thorndike’s book Islanders. She felt fortunate to be the person asked to author it, as she explained to me in a recent interview. When Down East Books pitched the idea of describing Maine’s island residents, her immediate response was: “You betcha.” She told me, “Ever since
The Book of the Dead
New York: Warner Books, 2006. Hardcover, $25.95 Murder, Mystery and Mayhem Preston (who has a home in Round Pond, Maine) and Child are joint authors of a number of crime mystery books, and The Book of the Dead is the latest in their series featuring the Pendergast brothers, Aloysius and Diogenes. This book, the sequel
“We do hurricanes”
The Great Deluge — Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans and the Gulf Coast By Douglas Brinkley New York: William Morrow/Harper Collins, 2006 716 pp., $29.95. Breach of Faith — Hurricane Katrina and the Near Death of a Great American City By Jed Horne New York: Random House, 2006 412 pp. $25.95. The Storm — What Went
Dine Early and Often
As part of a new “Giving Back to the Community” program to raise visibility and funds and build membership for Midcoast Maine nonprofit organizations, McMahon’s Rockport Grille in Rockport will donate a portion of its gross receipts for the month of September to the Island Institute. The restaurant is located one mile south of the