The fight to keep the Eastport Boat School alive and in Eastport received a shot in the arm when in late April the state Senate and House approved L.D. 1948, “An Act to Save the Marine Technology Center and Strengthen Maine’s Boatbuilding Workforce.” In enacting the measure, the Senate rejected an Appropriations Committee recommendation of
Vote nears on Peaks secession
Just three months after Chebeague Island won its independence in the State Legislature, Peaks Island will decide if it wants to pursue secession. On June 13 Peaks will vote on seceding from the City of Portland. As on Chebeague, Peaks Island secession proponents believe that going it alone is the only way Peaks can preserve
Communities and Cathedrals: Islanders, experts take on affordable housing
Nearly 100 individuals gathered at the Hutchinson Center in Belfast on April 28-29 to discuss one of the most important issues affecting the island communities of Maine: affordable housing. The event provided an opportunity for islanders and professionals involved in community development and affordable housing to network, share information and discuss the unique challenges of
Deer Isle school embraces boatbuilding
Amidst a nationwide shift away from high school industrial arts programs, Deer Isle-Stonington High School has diligently worked to improve its programs in recent years, embracing the importance of the island’s working heritage. Deer Isle has a rich history of boatbuilders, seafarers and fishermen, a tradition that still resonates throughout the community today. Dennis Saindon,
Coastal developments add a twist of green
Picture a summer cottage on a Muscongus Bay island with traditional shingled walls and six-over-six windows. Or picture a woodsy, compact and energy-efficient home near other houses, within walking distance of Tenants Harbor village, where there is post office, store, restaurant, plus a town pier and float for boat access to Penobscot Bay. Nostalgia for
Wal-Mart
A new Wal-Mart policy may change the way Maine lobstermen do business. The retail giant recently announced a goal to buy all wild-caught fresh and frozen fish for its North American stores from Marine Stewardship Council-certified fisheries within the next three to five years. Certain brand-name seafood products will be exempt. The Marine Stewardship Council
Sprawl and Future “Listening sessions” draw out new questions, approaches
If the values that Mainers feel best about seem threatened, those same values also represent the very strengths that can recharge community and economic life and send sprawl into remission, according to experts from the Washington, D.C.-based Brookings Institution. A major study by Brookings, sponsored by GrowSmart Maine and due for release in September, will
Group appeals ruling on gated beach
The Friends of Martinsville Beach has appealed a judge’s decision that the public has no right to use this broad, sandy crescent at the end of a private road. In late April, Knox County Superior Court judge Joyce Wheeler concluded that beach owners Amy and David Morey and John Hupper had the right to exclude
“The future is yours if you get out there.”
We’re only halfway through it, but 2006 is beginning to feel like The Year Everything Changed. The price of energy is sky-high and showing no signs of returning to the levels we all planned on a few years ago; the pace of sprawl seems to be accelerating, even if some towns have thwarted Wal-Mart for
Fuel price drives up ferry rates
On July 1, the fares for state ferry trips to Penobscot Bay Islands will jump 10 percent, which isn’t so bad considering the price of diesel fuel has doubled in the past two years. “We’ve held off to see if we could weather the storm, but we can’t,” said Jim MacLeod, in charge of ferries