Articles
In Search of the Glocal
After high school, I left my home in southwestern Maine under the misguided impression that I was headed for the “real” world and leaving a small farm town that had little to do with it. A few years later, at the apartment of a new friend thousands of miles away, I came across a bag
The Programs Perspective
A central part of the Island Institute’s mission since its inception twenty years ago has been to help improve communication and information sharing among members of island and coastal communities, researchers and policy makers. Towards this end, one of the Institute’s most important functions is also, in many ways, the most basic: we convene and
The Programs Perspective
At the beginning of the 20th century, some 300 islands off the coast of Maine had communities occupying them year-round. Today, just over a century later, there are only 15. If you’ve been even a casual reader of Working Waterfront and other Island Institute publications over the years, you’ve heard this before. This fact –
Islanders gather for affordable housing workshop
Residents of eight islands met at the Island Institute on Sept. 12 to discuss the need for sustained affordable housing initiatives in their communities. The workshop, which was a follow-on to the larger Affordable Coast meeting of October 2002, was convened in order to discuss affordable housing problems and solutions in greater detail, and included
Through their access project, Cranberry Isles build community
While much of the hardest work is yet to be done, the process of purchasing and developing a three-acre mainland lot is already paying dividends by uniting the different communities of the Cranberry Isles, and encouraging more communication between summer and year-round residents. This was the message speakers gave at a public information breakfast for
Vinalhaven’s future mapped in new comprehensive plan
The Vinalhaven Comprehensive Planning Committee unveiled the results of its 2002 community survey and sought input on the preliminary recommendations of its subcommittees at a public information meeting Aug. 12. The Committee, which has been gathering and analyzing information about Vinalhaven since the spring of 2001, is in the final stages of compiling a list
Baldacci to speak at working waterfront press conference
Gov. John Baldacci will speak at a press conference intended to bring attention to the value of Maine’s working waterfront and the need to protect and sustain it. The press conference, sponsored by Maine’s Working Waterfront Coalition, will be held Tuesday, May 27, at 11:15 in the Hall of Flags at the Statehouse in Augusta.
Granite by the Sea: The History of Granite Quarrying on Vinalhaven Island
A film by Army Armstrong, 2002 Distributed by the Vinalhaven Historical Society I don’t remember how old I was when I learned that the Vinalhaven quarries I swam in were at one point vast and busy worksites, but I do remember it being startling. Sitting on the ledges looking down, I tried to force my
“Lobster Tales” documents where lobsters go in the market
Researchers working in Vinalhaven’s Carver’s Harbor last year were interested in learning more about how lobsters travel. They tagged thousands of lobsters, released them and waited for fishermen to re-catch them and call in their new coordinates. Although most of the lobsters reported didn’t make it far, a couple went as much as ten miles.
Cranberry Isles buys property for mainland access
By a vote of 55-26 at a special town meeting Aug. 21, the town of Cranberry Isles approved spending as much as $2.4 million to buy and develop three acres of shorefront property in Southwest Harbor. The property, which includes a new pier, parking space and barge landing, will be the islands’ own piece of