COMMUNITY INFO

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR HOME TOWN

TEMPORARY LODGING

Accommodations range from quaint bed-and-breakfast inns to economy, extended-stay motels to lakefront resorts. Even with some 1,500+ hotel/motel, inn, and resort sites in western Maine, it is advisable to make advance reservations. For a list of area accommodations, visit your local chamber of commerce.

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UTILITY CONNECTIONS

Utility services are provided by both private companies and governmental agencies. Subscribe in person or by phone.

TELEPHONE & CELL PHONE SERVICE

FairPoint New England, Oxford Networks, Time Warner Cable, and Verizon provide telephone service to customers in most of western Maine. Time Warner Cable provides digital telephone service. Visit each company’s site to learn whether or not a deposit is required.

Verizon 800-585-4466

FairPoint Communications 866-984-4001

Oxford Networks www.oxfordnetworks.com 1-800-520-9911 491 Lisbon St. Lewiston, ME 04240-7418

Time Warner Cable of New England 800-833-2253

GARBAGE REMOVAL

Some municipalities provide garbage disposal in the Our Town area while some areas depend on private garbage collection services.

THESE DEPARTMENTS CAN ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT GARBAGE COLLECTION SERVICES:

Hebron, Town Office, Town Office, 351 Paris Rd., 966-3284

Lewiston, Public Works, 103 Adams Ave., 513-3003

Norway, Solid Waste, 22 Brown, 743-8518

Oxford, Transfer Station, Smith Rd., 539-4376

Paris, Transfer Station, 743-8518

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DRIVING

STEPS TO OBTAINING A MAINE DRIVER’S LICENSE

How do I convert my out-of-state driver’s license? You cannot transfer your previous license directly. You need to fill out the Maine license forms at a BMV branch office, take a vision screening, and pay the license fee. If your previous license was current, you do not need to take a road or written test. BMV Branch Office Locations – http://www.maine.gov/sos/bmv/locations/index.html

Rapid Renewal is the online service that allows you to renew your driver’s license or Maine ID card or purchase a replacement driver’s license or ID card at any time, day or night. Any Maine licensed driver with an active digital license, digital motorcycle license or digital motor driven cycle restricted license and any holder of a digital Maine ID card can use this service. This service is not available for commercial driver license holders. Fees can be found online at http://www.maine.gov/sos/bmv/licenses/renewal.html

* Note: The feature allowing users to update hair color and/or weight is temporarily unavailable. Therefore, persons needing to update their weight or hair color must visit a BMV branch office. Contact BMV at: (207) 624-9000 x 52114 or Email: license.bmv@maine.gov

STEPS TO MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND OBTAINING LICENSE PLATES

Rapid Renewal is an online service that makes it possible for you to renew your motor vehicle registration and to pay your local excise tax in one simple transaction. You should receive your new registration certificate and stickers within 7 business days. If your registration will expire within 7 days, and you are planning to travel out-of-state with your vehicle, you may wish to renew your registration in person at your municipal office. Re-registrations may also be processed at a motor vehicle branch office, after payment of excise tax has been made at your municipality.

The Rapid Renewal service for registration renewal of excise-taxable vehicles is available only to registrants who live in a participating municipality. To find out if your town or city is part of the program, please view the list of municipalities. Non-excise-taxable trailers may be renewed online for all municipalities.

Registrations for both passenger and commercial vehicles can be renewed online. However, island use, emergency/coach, vehicles over 12,000 pounds GVW, apportioned, special mobile equipment, tractors, municipal and state vehicles must be renewed in person.

THE RULES OF MAINE ROADS — TRAFFIC REGULATIONS

Maine uses a point system to penalize traffic law violators, with each traffic violation carrying an assigned number of points. When the total reaches a maximum of 12, the driver’s license is suspended.

In Maine, if you are stopped for operating under the influence and a test shows that you have an alcohol concentration of 0.08 grams or more of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath, you may lose your driving privilege. In addition, for all administrative suspensions (there are some refusal exceptions) you may be required to complete a driver education evaluation program.

Maine law requires that the headlights of all motor vehicles operating on a public way must be illuminated whenever the vehicle’s windshield wipers are in constant use. This requirement is in addition to that requiring headlight illumination if operating at night or whenever, due to weather conditions, vehicles or persons cannot be seen for a distance of 1,000 feet ahead.

Maine law requires all passengers and drivers to wear a seat belt when traveling in a vehicle on Maine’s roadways. Drivers of all ages should only transport as many passengers as there are seat belts in their vehicle.

Maine’s Child Passenger Safety (CPS) law is one of the strongest in the country. The law requires that:

• Children who weigh less than 40 lbs. ride in a child safety seat;

• Children who weigh at least 40 lbs., but less than 80 lbs. and less than 8 yrs. old, ride in a federally approved child restraint system;

• Children who are more than 8 yrs. old and less than 18 yrs. old and more than 4 feet 9 inches in height should be properly secured in a safety belt and;

• Children who are less than 18 yrs. old and at least 8 yrs old and more than 4 feet 9 inches in height is properly secured in a seat belt

• Children under 12 yrs. old and who weighs less than 100 lbs. is properly secured in the back seat of the vehicle, if possible.

The full text of the law can be found at http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/29-a/title29-asec2081.html

More information about these services can be found on the Bureau of Motor Vehicles site at maine.gov.

WATER

Andover 392-1036

Bethel 824-2342

Bridgton 647-2881

Buckfield 336-2771

Canton 597-2785

Dixfield 562-4654

Farmington Village 778-4777

Farmington Falls 778-0853

Fryeburg 935-2010

Harrison 583-2204

Hebron 966-2312

Jay Village 897-3214

Kingfield 265-4628

Mexico 364-2061

Mt. Blue 639-5306

North Jay 645-2812

Norway 743-2414

Oxford 539-4653

Paris 743-6251

Rangeley 864-5680

Rumford 364-3891

West Paris 674-2174

Wilton 645-2001

ELECTRICITY AND GAS

Central Maine Power 800-750-4000

Unitil Gas 866-933-3821

RECYCLING

Recycling saves money, creates jobs, and protects the environment.

When you recycle products and packaging, you provide materials that can be used by manufacturers to make new products.

Recycled materials cost manufacturers less than virgin materials.

Also, less energy is needed to make new products using recycled materials instead of virgin materials, further reducing production costs.

As we recycle more products, new jobs are created to collect, transport and process this waste into commodity materials that can be used by manufacturers.

Using recycled materials also decreases the demand for new raw materials, reducing negative environmental impacts of mining and extraction.

Recycling products in Maine include:

Cell Phones

Computers and Televisions

Household Hazardous Waste including mercury-containing products and batteries

Motor Vehicles

Oil

Propane Tanks

Rechargeable Batteries

Thermostats

FMI, visit the Bureau of Remediation & Waste Management at www.maine.gov

EMERGENCY RELATED PHONE NUMBERS

When you call 911 from a cellular telephone it may not go to your local police/fire/medical dispatch center, so it is critical that you know where you are, including the town where the emergency is occurring so the emergency communications center can process and respond to your call quickly and effectively.

Important things to remember when reporting any incident to 911:

1. Remain calm and speak clearly,

2. Answer questions patiently and as completely as possible,

3. Understand that there is a reason for every question asked,

4. Never hang up on 911.

When you call 911 you will hear “911” or “911, what’s your emergency?” or “911, what is the location of your emergency?” Ideally, you should tell the person answering the telephone what and where the emergency is, for example, “My house is on fire at (STREET & TOWN)” or “There’s someone breaking into my home at (STREET ADDRESS & TOWN)” or “There’s a car accident at (STREET & TOWN).” The best and quickest way to get a response to your emergency is to patiently answer all questions asked. It can be difficult to be patient during an emergency, but remaining as calm as possible and answering questions clearly will enable help to get there much faster. When seconds count, calmness helps.

Even though your location and telephone may display on the Enhanced 911, or E-911, system, you will be asked to verify these two crucial pieces of information. The incident may be occurring at some place other than your location and the system is not foolproof. Ensuring the correct address is obtained will ensure emergency units get to the scene of the emergency as quickly as possible.

If you called 911 by mistake, don’t hang up. Speak with the person answering the call and answer their questions. All 911 hang-up calls are called back, and if there is no answer further action may be taken.

For the D/deaf, late-deafened or hard-of-hearing, use your TTY device or the “Maine Relay Service.”

DIAL 911 FOR ALL FIRE AND POLICE EMERGENCIES

OTHER EMERGENCY NUMBERS

Alcoholics Anonymous 24-hour Hotline 800-737-6237 or 207-774-4335

Child Abuse 24-hour Hotline 800-452-1999 (Voice) or 800-963-9490 (TTY)

Maine Statewide Crisis 888-568-1112 (Voice/TTY)

Poison Control Center 800-222-1222 (Voice) or 877-299-4447 (TTY)

This is not an all-inclusive list of emergency numbers and these phone numbers are subject to change. The Maine Department of Health and Human Services provides a list of emergency services and phone numbers at www.maine.gov

CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE, VISITOR SERVICES AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce

Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce

Franklin County Chamber of Commerce

Greater Franklin Development Corp. 778-5887

Jay-Livermore-Livermore Falls Chamber

Kennebec Valley Chamber

Kennebec Valley Council of Governments 453-4258

Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce

Rangeley Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce

Sebago Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce

Western Maine Economic Development 739-6545

Western Mountains Alliance 778-3885

Western Maine Economic Development

HEALTH SERVICES

Alcoholics Anonymous, in Maine, 24 Hour Hotline 800-737-6237 or 207-774-4335. During business hours, your call will be taken by a member of Alcoholics Anonymous who knows exactly what you are going through and can give you all the information you need. At night, reach a well qualified answering service, who can give meeting information, or put you in touch with a recovering alcoholic, in your area, who will speak with you about your problem. There are over 700 meetings in Maine and southern New Brunswick every week. To find a meeting near you, visit www.csoaamaine.org

Androscoggin Home Care and Hospice, 15 Strawberry Ave., Lewiston, 800-482-7412; www.ahch.org, provides needed comprehensive health and health-related services which help people remain safely and independently in their homes and communities. Volunteer opportunities are plentiful for in-home visiting volunteers and hospice volunteers (training required).

March of Dimes, www.marchofdimes.com. The mission of the March of Dimes is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. The Maine Chapter awards community grants to provide preconception/prenatal education, support and intervention.

ProtectME-Child Health Center, 782-5437, your resource for Preschool: Providing Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education Services for children Birth – Five years old. Big Brothers / Big Sisters: Community and Site-based Mentoring programs for children 6-18. The Parent Place: Parenting education for teens and adolescent parents. www.childhealthcenter.org

Tri-County Mental Health Services, Androscoggin County, 1155 Lisbon Street, Lewiston, 783-9141, 800-787-1155, is an organization committed to providing the people of Maine with excellence in mental health, substance abuse, habilitation and life skills services, respecting consumer rights, personal dignity and maintaining agency financial stability. www.tchms.org

COMMUNITY SERVICES

Advocates for Children, 57 Birch St., Suite 204, Lewiston ME 04240, Mailing address: P.O. Box 3316, Auburn, ME 04212, Phone: 783-3990, Fax: 783-9402, Email: info@advocatesforchildren.net, Web Address: http://www.advocatesforchildren.net/

American Red Cross of Southern Maine, United Valley Office, 1180 Lisbon Street, Lewiston, ME 04240, Phone: 795-4004, Fax: 795-4037, Web Address: http://www.maineredcross.org/index.htm

Community Concepts Inc., 17-19 Market Square, P.O. Box 278, South Paris, ME 04281, Phone: 743-7716, Toll free: 800-866-5588, Fax: 743-6513, Email: info@community-concepts.org, Web Address: http://www.community-concepts.org/

Good Shepherd Food-Bank, Main Warehouse & Administrative Offices, Mailing Address: PO Box 1807, Auburn, Maine 04211-1807, Phone: (207) 782-3554, FAX: (207) 782-9893, Web Address: http://www.gsfb.org/

Androscoggin Home Care & Hospice, Lewiston Office, 15 Strawberry Avenue, P.O. Box 819, Lewiston, Maine 04243-0819, Phone: (207) 777-7740, Fax: (207) 777-7748, Toll-free: (800) 482-7412; Hospice House, 236 Stetson Road, Auburn, Maine 04210, Phone: 333-6300, Fax: (207) 333-6309, Toll-free: (866) 482-7131

The Maine Building Materials Exchange, 102 Lisbon St., Lisbon, ME, Phone 1-636-7670, Email: Info@mainebme.org, Web Address: http://www.mainebme.org/

Maine Music Society, 215 Lisbon St., Lewiston, Maine 04240, Phone: 782-1403, Fax: 782-8192, Web Address: http://www.mainemusicsociety.org/

The Progress Center, 35 Cottage Street, Norway, ME 04268, Phone: 743-8049, Web Address: http://www.progresscentermaine.org/Home.asp

R.E.A.C.H., Rape Education and Crisis Hotline, One East Main Street, Suite Two, P.O. Box 300, S. Paris, ME 04281, 24-hour Support: 1-800-871-7741, Office (207)743-9777, Web Address: http://www.reachmaine.org/

Rockin’ T Equine Rescue, 60 Edgecomb Road, Lisbon Falls, Maine 04252, Phone: 353-6581, Web Address: http://www.rockintequinerescue.com/

SeniorsPlus, 8 Falcon Road, P.O. Box 659, Lewiston, ME 04243-0659, Phone: 1-800-427-1241; 795-4010; TTY: 795-7232; Fax: 795-4009, Email: info@seniorsplus.org, Web Address: www.seniorsplus.org

LIBRARIES

The region’s public library systems offer, in addition to book borrowing, movies, electronic books, historical and genealogical materials, music, magazines, newspapers, children and teen programs, and much more.

Bridgton Public Library

1 Church St.

Bridgton, ME 04009

Phone: 207 647-2472

www.bridgton.lib.me.us

Cary Memorial Library

17 Old Winthrop Road

Wayne, ME 04284

Phone: 207 685-3612

www.cary-memorial.lib.me.us

Maine State Library

64 State House Station

230 State Street

Augusta, ME 04333-0064

Phone: 207-287-5600

www.maine.gov/msl/

POSTAL SERVICE

Bethel, 82 Main St., 824-2668

Bridgton, 6 Elm St., 647-2081

Buckfield, Turner St., 336-2641

Bryant Pond, 1 N. Main St., 665-2827

Canton, 13 Main St., 597-2020

Dixfield, Main St., 562-4931

East Dixfield, 963 US Route 2W, 645-3254

East Wilton, Main St., 645-4542

Farmington, 78A N. Main St., 778-2740

Fryeburg, 91 Main St., 935-2453

Hebron, 339 Paris Rd., 966-2960

Harrison, 5 Front St., 583-4773

Jay, RR 4, 897-4461

Mexico, 5 Riverside Ave., 364-8302

Naples, 693-6340

North Jay, 21 E. Dixfield Rd., 645-2910

Norway, 150 Main St., 743-8341

Oxford, 98 Pleasant St., 539-4484

Paris, Tremont St., 743-7959

Peru, 93 Main St., 562-8896

Rumford, 135 Congress St., 364-8681

Sebago, 222 Sebago Rd., 787-2381

South Paris, 13 Park St., 743-6652

Wayne, 685-9229

West Bethel, 836-2261

West Paris, 238 Main St., 674-2951

Wilton, 454 Main St., 645-2332

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