PORTLAND — The Portland City Council decided on Monday night to sell about two-thirds of the publicly owned Congress Square Park to private developers, who wish to use the space to expand on the former Eastland Park Hotel. The deal proposal, which was amended several times during more than two hours of council deliberation Monday […]
Portland
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Portland considers ban on plastic foam products
PORTLAND (AP) — The Portland City Council is considering a proposal to ban the use of plastic foam products at the city’s foodservice establishments. The proposal that will be taken up Monday also would prohibit the retail sale of polystyrene foodservice products such as cups, plates and food containers. A working group appointed by the […]
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Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Marijuana legalization supporters in Portland call campaign in city a preview of statewide push
PORTLAND — Supporters of a local referendum to legalize recreational use of marijuana in Maine’s largest city launched their official campaign Thursday, saying Portland can pave the way for a statewide end to prohibition of the drug like Denver did for Colorado in 2005. Colorado’s largest city legalized possession of usable amounts of pot eight […]
Posted inConnections
Church briefs
Rev. Sallies will lead service PARIS — The Rev. Robert Sallies will lead the worship service at the First Universalist Church on Pine Street on Sept. 15. The 10 a.m. service welcomes all and is followed by coffee, conversation and fellowship. Music is under the direction of Donnal Hurd and Sunday School is under the […]
Posted inLocal Sports
Pirates, CCCC meet to discuss lease stalemate
PORTLAND — Attorneys representing the Cumberland County Civic Center and Portland Pirates met in court for nearly eight hours on Wednesday to see if they could reach a settlement in a lease dispute over the right to play in the downtown arena. Both sides gathered Wednesday morning behind closed doors, each spending time in the […]
Posted inLocal & State
Portland woman’s photography wins her a trip for 6 to Ireland
PORTLAND — When tourists around the world consider visiting Ireland, many of the warm, inviting and picturesque photographs they’ll see of the country will be the work of Portland’s Emily Delamater. The photographer’s road to Dublin — and a central place in Ireland’s tourism promotions — started in March when she and her family members […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Panhandling ordinance advances in Lewiston
LEWISTON — A rewritten panhandling ordinance makes a clearer distinction about what can happen on city streets and what can happen on sidewalks. Councilors approved a draft of an ordinance on first reading on Sept. 3, designed to crack down on aggressive panhandlers as well as those blocking traffic. On Tuesday, they reviewed a new […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Portland educator named Teacher of the Year
PORTLAND (AP) — An educator at Portland’s King Middle School has been named the Maine’s Teacher of the Year. Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen presented the award to English teacher Karen MacDonald during a surprise assembly Tuesday at the most ethnically and economically diverse middle school in the state. Bowen said the award celebrates classroom leaders […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Portland council delays decision on Congress Square park; opponents vow to outbid developer
PORTLAND — There was great anticipation on Monday for a decision by the Portland City Council of whether to sell about two-thirds of downtown Congress Square park for an adjacent hotel development. Instead, after three and a half hours of impassioned public testimony, and a brief break when Mayor Michael Brennan asked for police to […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Portland ‘alien abduction’ conference discusses stories, truth of close encounters
PORTLAND — It had all the trappings of a typical conference — books, bumper stickers, name tags and free coffee. But the 80 or so people that filled the Clarion Hotel in Portland on Saturday had one thing in common that’s uncommon: Alien abductions. The Experiencers Speak conference held in Maine for the second year […]