Maine’s small businesses, particularly restaurants and retail, can face an uphill struggle balancing the overhead costs of running a brick and mortar store with competition from national chains and online retailers. More than heart, blood, sweat and tears, it takes community buy-in or, rather, community buying. Here on Mount Desert Island, seasonal ice cream and …
When political polar opposites such as U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) align on the same side, we notice. The issue that draws them close to rapture is hemp. The upheaval resulting from the disjointed legalization of hemp as an industrial agricultural crop in Maine has put farmers squarely in the …
“No one talks to each other anymore” has become a common refrain in the years since the smartphone became ubiquitous. In line at the grocery store or post office, riding a bus and even at home or riding in a car with family, people are likely to be looking at a smartphone screen. “You never …
As we gather around the family table this Thanksgiving holiday and count our blessings, there is one more thing we can be grateful for — fewer veterans are experiencing homelessness. The number of homeless veterans in Maine dropped 3 percent between 2018 and 2019. It was a small change, but in the right direction. A …
When it comes to determining whether Freshwater Stone’s proposed operations in Hall Quarry meet the requirements in the town’s quarrying licensing ordinance regarding noise, members of the Mount Desert Planning Board are in a tight spot. The board resumed consideration in August of Freshwater’s application for a quarrying license. The board had decided in 2017 …
In the circus of modern-day politics, the middle ground has shrunk to the width of a tightrope. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins — long heralded as a moderate willing to reach across the aisle — continues to try to walk that line despite drawing criticism from all sides. To left-leaning critics, Collins, the sole New England …
“Come, ye thankful people, come,” goes the old hymn. “Raise the song of harvest home. All is safely gathered in ere the winter storms begin.” November is the beginning of the season of winter holidays, whose celebrations revolve around food. It’s also the abrupt end of seasonal employment for many. The first winter storms and …
Governor Janet Mills recently announced AARP Maine has designated the Pine Tree State as Age-Friendly because her administration committed to building livable communities “to make Maine a better place to live across generations.” Let’s help the state and AARP Maine move beyond kitschy designations by finding ways to bolster savings of working Mainers. A sufficient …
Careers are launched at Hancock County Technical Center. In an unassuming building on Boggy Brook Road in Ellsworth, students learn to run a commercial kitchen, repair cars, troubleshoot diesel engines, care for patients as certified nursing assistants and perform biomedical research. Students run their own restaurant and preschool, produce videos and review the fundamentals of …
The Hancock County Jail in Ellsworth is one of 15 county jails in Maine. That’s one for every county, except Sagadahoc and Lincoln, which share the Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset. Each jail has its own unique history and set of needs. But there is one thing they have in common — though some …
