Bangor Daily News

Houlton Embraces Three Returning Soldiers Home From Kuwait Duty, Troops Get 15-Mile Parade

HOULTON - They're coming home. Word traveled all around town in just about two hours Tuesday afternoon, so scores of residents, business owners and emergency responders worked together to arrange a celebration for three area soldiers returning from active duty in Kuwait.

Chancellor Questioned at Umpi

PRESQUE ISLE - There were more questions than answers Wednesday at the first of two daylong Aroostook County forums on the University of Maine System draft strategic plan which proposes, among other things, to merge the universities at Presque Isle, Fort Kent and Machias into one University of Northern Maine with three separate campuses. UMS Chancellor Joseph Westphal repeatedly told students, faculty, administration, staff and residents that answers to specific questions will come during dis...

Schools Eye Gains of Sharing Programs Requests for Advice Filtering Into Doe

AUGUSTA - Aiming to save money and provide better quality education, more and more schools are looking to the state to help them put regionalization and consolidation plans into place, Deputy Commissioner Patrick Phillips said recently. "There's been a real flurry of people requesting guidance from the department," he told the State Board of Education.

Bangor's Dogcatcher Never Bored

When you've been in the animal-control business as long as Pat Pinkham has, you learn to expect the unexpected when you set out for work each day. "Not much surprises me anymore," said Pinkham, who has been Bangor's sole animal-control officer for the last 21 years. "You don't get bored because you never know what the next call will be."

Mainers to March for Abortion Rights

BANGOR - More than a thousand Mainers are expected in Washington, D.C., this weekend to protest the Bush administration's conservative agenda on reproductive rights. State organizers say all seats are filled on at least nine chartered buses bringing Maine residents to the March for Women's Lives, scheduled for this Sunday on the National Mall. Many others will carpool or fly to the capital for the event, according to organizers.

Milestones

CORINTH - Alice Page of Corinth was among 47 women heart patients who completed the first-ever Advocacy Institute, held March 27-31 in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease. Page and the other women heart disease patients learned about the public policy development process, working within coalitions, telling their personal stories, and recent developments in Medicaid and Medicare.

G-P Gives Paper Products to Nonprofits

BANGOR - Georgia-Pacific Corp. handed out thousands of cases of paper products to nonprofit organizations on Wednesday. The mill recently came into an overabundance of toilet paper and napkin products, G-P administration manager Kelli Manigault said Wednesday.

Study Needed to Protect Bia Pre-Clearance Status

BANGOR - City councilors meeting as the transportation and infrastructure committee decided Tuesday to recommend that the full council consider forming a special committee to study competition issues facing Bangor International Airport. At issue are pre-clearance services. BIA is one of a select group of airports authorized to provide pre-clearance services, which allow passengers in other countries to clear U.S. Customs and U.S. Immigration before flying into the United States, according to ...

Military News

Volunteers Sought to Help with Annual Cleanup of Penjajawoc Marsh, Stream

BANGOR - The Fields Pond Audubon Center and Bangor Area Residents for Responsible Development are teaming up to present the sixth annual spring cleanup of areas along the Penjajawoc Stream. The cleanup, an Earth Week activity, will run from 9 a.m. through 1 p.m. Saturday at several locations, according to Dick Andren of Dixmont, one of its organizers. The event is an opportunity for advocates of the Penjajawoc stream and marsh to put action behind their words.

Eddington, Clifton Agree On Fire Contract

EDDINGTON - A clause added to the three-year agreement Clifton signed with Eddington for fire coverage Tuesday night calls for annual town approval of the contract amount. "They talked it over and added a clause," Janice Tutt, Clifton administrative assistant, said Wednesday. "They signed it with the stipulation that it needs the town's approval."

Newport Oks Industrial Park Lot Sale to Local Builder

NEWPORT - After a brief executive session to negotiate Wednesday night, the Newport Board of Selectmen approved the sale of a lot in the town's industrial park to a local construction company. Building Construction Services, which employs eight people, expects to add four new employees with the move, explained spokesperson Anissa Brescia.

Enjoy Handbell Concerts in Bangor, Presque Isle

People who enjoy handbell music have two opportunities to hear the Auburn Methodist Ringers and 4 Park Avenue, a handbell quartet, both from United Methodist Church of Auburn. The program is directed by Presque Isle native William Buzza.

Katahdin Area School Merger Plan Rejected Committee Votes Down Bill to Create Alliance for Millinocket, Union 113

AUGUSTA - A proposal to merge the Millinocket School Department with School Union 113, which is composed of East Millinocket and Medway, suffered defeat last week at the hands of the Legislature's Joint Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs. During an April 13 work session, the committee voted 9-0 "ought not to pass" for LD 1956, the bill that would have created a School Leadership District covering the three communities.

Muddy Rudder Expands to Offer Meeting Space

BREWER - Call after call for space to hold large gatherings persuaded Muddy Rudder owners to finish renovating the restaurant's second floor, and could mean at least 25 new jobs. The restaurant opened last year. The space, which can accommodate groups from 40 to 120 people, has large windows that overlook the Penobscot River and will be open to the public after May 12.

Dot Readies Nest for Falcons' Return to Bridge

PROSPECT - In its own version of "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" the Maine Department of Transportation is making plans to play host to two birds. In preparation for the expected return of a breeding pair of peregrine falcons that last year established a nest under the deck of the Waldo-Hancock Bridge, the department - working with the state's Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife - has set up a nest box on the bridge's western tower below the travel way.

Heroin Charges May Be Dropped

BANGOR - Drug charges against a former Bangor man are expected to be dismissed now that Michael "Gizmo" Melendez is serving a life sentence in Pennsylvania for murdering his mother in a fight over drugs. Assistant Attorney General Bill Savage said Wednesday he has filed a motion seeking to dismiss the possession of heroin charge.

Orland Fire Likely Lit by Permitted Burn

ORLAND - A fire that burned about four acres on Mason Mountain Sunday likely started from sparks from a nearby permitted burn, the town's fire chief said. A brand from that fire would have had to travel about 150 yards, John Gray said Wednesday, but the wind was blowing in the right direction.

Hancock County to Discuss Airport Security

ELLSWORTH - Hancock County officials are hoping to arrange a meeting of federal, state, and county law enforcement officers to discuss ongoing security concerns at the county's airport in Trenton. Ralph Pinkham, director of the county's emergency management agency, and Hancock County Airport Manager Bob Cossette met briefly Monday with Hancock County Commissioners to discuss security at the Trenton facility.

Courts

Ellsworth District Court Cases Feb. 24-April 15, 2004