RUMFORD — Many westbound drivers negotiating Route 2 at the intersection with Lincoln Avenue on Tuesday couldn’t avoid a cluster of potholes. But between gaps in traffic, drivers swung into the opposite lane to avoid the mess, trying to save nasty yanks on their shock absorbers and suspensions, and scrapes on their undercarriages. Maine’s pothole […]
Maine
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine corrections boss Ponte tapped to lead New York City jails
NEW YORK — Mayor Bill de Blasio has named the head of Maine’s corrections department to head New York City’s jails. Joseph Ponte was presented as the new commissioner of the nation’s second largest jails system at a City Hall press conference Tuesday. “Every resident of this city deserves to be treated with dignity and […]
advertisement
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Smelt fishing is banned in parts of Maine
HALLOWELL (AP) — Traditional Maine smelt fishing is banned in the lower half of the state this spring from Stonington to the New Hampshire border. Battered and fried, the small fish is a spring staple in Maine. The Department of Marine Resources says in a press release that the closure will protect smelt at a […]
Posted inMaine
LePage wants to add 22 positions to fight drug trafficking in Maine
The Republican governor set combating drug crimes as a high priority during his State of the State address in February. The plan is estimated to cost $3 million. “To me, this is not about money,” LePage said. “This is about our people.” Flanked by law enforcement officers from around the state, LePage again detailed the […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Kittery-Portsmouth bridge getting underwater inspection
PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — Transportation officials are optimistic that a bridge connecting New Hampshire and Maine hasn’t sustained any structural damage after an oil tanker struck a pier supporting the span. Foster’s Daily Democrat reported (http://bit.ly/1ctf9Dt) officials are awaiting the results of an underwater inspection by divers Tuesday of the Memorial Bridge. The 600-foot Seapride […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Lewiston-Auburn could get more school money from state
AUGUSTA – Lewiston schools are expected to get more state money for education next year which could relieve part of the budget shortfall they are facing. According to the Department of Education numbers released Monday, Lewiston would get $2.5 million more next year than this year. Superintendents said they’re being careful about assuming the money […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine gas prices up another 2.4 cents a gallon
AUGUSTA (AP) — The average retail cost of a gallon of gas in Maine is up another 2.4 cents. Price-monitoring website GasBuddy.com reports Monday that the price at the pump has risen to an average of $3.60 per gallon in the past week, 13 cents above the national average. Even though prices in Maine are […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Flood risk in Maine likely to increase in coming weeks
BRUNSWICK — With continued low temperatures and above-average precipitation — likely even through April — experts are warning that Maine’s flood season will be delayed and could prove riskier than usual. The annual late-winter meeting of the Maine River Flow Advisory Commission marks the beginning of Maine’s “flood season.” On Thursday, commission members said the […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Legislature to consider Katz-Saviello proposal to expand Medicaid
AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine’s Democrat-controlled Legislature is poised to vote on a Republican-backed measure to expand Medicaid under the federal health care law. Initial votes on the measure are expected in the Senate as early as Tuesday. Under the bill crafted by Assistant Republican Leader Roger Katz and Sen. Tom Saviello, Maine would also implement […]
Posted inLocal Sports
Bad bow hunting law bagged before harm done
Back in September, under the headline “Sneaky New Law,” I wrote this: If you are a Maine bowhunter or recreational archer, fasten your seat belt! You are not gonna believe this. Among the assortment of new sportsmen-related state laws that got squeezed through under the public radar was LD 540, which, I predict, is destined […]