Coastal Maine boatyard gets $1.5M to expand further into new technology

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 8, 2026

Brooklin Boat Yard, one of Hancock County’s larger employers, has grown in recent decades from a small yard in a town defined by wooden boatbuilding to a 65-person operation building custom high-end vessels and servicing about 160 more. Along the way, it has developed unique approaches to mixing wood and composite materials along with 3D printing. The boatyard is set to continue in that direction with a $1.5 million state investment aimed at adding more room for working with and developing such technology, along with expanded space for boat projects.

Letter: Disgusted by crow hunting column

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 7, 2026

I read with dismay the article “Why crow hunting is more fun than you think,” published in Feb. 28-March 1 weekend paper. Hunting for and killing these amazing and intelligent birds for no other reason than “for fun” is beyond disturbing, showing no respect for another being’s life. And what do you do with the bodies that are contaminated with lead shot? Leave them for other animals to eat and be poisoned? ~ Rosa Livonius, Etna

3 takeaways from governor candidates at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 7, 2026

A dozen candidates for Maine governor met Saturday at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum to discuss the latest trends and topics impacting the state’s commercial fishing industry. All six of the candidates that had to answer a question about whether they support a 2022 federal spending provision that delayed new whale-related restrictions on lobstering gear said they do and would advocate for an extension. “Federal restrictions on fishing gear cannot be built on the backs of Maine fishermen,” said Rick Bennett, an independent. Jim Libby, a Republican, said, “We’re asking people to change what they’re doing and use technology that is not proven. Democrat Shenna Bellows said she would work on improving the collective buying power of fishermen to make insurance more accessible, negotiate down drug prices and invest in rural health infrastructure. Democrat Nirav Shah called for investments in workforce housing, zoning reforms and said the state could explore a “deeded access or land trust model” to ensure housing access in waterfront communities. Candidates from both parties stressed that people who work on Maine’s coast should not be priced out of living there.

Opinion: It’s time we scrutinize the effects of tour buses on Kennebunkport

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 7, 2026

When Kennebunkport village center was laid out more than 300 years ago, no one anticipated the need to allow passage for large commercial vehicles. Our infrastructure cannot be expanded. The mass arrival of visitors via motorcoach is different than the ebb and flow of people who circulate to and from Dock Square via car or on foot. It is time for Kennebunk and Kennebunkport to begin a serious conversation about the capacity of our river villages to welcome hundreds of visitors at once within the boundaries of our limited business districts without destroying the qualities that make people want to come here in the first place. ~ Susan Graham, Kennebunkport

Opinion: Sea farming preserves Maine’s marine heritage. Stop squeezing it out.

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 7, 2026

Economist Christian Brayden of the Maine Aquaculture Association estimates that aquaculture leases in Maine do not typically sustain themselves financially until they grow to over five acres. In South Bristol an ordinance on aquaculture leases over one-half of an acre is up for a vote, and the residents will decide if the town moves forward with what is effectively an aquaculture ban. Nearby, Cushing is facing a similar vote on March 16. If the ordinances pass, profitable aquaculture businesses in these towns could end, affecting dozens of livelihoods and families. The Maine Farmed Seafood Coalition was founded in 2025 to act as a collective voice that tells the stories of real Maine sea farmers like Smokey and Sarah and to share information about the benefits of aquaculture to Maine. We firmly believe that supporting sea farmers is a path toward a more sustainable future for our working waterfront communities and Maine’s marine economy and culture. ~ Sebastian Belle and Andrea Cianchette Maker, Maine Farmed Seafood Coalition

Letter: Portland’s Bayside parcels could transform city

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 7, 2026

Portland’s city-owned Bayside parcels offer a rare chance to demonstrate how a neighborhood can support residents across the full housing life cycle. Instead of viewing these parcels as discrete development sites, the city and development partners could approach them as a cohesive neighborhood, where renters, first-time buyers, families, downsizers and seniors can all find appropriate housing within a livable, mixed-use environment supported by civic space and local commerce. Publicly owned land in a central neighborhood is an uncommon civic asset. If approached with intention and imagination, Bayside could become a visible example of how communities can build housing that works not just for today’s residents, but for the lives they will lead here over time. ~ Mike Carey, Portland

Portland Foreside Development price tag rises above $1B

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 7, 2026

Ten years in, the projected cost of redeveloping Portland’s prime eastern waterfront has pushed well past $1 billion since the city approved a master development plan for the former industrial site in 2016. In that time, the developers have completed a $27 million yacht-ready marina alongside the 10-acre site. They also spent $100 million to build a four-story Sun Life office building and move a historic factory storehouse brick by brick to a spot closer to the waterfront, where it now houses the restaurant Twelve. This spring, the third phase of the project is set to ramp up. It would add a 130-room hotel with 38 residences, a 132-unit condominium building and a 200-apartment complex, including 20 units that would be affordable under the city’s inclusionary zoning rules. The work is expected to be finished by 2029 or early 2030,

Opinion: Agriculture bond benefits all of Maine

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 7, 2026

Our family farm has been shipping milk since the 1950s. Today, we milk between 75 and 100 cows and raise another 100 heifers and young stock. As my husband and I transition to ownership of the farm, we know we have enormous shoes to fill. I tear up when I think about all that my grandfather and dad have built and overcome to keep this farm going, from what was once a dilapidated homestead in the early 1930s to the working dairy it is today. A proposed $40 million agriculture and forestry bond (LD 2094) would invest in established state programs that farmers rely on for business investments and technical support. These programs were created by the Maine Legislature with bipartisan support, but aren’t funded in the way that they need to be. If this bond passes, farmers like me will be able to apply for grants, loans, and technical assistance so we can grow our businesses. Agriculture is more than a business; it is the backbone of rural communities and a driver of economic development. Please support LD 2094. ~ Holly Noyes, Noyes Family Farm, Albion

Column: This bird ID mistake happens all the time

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 7, 2026

Most bird IDs are easy. There are just a few traps that make them seem difficult. One of the biggest challenges is plumage variation. Males and females often look different from each other. Fledglings look different from their parents. Birds sporting bright spring colors can look very different in their duller autumn plumage. Many birds are also very good at hiding. Some birds make identification difficult by wandering. Perhaps the biggest challenge is presented by species that look very similar. Bird identification can seem difficult because birds don’t always make it easy. ~ Bob Duchesne

Wild animals you’re likely to see in Acadia National Park

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 7, 2026

Owls, deer, sea anemones and loons — wild animals are everywhere in Acadia National Park. As a longtime visitor and hiking guide there, I’ve experienced some amazing wildlife encounters over the years, including a few this winter. Acadia is home to at least 40 species of mammals. While hiking there, I often observe beavers swimming in ponds, gnawing down trees and building lodges. I’ve also come across snowshoe hares, noisy red squirrels, adorable porcupines and playful otters. Deer are everywhere in the park. Visitors to the park often ask rangers and guides about one animal in particular: Maine’s famous moose. Unfortunately, these iconic creatures are rarely spotted in Acadia. While Acadia is home to a small population of bears, they’re rarely seen by visitors because they tend to avoid people and dogs.

Gray prepares to reshape its town center

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 6, 2026

After decades of planning, Gray took a major step toward the implementation of its Village Transformation Project on March 4 by holding an open house event for residents to give feedback on the project, one of the first major milestones in a decade-long process. The project will restructure 2 miles of roadway in downtown Gray in order to reduce congestion, make the roadways safer and more efficient for drivers and pedestrians, and create a modern and efficient route for goods and services to flow through the village intersections.

Opinion: By limiting parking at Cliff House Beach, Cape Elizabeth has sent an unmistakable message

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 6, 2026

The Cape Elizabeth Town Council recently voted to limit access to Cliff House Beach, one of the only free public beaches. First, it banned nonresident parking on Sea View Avenue leading down to the beach, so visitors had to find parking on Shore Road. Now members have voted unanimously to ban parking on Shore Road and the surrounding streets for nonresidents. They did not start with light-up crosswalks, they did not add a speed bump, they did not reduce the speed on this main artery. It is abundantly clear that the council, along with the residents, are using safety as a thinly veiled excuse to privatize one of the few remaining public beaches in Cape Elizabeth. ~ Sebastian Shames, Portland

Select Board members criticize colleague’s Clark Cove advocacy

HARPSWELL ANCHOR • March 6, 2026

Harpswell Select Board Chair Kevin Johnson and member Matt Gilley on Thursday criticized member David Chipman for using his position to advocate against a referendum involving Clark Cove despite his personal ties to nearby property. The referendum asks voters whether Harpswell should enter into a 10-year agreement with the state Bureau of Parks and Lands to manage an 18-acre shorefront parcel at Clark Cove and spend up to $5,000 on public access improvements. Nearby property owners — including Chipman, who said he owns three properties near the site — have strongly opposed the access plan, arguing it would increase traffic, invite trespassing, bring hidden costs to taxpayers and disturb sensitive wildlife habitat. Under Maine law, a municipal official’s vote can be challenged if the official has a direct or indirect financial interest in the outcome, and officials are also expected to avoid the appearance of a conflict through disclosure or abstention.

BLM nominee Steve Pearce says he won't sell public lands. Some are not sure.

UTAH PUBLIC RADIO • March 6, 2026

Senators on the Natural Resources Committee voted along party lines Wednesday morning to advance President Trump's pick to lead the Bureau of Land Management. Steve Pearce, a former Republican congressman from New Mexico, will next need to clear a vote in the full Senate in the coming weeks to be confirmed. Pearce's supporters include energy and grazing groups. A coalition of oil and gas associations praised his nomination. He has faced intense scrutiny from environmentalists. During a hearing last week, Pearce was asked about his previous advocacy for the sale of public lands. He indicated that he would not be in favor of such sales. Pearce has previously opposed national monument designations, advocated for downsizing national monuments, and called for public land sell-offs.

Beautification projects focus of Mt. Blue garden club program

FRANKLIN JOURNAL • March 6, 2026

The Mt. Blue Area Garden Club is inviting businesses and nonprofit organizations across the Mt. Blue region to apply for its second annual community beautification funding program supporting gardening and landscaping projects. The program is open to businesses and nonprofit organizations operating in Farmington, Wilton, Chesterville, New Sharon, New Vineyard, Temple, Starks, Vienna and Weld. Last year’s inaugural award went to the Farmington Public Library, which used the funds to begin a longer-term landscaping project featuring native plants. The club emphasizes environmentally responsible landscaping.

Opinion: Despite lower lobster catch this year, what I’m seeing on the water gives me hope

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 6, 2026

Maine lobstermen caught about 79 million pounds of lobster last year,  less than any year in recent memory. When people see that number, they’ll be tempted to assume the worst for the future of a fishery that’s critical to our state’s economy. But my experience on the water, and the latest science, come to the same conclusion: The fishery that many Maine families and communities have staked our lives on is not slipping away. What gives me real confidence looking ahead is all the small lobsters I’m seeing in my traps. Science is saying the same. The Maine lobster fishery is one of the best managed in the world. It got that way because fishermen bought into the importance of conservation and worked with scientists and regulators over generations to protect it. ~ Sonny Beal, Jonesport-Beals

Maine’s lobster catch dropped for the 4th straight year

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 6, 2026

Maine lobstermen saw their haul fall again in 2025 according to new data that the Maine Department of Marine Resources released Friday morning. Lobstermen hauled about 78.8 million pounds of the crustacean to the docks last year, down from 110.7 million in 2021. The catch has fallen each year since 2021.

Maine’s lobster haul hits 17-year low

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 6, 2026

Maine lobstermen landed the smallest harvest in nearly two decades in 2025, signaling a sharp post-boom reality for the state’s iconic fishery. Lobstermen landed almost 79 million pounds last year, a 10% drop from the 87 million pounds harvested in 2024, and a staggering 40.5% fall from the all-time peak of 132.6 million pounds in 2016. It is the first time landings dipped below 80 million pounds since 2008.

Amid growing concern over PFAS contamination, Maine lawmakers back plan to test and treat wells

MAINE MORNING STAR • March 6, 2026

Maine lawmakers have backed a plan to fund the testing and clean up of private wells contaminated with toxic forever chemicals, which have threatened drinking water through spills, the spreading of tainted sewage sludge and other applications. LD 2115 seeks to establish the Well Contamination Response Fund for private drinking water wells impacted by perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, otherwise known as PFAS. The legislation passed both chambers with bipartisan votes, though still faces enactment votes and must vie for funding. The bill was part of a slate of legislation introduced after about 1,500 gallons of PFAS-laden firefighting foam was unintentionally discharged in a Brunswick airplane hangar in August 2023.

Opinion: Janet Mills is focused on tribal sovereignty — just not in the way you think

PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 6, 2026

The 1980 Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act took away two-thirds of the state of Maine from the Wabanaki tribal nations. It also placed Maine in a position to veto much of what Wabanaki peoples attempt to do as sovereign Indigenous nations. Within that history of colonial dehumanization of American Indian peoples, Wabanaki tribal nations — Maliseet, Mi’kmaq, Penobscot and Passamaquoddy — are the only federally recognized tribes in the United States who are forced to request that a state (i.e., Maine) grant them permission to do business within their tribal nations. Janet Mills is part of a long history of Maine stripping Wabanaki nations of their authorities to determine what is best for their lands and peoples. ~ David Shane Lowry, assistant professor of anthropology at USM and a citizen of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina