Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 2000

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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B4 Friday, February 18, 2022, Bangor Daily News
BILL TROTTER | BDN
The town of Bar Harbor will demolish an old rampway building, which has been de-
scribed as an eyesore, at the ferry terminal before The Cat ferry resumes operating
from Bar Harbor this spring.
run between $17 million
and $21 million.
What sort of final de-
sign the town will pursue,
and how it will pay for the
project has not been de-
cided. It will likely take a
few years before it goes to
a town vote for approval.
But councilors were told
this week the town al-
ready has enough money
in
its
capital
improve-
ment budget that it can
use to cover the anticipat-
ed cost of roughly $200,000
to remove the old pedes-
trian ramp building and
loading bridges.
“They’re eyesores down
there,”
council
member
Joe Minutolo said of the
structures on the pier. “I
am sure there are things
blowing off of them in big
winds.”
The
removal
of
the
building
and
loading
bridges will at least slight-
ly improve the pier’s ap-
pearance, and will help re-
duce the load borne by the
pier’s
pilings,
officials
said.
Mark Wilson, an official
with Bay Ferries, told the
council that when the town
moves ahead with demol-
ishing and rebuilding the
rest of the old pier, the
company will be willing to
consider paying some of
the costs of that project.
Pier
Continued from Page B1
Sebago ice fishing derby returns
with rule to discourage dumping
BY PETE WARNER
BDN STAFF
The
Sebago Lake Ice
Fishing Derby kicks off
this weekend with an esti-
mated $15,000 in cash and
prizes up for grabs.
This marks the 21st year
for the event, sponsored by
the Sebago Lake Rotary,
which also includes a con-
current derby that encom-
passes all bodies of water
open to ice fishing in Cum-
berland County.
At Sebago, Maine’s sec-
ond
largest
lake,
that
means a chance for 1,000
expected anglers to pursue
a large population of lake
trout
(togue),
including
some trophy-size fish.
The derby returns with a
rule change this year, after
more than 100 fish were
discarded on the ice in
2021. The new initiative
will incentivize fishermen
to keep their fish — even if
they aren’t winning catch-
es — to both reduce the
number of togue and north-
ern pike in Sebago and pro-
vide food for the communi-
ty.
The Sebago derby is an
important opportunity to
reduce the population of
togue and northern pike,
the latter of which are
flourishing after being ille-
gally introduced into the
lake almost 20 years ago.
“Our goal is to reduce
the lake trout population,”
said regional biologist Jim
Pellerin, who estimates the
total
annual
harvest
of
togue
at
Sebago
ranges
from 3,000 to 6,000 fish.
If the harvest doesn’t
match the natural repro-
duction of the lake trout,
the population increases.
“I think last year the big
derby harvested a little
over 2,000 fish,” Pellerin
said. “That’s a fairly large
component of that overall
harvest.”
The
Sebago
Lake
Ice
Fishing Derby was origi-
nally
a
product
of
the
Maine Department of In-
land Fisheries and Wildlife
desire to thin the lake trout
population.
The
species’
expansion hinders the de-
velopment
of
the
land-
locked salmon for which
the lake is renowned.
To
meet
management
goals, DIF&W and derby of-
ficials are taking a new ap-
proach.
Most ice fishing derbies
pay out cash and prizes to
the three heaviest fish in
each species or group of
species. As a result, anglers
have
traditionally
kept
only the largest fish to
enter in the competition.
At Sebago, that means
the smaller lake trout and
invasive pike biologists are
trying to remove are often
put back into the water.
“The problem was that
with social media people
would cull a lot of their
fish,” Pellerin said. “They
would know what’s on the
leaderboard
and
they
would just release all of
their fish that are not going
to win, if that was the prize
structure.”
This year, the derby will
continue to pay out for the
three largest fish in each
category. However, a new
initiative will encourage
anglers to register more
lake trout, pike, pickerel
and perch in return for
door prizes.
“They get a ticket for
each fish that they bring in
and so the more fish they
bring in, the better their
chances of winning,” said
Cyndy Bell, the public rela-
tions chair for the Sebago
Lake
Rotary.
“We
have
hundreds of door prizes
that have been donated, so
we’re really excited that we
have the support of the
community
again
this
year.”
Pellerin hopes the new
wrinkle will encourage an-
glers to harvest many more
togue under 26 inches, for
which there is no daily bag
limit at Sebago, and take
out a bunch of pike.
If each fish caught has
value, fewer are likely to go
to waste.
During the 2021 Sebago
derby, a large number of
lake trout wound up dis-
carded on the ice. Although
DIF&W later suggested the
fish had been gathered up
from across the lake and
planted in one spot, the
wasted
togue
generated
outrage.
The new rules should cut
back on such behavior, and
the Rotary is continuing
efforts to provide fish for
the community. The Rota-
ry collects any unwanted
derby fish and takes them
to Nova Seafood in Port-
land for processing.
“Typically it’s made into
fish
chowder
at
Preble
Street [Resource Center],”
Bell said of the entity that
serves people in Portland
who
are
experiencing
homelessness.
The recent weather has
derby organizers keeping a
close watch on ice condi-
tions at Sebago, where the
largest section of the lake,
the big bay, has not frozen
over
again
this
winter.
Now,
warmer
tempera-
tures and expected rain
could further erode ice on
even those areas of the lake
that have allowed for fish-
ing and snowmobiling traf-
fic the last few weeks.
“We’re just hopeful that
we can get some fishermen
out
there
safely,”
said
Cyndy Bell, the public rela-
tions chair for the Sebago
Lake Rotary.
Proceeds
from
this
year’s derby will benefit
the 13 Feed the Need food
pantries
in
the
Sebago
Lake region.
Fish from the Sebago
derby have accounted for
7,128 meals at the shelter
during the last 20 years,
Webb said.
All told, the Sebago Ro-
tary also has donated more
than $1 million in support
to worthy causes across the
region.
For more information
and ice condition updates
for the 2022 Sebago Lake
Ice Fishing Derby, visit the
event’s website.
COURTESY OF KURT CHRISTENSEN
Dead lake trout lay on the ice at Sebago Lake in the
wake of the 2021 ice fishing derby. A new incentive this
year will give anglers a shot at raffle prizes for each fish
registered.
Millinocket’s Dollar
Tree store is closing
BY LIA RUSSELL
BDN STAFF
One of the main tenants
in a Millinocket shopping
plaza that sold last year for
double its assessed value
will close this spring.
The Dollar Tree store on
Central Street in Milli-
nocket
will
close
nine
months after the shopping
plaza where it’s located,
the
Northern
Shopping
Plaza, sold to a New Hamp-
shire company hoping to
revitalize retail in the for-
mer mill town.
The store is scheduled
to close in mid-April, said
Kayleigh
Campbell,
a
spokesperson
for
Dollar
Tree Inc., which owns both
the Dollar Tree and Fami-
ly Dollar chains.
Campbell
declined
to
specify why the Millinock-
et store was closing, but
said Dollar Tree occasion-
ally closes stores due to
myriad reasons such as
rent increases, property
sales and lease termina-
tions.
The dollar store closure
news comes three months
after Dollar Tree closed its
Madawaska store. The dis-
count retailer also oper-
ates a Family Dollar store
nearby at 781 Central St. in
Millinocket. Campbell did
not respond to a question
about the future of that
store.
Uri Pe’er, the owner of
Northeast
Living
LLC,
which owns the Northern
Shopping Plaza, declined
to comment and said Dol-
lar Tree had instructed
him not to discuss the clo-
sure.
Pe’er bought the mall
last July for $1.6 million,
more than twice its as-
sessed value of $738,000.
He said he was drawn to
the property because of its
proximity to Baxter State
Park and people moving to
the Katahdin region.
The plaza is among Mil-
linocket’s top 10 property
tax payers, according to a
review of the town’s as-
sessment records. Other
tenants
include
Tractor
Supply
and
Millinocket
House of Pizza.
Millinocket has striven
to
rebuild
its
economy
after the Great Northern
Paper mill closed in 2008,
draining the town of hun-
dreds of jobs. Local non-
profit
Our
Katahdin
bought the mill site in 2017
and has slowly started at-
tracting businesses — in-
cluding a data center and
an aquatic energy testing
site — to the property.
Dollar Tree reported in
November
that
it
had
made $6.42 billion in sales
between July and Septem-
ber last year, up from $6.18
billion during the same pe-
riod the year before. That
announcement came the
same day the retailer an-
nounced
that
it
would
raise most of its product
prices to $1.25 from $1.00.
Dollar stores have be-
come
ubiquitous
in
rural
and small towns,
where its business model
has flourished due to its
reliance on low-wage labor
and cheap goods.
Mills
outlines
plan for
surplus
CBS 13
WESTBROOK
—
Gov.
Janet Mills
has unveiled
her plan for the budget sur-
plus that’s worth $822 mil-
lion.
The
plan
would
in-
clude a $20 million fund for
free
community
college
and funding for free school
meals for all students.
If approved, $27 million
will go toward
funding
free breakfasts and lunches
for
students
at
public
schools like
in
West-
brook.
That’s on
top
of
$10
million
al-
ready
set
aside
by
state
law-
makers.
“We’re re-
ally leading the nation in
addressing childhood food
insecurity
and
making
sure that kids have what
they need so that they can
grow and thrive,” Anna
Korsen of Full Plates, Full
Potential said.
Superintendent
Jake
Langlais said the money
from the state would make
sure the program is paid
for.
“It’s been a real chal-
lenge these past few years
because we don’t gather
the data like we used to as
far as free and reduced
lunch programs go,” Lan-
glais said. “So it’s hard to
get people’s home income
data the way that schools
once did.”
Korsen said there is one
more step she’d like to see
the governor take.
“Now that we have made
sure that all kids get a
healthy school meal at no
cost, the next step is to
make sure all kids have
enough time to eat their
school meal,” Korsen said.
The program is working
with the state to lengthen
lunch times from 20 min-
utes to 30, according to
Korsen.
The idea itself doesn’t
worry Langlais, however
there
are
concerns
on
whether
there
will
be
enough
support
for
the
plan to follow through.
“I think these are all
very good things, I just
want to make sure that we
can sustain them and that
we are building smart,”
Langlais said.
Mills’ budget still needs
the stamp of approval, and
if it passes, it’ll go into ef-
fect on July 1.
Delegation calls for warship
named after Medal of Honor
recipient Gary Gordon
BY SAWYER LOFTUS
BDN STAFF
Maine’s top elected offi-
cials want a new, Maine-
made
Navy
destroyer
named after a Lincoln man
whose heroism in the 1993
Battle of Mogadishu was
depicted in the book and
movie
“Black
Hawk
Down.”
The state’s entire con-
gressional delegation and
Gov. Janet Mills sent a let-
ter Monday
to Secretary
of the Navy
Carlos
Del
Toro asking
him to name
a new Navy
w a r s h i p
built at Bath
Iron Works
after
U.S.
Army Master Sgt. Gary
Gordon, a Lincoln native
and Medal of Honor recipi-
ent who was killed in ac-
tion in Somalia rescuing
the crew of a downed heli-
copter.
Gordon
was
a
Delta
Force sniper during Opera-
tion Gothic Serpent, which
culminated in the Battle of
Mogadishu, the battle in
which Gordon lost his life.
The battle was cinemati-
cally recreated in the early
2000s movie “Black Hawk
Down.” He is portrayed by
actor
Nikolaj
Coster-
Waldau,
of
“Game
of
Thrones” fame.
During the battle, Gor-
don urged his superiors to
let him go and protect the
crew of a downed Black
Hawk helicopter from a
mob that was set to destroy
the helicopter and its crew.
He and another Delta Force
sniper, Sgt. 1st Class Randy
Shughart, were sent in to
protect the helicopter and
the crew.
Shughart
and
Gordon
alone pulled the crew from
the helicopter and defend-
ed their position until they
ran out of ammunition.
Both Gordon and Shughart
were killed defending the
helicopter and its crew.
In their letter to the
Navy, Maine’s top elected
officials — Sens. Susan Col-
lins and Angus King, U.S.
Reps. Chellie Pingree and
Jared Golden, as well as
Mills — said the warfight-
ing capabilities of a Navy
destroyer would best repre-
sent Gordon’s legacy and
remind the ship’s crew of
his heroism.
“With such a namesake,
there is no doubt the crew
of the ship would serve
with the same pride, perse-
verance, and bravery as
MSG Gordon,” the letter
states.
A memorial to Gordon
was unveiled in Lincoln
last August, immortalizing
Gordon in his hometown.
Delta
Force,
officially
known as 1st Special Forc-
es
Operational
Detach-
ment-Delta, is part of the
U.S. military’s special forc-
es, a distinguished group of
warfighters
known
for
their advanced skills.
The Battle of Mogadishu
started Oct. 3, 1993, with
U.S. forces fighting with a
Somali warlord’s soldiers.
During the battle, two U.S.
helicopters
were
shot
down,
and
one
of
the
crashed choppers was iso-
lated
from
U.S.
forces,
which Gordon volunteered
to go in and defend.
In all, 19 U.S. soldiers
were killed during the two-
day battle.
Gordon
Watch the video
bangordailynews.com
Mills
Funeral home worker
who stole wedding ring
gets three months in jail
BY CHRISTOPHER BURNS
BDN STAFF
A Sanford man accused
of stealing a wedding ring
from
a
102-year-old
woman after her death has
been sentenced.
Stuart Weston, 51, was
sentenced in York County
Superior Court in Alfred
on Friday to serve three
months in jail, according to
the
Saco
Police
Depart-
ment.
Weston, who worked for
Autumn
Green
Funeral
Home in Alfred, was sent to
pick up the body of Laura
Wood at a Saco nursing
home after her death on
Jan. 21, 2021.
Her family learned that
the ring — three rings
fused together with an ap-
praised value of $4,000 —
and other items were miss-
ing a couple days later
when they went to retrieve
Wood’s belongings at the
funeral home.
The theft was reported to
the
Saco
Police
Depart-
ment, and the ring was
later found at a South Port-
land
coin
and
jewelry
buyer, where staff identi-
fied Weston after a review
of records and video sur-
veillance.
Wood’s granddaughter,
Emily Coyne, told the Port-
land Press Herald last year
the ring was a family heir-
loom that symbolized her
grandmother’s nearly 80-
year marriage.
Autumn Green Funeral
Home told the newspaper
that it terminated Weston’s
employment after learning
of the theft.