Fire strikes, again
A nail biter!
A Cottage Street home is destroyed as a blaze starts on the second floor
Inside News Calendar . . . . . 10A-11A
Lake Region sinks Fryeburg Academy on late free throws to advance to quarterfinals
Page 5A
Classifieds . . . . . 9B-10B Country Living . . . 6A-8A
Page 1B
Directory . . . . . . . . . 10B Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 9A Opinions . . . 6B-8B, 12B Police/Court . . . . . 4A-5A Sports . . . . . . . . . 1B-5B Student News . . . . . . . . Games . . . . . . . . . . . 11B
Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 145, No. 7
24 PAGES - 2 Sections
Bridgton, Maine
February 13, 2014
(USPS 065-020)
Weather . . . . . . . . . . . 8B
www.bridgton.com
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Budget talks: LifeFlight funding request tabled By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer A funding request from the LifeFlight Foundation has the Bridgton Budget Committee wondering what is a fair amount for the town to provide? Yes, Bridgton is the home to Bridgton Hospital. And
yes, LifeFlight, which provides helicopter transport in life-threatening injury cases, has made a great many transports to and from that hospital over the years. But is it fair to ask Bridgton taxpayers to subsidize those trips, when only a fraction of those transported are likely Bridgton
residents? In its request sent out in December to all of Maine’s towns and cities, LifeFlight provided a list of transports they’ve provided in each town or city since its inception in 1998. The list showed 687 transports in Bridgton over the past 15 years — one
of the highest numbers in the state. Bangor had the highest number of transports, at 1,184. Also running high numbers were Rockport, Rumford ad Farmington, all hospital towns like Bridgton. LifeFlight did not list a specific amount they were requesting from Bridgton, but
noted that 23 towns in Maine have formerly supported LifeFlight over the years, in amounts ranging from $100 to $2,000. The nonprofit foundation also noted that it is the lowest cost medical air transport carrier in the nation, and that it transports anyone, regardless of their ability to
Naples strikes it rich with acquifers By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — Certified geologist and hydrogeologist Rick Pershken said he felt like he had struck it rich when he found three high-producing wells with quality drinking water in Naples. “It has been a lot of fun, especially when you go threefor-three. Maybe, I should buy a lottery ticket,” he said. Not only did Pershken consider himself lucky to locate excellent aquifers, but also the Town of Naples could benefit from a protected, top-notch source of public drinking water. On Monday, two representatives from the James W. Sewall Company presented to the Naples Board of Selectmen their findings after drilling for water at three test sites. The hydrogeological work took place this past autumn. Two of the potential wells were located at Sebago State Park property accessible off Thompson Point Road; on land owned by Hancock Lumber Company and situated near the Crooked River off Cooks Mills Road; and on privately-owned land that was once used as a sand and gravel pit. The third parcel is located off Songo School Road at the end of Burnham Drive, which turns into Oakwood Circle. If developed as an aquifer, that property, which is owned by Bob Mason, could supply water to the Songo Locks School. The well water at the school has tested positive for radon levels. “We have excellent news for the town. We have found ACQUIFERS, Page A
Manager search to begin
PHOTO OPPPORTUNITY WITH THE GOVERNOR — During his stop at Campfire Grille in West Bridgton, Governor Paul LePage had his photo taken with restaurant staff and owners. Pictured front, left to right: Megan Harmon, Cara Skarbinski amd Michelle Hapgood; back row, RJ Loring, Dwayne Ela, Joel Hapgood, Gov. Paul LePage, Shelly Bridges and Ariel Turpin.
Gov. LePage getting down to business of campaigning By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer Despite the wintery chill in the western Maine air, everything warmed up nicely on the gubernatorial campaign trail. In fact, Gov. Paul LePage received some flirtatious attention from a restaurant patron. “Oh, governor, the TV cameras don’t do you justice,” the woman gushed, and then lowered her voice to the tone of a Mae West one-liner. “In person, you’re a handsome man,” she said. LePage had reservations for lunch at The Campfire Grill on Friday, and he took that opportunity to do some campaigning for his second term run as governor. “It was pretty exciting that we were on his radar,” said Michelle Hapgood, who operates the Campfire Grill. “I really loved how friendly and personable he is. He went around to every table, shaking hands and saying, ‘Hello.’ He is very approachable, and has a great sense of humor,”
ed the baseball and softball programs that practice inside Town Hall to also be given a pass this year, providing those programs also use soft practice balls and that no inside batting is allowed. The board agreed. The actions came as Recreation Director Gary Colello provided the board with estimates for a 50-foot long collapsible batting tunnel and ceiling netting that could be used inside the historic North High Street building, which is also used for Town elections. The full range of protective equipment totals around $10,000, and Colello acknowledged that some of it “might be out of our range.” Town Manager Mitch Berkowitz said he visited a gym with basic protective netting and believed it would provide a good compromise to allow high-impact sports to continue inside the building. The board agreed to include the equipment in this year’s budget and “let it run its course,” according to member Bob McHatton. “We just replaced 22 ceil-
Hapgood said. “All the staff got to meet him, and that was very exciting for them as it was for us,” she said. On Friday, he stopped at several long-established local businesses such as Chalmers Insurance Group, Renys department store, Ricky’s Diner and The Bridgton News. By midday, he headed to the Campfire Grill, where he shook the hands of delighted diners before ordering his lunch. “The governor had the soup and sandwich. We did hear back later that he loved the tomato-parmesan soup,” Hapgood said. “Megan Harmon, his waitress, got a high five from the governor,” she said. Why did the residents of Bridgton get all this attention and fanfare from the politician who has offices in Augusta? “It’s an election year,” LePage said. “Every Friday, I am going to places around the state and GOV. LEPAGE, Page 12A
By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer A new committee will hold its first organizational meeting tonight, Feb. 13, as Bridgton begins the search for a new Town Manager to replace Mitch Berkowitz, who is retiring after eight years. Selectman Chairman Doug Taft on Tuesday said the board has decided not to enlist an outside agency to help them with the search. Instead, the board has created a local Application Review Committee charged with selecting five finalists for the board to interview from all applications submitted for the job. The members of the committee, as selected by the board in executive session, are the following Bridgton residents: Stan Cohen, Medicare advocate; Wayne Rivet, editor and publisher of The Bridgton News; Georgiann Fleck, executive assistant to the town manager; Mike Tarantino, board member of the Bridgton Community Center; Karen Eller, member of the SAD 61 Board of Directors; Steve Stevens, Budget Committee Chairman; and Eileen Rounds, designated broker and manager, Chalmers Realty. Community Development Committee Chairman Chuck Renneker volunteered to also serve on the search committee, but the board decided to stick with the names they’d selected. Taft thanked him for his interest. At tonight’s organizational meeting, which begins at 4 p.m., the committee will select a chairman and decide MANAGER, Page 12A
Board revisits CrossWalk
Batting cages, netting in budget By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Selectmen agreed Tuesday to allow high-impact sports to be practiced inside Town Hall this spring, but are budgeting for netting and batting cages to protect against damage in future seasons. Lacrosse Coach Ryan Vogel and another lacrosse supporter, Dan Harnden, appealed in person to the board to preserve the sport’s practice time, lest the town’s fledgling program fall behind competitively. “By April we’ll be out in the fields,” Harnden said. Now in its fourth year, the lacrosse program started out with around 25–30 children and has since grown to serve 90 children. Harnden said the Bridgton Recreation program works with a lacrosse league in South Portland, and now has a K2 clinic as well. Coach Vogel showed the board the softer version of the lacrosse balls that are used inside to minimize any damage to the Town Hall’s ceiling and walls. Selectman Paul Hoyt want-
pay. At their Jan. 15 meeting, Budget Committee member Bill Vincent said the issue deserves more investigation, and the committee agreed to table the request. Vincent said he suspects many patients transported from Bridgton BUDGET, Page 12A
TRAINER SELECTED — Meghan Hill is the new BOKS trainer for Bridgton Recreation, who will lead students at Stevens Brook Elementary School in an early-morning exercise program. ing tiles in that building” that were damaged by errant balls, McHatton said. “We found baseballs in the ceiling.” Cash calendar Several other recreationrelated issues were discussed Tuesday. The board agreed with a plan by Colello to raise money for rec programs by using a “cash calendar” similar to ones used by school athletic departments. Colello said the calendar has the potential to raise $9,000 for the lacrosse TRAINER, Page 12A
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — Just to set the record straight: Nobody said they wanted to remove the CrossWalk Community Outreach food pantry program from the Naples Town Office. Still, involved parties agree that down the road, the pantry may outgrow the space and find one more suitable than the town gymnasium. The Naples Board of Selectmen said that the biggest concern has been safety issues because of parked vehicles on the road and extra pedestrian traffic during the food pantry hours. However, that problem has been curbed since late October, when the food pantry switched its hours of operation to a later time, from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. to 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. The food pantry is held every other Monday — which typically averages out to twice a month. The town office closes at noon on Mondays, which opens up some parking spaces in the early afternoon. Lately, there have been no more complaints about park-
ing spaces or people loitering, according to Selectman Robert Caron II. Caron reported to the board about a meeting he had attended with CrossWalk President Nancy Vose, and Portland-based workers involved with distributions to food pantries in rural areas. According to Caron, the group met to review the time change, to see how many complaints, and how volunteers and participants in the program adjusted to the time change. But more importantly to discuss “the long-term goal of finding a place that is larger, and more safe,” Caron said. Future fundraisers and potential grants were on the table during that meeting. The group had been brainstorming ideas to address the
need for a larger space that provided more parking. CrossWalk had been talking with the owner of a large business building off Route 11 that was formerly Shakers. The landlord had said the space could be leased for $1,000 a month, according to Vose. The board did not support the concept of the town paying rent for use of a public space. Right now, “that timeframe is working. CrossWalk is doing a fabulous job,” said Selectman Christine Powers. “We cannot afford to rent out public space,” Powers said. Selectman Rick Paraschak echoed her sentiment. “I would not vote for the town to pay for renting the CROSSWALK, Page A
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