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Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 150, No. 37
16 PAGES - 2 Sections
Bridgton, Maine
September 10, 2020
www.bridgton.com
(USPS 065-020)
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‘Bigger problem than 1 establishment’ Joint effort needed to reduce town’s OUI count
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — Two experts said the number of OUIs that could be traced to people drinking at Gary’s Olde Towne Tavern was not an alarming amount. At the same time, one OUI (operating while under the influence) is one too many, they said.
Town officials want to work together with business-owners to reduce those numbers. In fact, another liquor license workshop has been scheduled for Oct. 6. All employees from businesses that are open yearround and that serve alcohol are invited. On Tuesday evening, a crowd of more than 50
people showed up for the Naples Board of Selectmen workshop on liquor licenses. Many of those people had hoped to have a chance to speak. However, since it was a workshop it was the board’s decision to have comment closed to the public. Nobody from the public was allowed to speak. The people who were
invited to speak during the workshop were: Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce; LT Kerry Joyce with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office Field Service Division; Laurence “Larry” Sanborn, the director of the Maine Division of Liquor Licensing and Enforcement; and businessman Gary Skellett, the owner of Gary’s Olde Towne Tavern. Last month, the board tabled the approval of a liquor license for Gary’s until a workshop could be held. The concern was an increase in the number of OUIs in which the driver said he or she had been drinking at Gary’s. The selectmen refer to the CCSO report that documents calls to dispatch regarding problems at a place of business. The selectmen receive this report prior to the public hearing for a business to have its local liquor license renewed. Sheriff Joyce said that since 2003 he has attended five of these workshops held in Maine municipalities. He said that he had reviewed the CCSO report for Gary’s Olde Towne Tavern, as well RESIDENTS SHOW SUPPORT — A group of citizens held signs in support of Gary’s as reports for many estabOlde Time Tavern during a workshop on liquor licenses hosted by the Naples Board lishments. of Selectmen on Tuesday. (De Busk Photo) “It didn’t come to my
attention that there was an issue out there,” he said. “An OUI coming out of anywhere is intolerable.” “Like Gary {Skellett} says when they come there they may already have been drinking. They may have been using drugs,” Joyce added. Joyce said that he judges the business for what happens while the customer is there and how the employees adjust to the situation. For example, if a patron is getting out-of-hand at 9 p.m., does the staff nip it in the bud or try to resolve it at midnight when it might be too late, Joyce said.
He referred to the report again. “When I look at the statistics, eight out of 16 were repeat offenders. Eight out of the 16 people who came out of Gary’s did not get it the first time. Most of them were from this area, which is not surprising. One was from Massachusetts,” Joyce said. Gary’s, inherently, is likely to have more alcoholfueled issues because it is open year-round and also closes later in the evening. “We don’t have a lot of establishments that are open year-round. We don’t have OUI, Page 2A
Modules might help cell service
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO— A citizen got a chuckle from the local selectmen before beginning a discussion that has been on and off the table for decades: Cell phone reception in Casco Village. “I notice that you didn’t start the meeting off by telling people to turn their cell phones off because cell phones don’t really work here,” said Jim Arsham. Again and again, the roadblock that keeps communication companies from putting up a cell tower is: there are not enough businesses and there is not enough population to warrant the costs of the cell tower installation. A secondary issue that
cannot change is the terrain. The Village is in a bowlshaped area. Still, Arsham believes that cell phone service is a public safety issue, and it is worth pursuing. On Sept. 1, he spoke at the Casco Board of Selectmen meeting. Several weeks ago, Arsham started the process of contacting people at the state level. The advice he got from two of them was to contact someone in Washington, D.C. That is when Arsham made the phone call to Dave Maxwell. That conversation yielded two options as well as a promise to reconnect again, Arsham said. “I found a person in the Office of Information Technology. He has been
Lessons: Seeds to garden success
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer From a mistake grows the opportunity to learn. For Nancy Donovan, life is all about learning. She doesn’t let a little mistake get her blue. In fact, something went wrong after she selected blueberries as a landscaping choice on her Bridgton property; and she has gotten a lot of mileage out of that berry blunder. “What I thought I would do in the backyard was put down low-bush blueberries. I figured the birds might like them. And, maybe, I would have enough berries to put on my bowl of cereal,” Donovan said. “I bought six blueberry bushes and I planted them. They died. When I went back to the nursery and asked what happened. They asked about the PH of my soil. I said, ‘The what of my soil?’ That my first lesson in the PH of soil.” Her property had once been used as a dairy farm. Therefore, the soil was well fertilized. The PH of her soil is 7.0, which means it has more alkaline; and blueberries need an acidic soil to grow well. “My first lesson in gardening was to get the soil checked,” she said. She admitted that it won’t be the last lesson. “Gardening is a lifelong learning experience,” she said. Gardening is something for which Donovan has a passion. “I love to put something in the earth, to see it grow, to see the color. I have frozen 300 cherry tomatoes this year, and I’ve eaten a hundred BLT’s. It’s nice to grow your own food with no pesticides or preservatives,” she said. Oddly enough, making mistakes is one of the reasons GARDENING, Page 5A
there a long time. He was kind, informative and wants to be helpful,” Arsham said. Maxwell recommended two possibilities: A tower placed high enough to serve the area outside of the Village or a DAS design module, he said. The Distributed Antennae System (DAS) design module, has been in use since the mid-1980’s. It is a network of relatively small antennas that serve as repeaters. It can be placed indoors or outdoors. The modules are about 36 inches tall, he said. “These modules cover a wider area. It may be possible to convince one of the communication companies to put up some in the Village,” Arsham said. Selectman Holly
Hancock said the smaller cell tower has been explored. “I signed a contract with an individual who was looking,” she said. Cell phone company representatives said the Village wasn’t a good candidate for a cell tower because there ON TO THE NEXT CHAPTER for Rick and Julie isn’t enough businesses or Whelchel, who have operated a wine and home decor enough residents living here business for the past seven years. (Rivet Photo) year-round. “We wanted to put a cell tower in the church steeple or atop this building,” she said, referring to the Casco Community Center. “There is not enough population in the Village to make it financially feadown, the Whelchels decidsible,” she repeated. ed to stay safe and close the Arsham continued. shop. During this time, the “It is a safety issue. We couple gave serious thought can all manage without a that after seven years of CELL, Page 4A hustling and working long By Wayne E. Rivet hours — two key ingrediStaff Writer Driving by the quaint, ents to success in the tough red shop on Main Hill, many retail market — it was time likely were surprised and to find better “life balance.” When Rick’s daughdisappointed to see a yellow banner neatly stretched ter passed away during the across the building’s front Covid lockdown, the couple decided to again take a big and side walls. leap of faith — they will “Shop closing.” But why, many have close J. Décor as a wine and wondered? Did Covid-19 home furnishing retail store and a statewide shutdown and reshape the beautiful result in the popular wine showroom into an interior and home décor business design work space, where Julie can meet customers falter? by appointment only. Rick, Quite the opposite. Beyond their wild- meanwhile, will enter semiest dreams, Rick and Julie retirement. “I want to do some volWhelchel enjoyed great success as they transformed a unteer work,” he said. “We dusty, rarely open antique have property west of town business into a restored, and I want to be able to vibrant, bustling shop that work it. I’ll stay busy. I want became a “destination” to a to be able to get and decide what I want to do that day loyal following. Although deemed an — a kayak ride on the lake “essential service” by the or a hike or spend time with state during the virus lockCHANGE, Page 3A
In search of balance in life Retail ends, off to design
The Bridgton News Established 1870
A TREE HUGGER ON THE INSIDE — Bridgton resident Nancy Donovan is seen here inside a hallow tree trunk at Glacier National Park in Montana. Donovan said hiking at more national parks is on her bucket list. (Photo courtesy of Nancy Donovan)
P.O. Box 244, 118 Main St. Bridgton, ME 04009 207-647-2851 Fax: 207-647-5001 bnews@roadrunner.com