Community Jolly Holiday Bazaar; Quilting session at library; Vocal workshop at church Section B
One step closer
Inside News
Fryeburg Academy advances to Class C South finals by dominating Gardiner, 26-7
Calendar . . . . . . . 4B-5B Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 4D Country Living . . . 1B-6B Directory . . . . . . . . . . 3D
Page 1C
Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 5D Opinions . . . . . . . 1D-6D Police/Court . . . . . . . . 4A Sports . . . . . . . . . 1C-6C Student News . . . . . . 6C Games . . . . . . . . . . . . 5C Weather . . . . . . . . . . . 3D
Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 149, No. 45
24 PAGES - 4 Sections
Bridgton, Maine
November 8, 2018
(USPS 065-020)
www.bridgton.com
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Voters ‘invest’ in town’s future By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer When Town Manager Robert Peabody was asked to comment on the “Yes” vote to expand the wastewater system and renovate Main Street, he simply said, “Wow!” Voters soundly approved three referendum questions that will significantly improve Bridgton’s infrastructure. “Voters overwhelmingly made the decision to invest in Bridgton’s future,” Peabody said. The wastewater expansion project was approved 1,806 to 749. Meanwhile, streetscapes were given the go ahead by margins of 1,370 to 871 for the upper por-
tion of Main Street; and 1,438 to 786 for the lower portion. Peabody credited the successful vote to hard work put in by town staff over the past five years. He also pointed to Wastewater Committee members, including chairman Bear Zaidman, who pushed hard to keep the project in the forefront. Peabody noted that officials sought to place the questions before voters on the November ballot, rather than at the annual town meeting in June, to “maximize the amount of voters” acting on the projects that total about $28 million. Now, officials will work on details to prepare to put the projects out to bid.
Peabody anticipates that the wastewater project will be ready for the bid process by late summer, while the Main Street projects should be set to go by March. Voters also acted on three other referendum questions: Marijuana ordinance regarding retail medical marijuana storefronts, Yes 1,350 — No 1,183. The Sign Ordinance was approved, Yes “yes” vote will enable the 1,458 — No 1,008 town to enact a moratorium to allow planFire Protection and Life Safety ners time to develop an ordinance addressOrdinance was also supported, Yes 1,684 ing storefronts. — No 746.
Healthcare facilities change ‘models’
SOLD — Hicks Family Services Inc. has sold its four facilities — including Bridgton and Fryeburg — to Bella Point/DLTC Inc., based in Rockland.
By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer When David Hicks awoke Tuesday, his life had changed. After dedicating most of his life to taking care of the needs of people, especially the elderly, Hicks realized he no longer had a job. “It was very strange,” he said. Tuesday marked the change in ownership of Hicks Family Services Inc. — which operated nursing home facilities in Bridgton and Fryeburg for over four decades — to Bella Point Healthcare/DLTC Inc., based in Rockland. The company operates 13 facilities across Maine. The sale includes Hicks’ facilities in
Bella Point/DLTC buys out Hicks Family Services
Auburn and Freeport. “We’re at a point where my wife and I are in our 70s, the kids have been working with us for most of their lives in the business. It got to the point where it seemed like we were just kicking the can down the road. In order to stay operating, we had to basically take money out of our personal retirement fund. When we finally exhausted all of our resources personally, we just said we can’t keep kicking the can down the road anymore,” Hicks said. “It’s time for another company to come along and take over or we’re just having to close the facilities. We didn’t want to go
through the same problems that Ledgeview had over in West Paris. So, we worked it out with Camden Bank, which was our financer, and we found Bella Point/DLTC Healthcare. It gives my wife and I a chance to look at retirement.” The sale ends a familyrun operation that started when David Hicks was just a little boy. “My grandmother started in the nursing home business by working with a lady who was taking care of two or three older ladies. My grandmother was a housekeeper. She didn’t like the way that lady was taking care of them, so she moved
Sheriff explains offender registry
Election 2018 Results
• HD 66 √ Jessica Fay 59%, Gregory Foster 40% Referendum Questions 2018 Baldwin Bridgton Brownfield Casco Denmark Fryeburg Harrison Hiram Lovell Naples Poland Raymond Sebago Stoneham Stow Sweden Waterford TOTALS
• HD 68 √ Richard Cebra 53.9%, Janice Barter 46.1%
Question 1 Home Care Yes No 969 312 528 244 647 438 259 246 574 860 663 310 58 72 66 274 6520
1609 403 1190 392 845 800 393 369 1387 1869 1869 615 104 118 150 512 12625
Question 2 Wastewater Yes No 1512 321 759 289 772 556 285 329 831 1188 1183 401 89 91 116 353 9075
1061 384 950 340 704 669 366 277 1114 1531 1329 513 75 95 98 429 9935
• HD 69 √ Walter Riseman 54%, Tony Lorrain
• HD 70 √ Nathan Wadsworth 54%, Warren Richardson
Question 3 Question 4 Question 5 Transportation University of Maine Community Colleges Yes No Yes No Yes No 1668 437 1058 427 1072 778 404 426 1220 1666 1631 556 115 125 143 520 12246
907 268 661 201 406 451 243 182 732 1062 889 353 49 64 71 261 6800
1294 338 775 324 828 620 294 358 872 1235 1245 387 92 99 112 379 9252
1258 369 931 300 645 608 352 249 1062 1477 1264 517 69 91 102 404 9698
1624 426 982 392 980 749 374 412 1103 1642 1531 500 117 124 134 460 11550
950 285 741 239 502 474 280 196 847 1087 611 413 45 67 80 324 7141
Trust targeting two properties Loon Echo Land Trust (LELT) has launched two new land conservation projects to preserve land for future generations. The Peabody-Fitch Woods project, in partnership with the Bridgton Historical Society (BHS), will protect the historic Peabody-Fitch Farm (also
known as Narramissic) in South Bridgton through the acquisition of 252 acres of land surrounding the farm. The second project is the Edwards Forest in Harrison which expands by 38 acres Loon Echo’s Crooked River Intervale Preserve. With a deadline for acquisition of Dec. 31, 2018,
LELT is seeking to raise funds from private individuals, public resources, and other foundations to acquire both the Peabody-Fitch Woods and the Edwards Forest. A grant of $50,000 will match any gift made toward the Peabody-Fitch Woods project. Gifts of any amount
them into her house (in Auburn). She had four to five people, and was also taking care of me because my parents were working,” Hicks recalled. “She hired an ambulance and moved to Fryeburg.” The home she bought in Fryeburg was a childbirth home. “It was on the way to the hospital; if you couldn’t make it to the hospital, the doctor would meet them at the old Blake home and that’s where the baby was delivered,” Hicks said. “It’s always been about family.” Fryeburg Healthcare was built in 1977, and Bridgton followed in 1985. Each cen-
ter has been a “multi-level” facility, offering nursing home beds, as well as residential care (assisted living) beds. When Hicks entered negotiations with Bella, he learned that the potential buyer planned to discontinue the nursing home license and solely offer assisted living services. “DLTC Healthcare is a little different model than we were used to. I grew up with a nursing home. That’s all I have ever known. We did expand our services. The state changes its regulations for qualifications for nursing home care. To fill empty beds, we changed and developed assisted living — SOLD, Page 3A
to the project will be matched dollar-for-dollar from now until Dec. 31, 2018. To date, LELT has received approximately 60% of the funds for the Peabody-Fitch Woods project and needs another $138,000 to complete the purchase. The “Narramissic” farmTRUST, Page 6A
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — In Cumberland County, there are 74 registered sex offenders who either live or work in the county and are reviewed by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) once every three months. The Town of Casco has eight registered sex offenders. Of those eight people, seven live within the town’s boundaries and one works in Casco. Representatives from CCSO spoke at the Casco Board of Selectmen meeting in an effort to explain the policies and laws regarding registered sex offenders. The topic arose in Casco,
after CCSO deputies notified neighbors that a sex offender had moved into their area. About a halfdozen neighbors showed up for the meeting on Oct. 30. Town Manager Dave Morton addressed Sheriff Kevin Joyce and Capt. Don Goulet on behalf of the neighbors. “People were upset they got the notice. You have established some risk. What should people who received that notice do? Clearly, everyone who received the notice is going to be nervous as all get out,” Morton said. Capt. Goulet, with CCSO’s criminal investigation division, agreed. REGISTRY, Page 4A
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — Splitting up is never easy. Or, to coin the lyrics of Neil Sedaka, “Breakin’ up is hard to do.” A Town of Naples committee that was formed more than a year ago is under consideration to be split into two committees. “We would basically work on public lands, parks for the public to use, which is the old land-use committee,” said Dave Garcia, a member of the Parks and Recreation Committee who
favors the split. “We would like to disassociate ourselves from the recreation committee. They have so much on their plate. We should cut the ties with recreation. He has a full agenda as it is,” Garcia said. “We could spend our time working on public lands for residents in the Town of Naples if we were just a land-use committee,” he said. The committee that is being discussed is currently called the Naples Parks and SPLIT, Page 3A
Will Naples split parks, rec?
The Bridgton News Established 1870
P.O. Box 244, 118 Main St. Bridgton, ME 04009 207-647-2851 Fax: 207-647-5001 bnews@roadrunner.com