The writer’s dream ... or nightmare
A tip to bands: Don’t play the local scene too often
Mindy Smith among hot new acts coming to Portland this winter
See Bob Higgins on page 4
See Mark Curdo’s column on page 6
See the Music Calendar, page 7
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2011
VOL. 3 NO. 3
PORTLAND, ME
PORTLAND’S DAILY NEWSPAPER
699-5801
FREE
Super Bowl, super busy But it’s still not the biggest beer holiday; that would be Easter Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Green Bay Packers Sunday, Feb. 6 — 6:30 p.m. EST on FOX See story on page 3
The Super Bowl at Hunter S. Thompson’s See column on page 4 BY MATT DODGE THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
Super Bowl XLV isn’t just a big day for fans of the Steelers and Packers, it’s big business for everyone from TV networks to local pubs. Nearly every industry that even brushes against the big game seeing a boost in sales as NFL fans pack sports bars and stock up on party supplies. For example, NFL rules dictate that the league take over the stadium rent-free and split profits evenly between all 32 teams. But Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones still stands to make thanks to his ownership stake in the concessions company that operates at Cowboys Stadium‚ which will ring
in around $5 million in stadium food and beverage sales. Add to that Jone’s ownership in 75 Texas Papa John’s stores, expected to make a quarter million dollars through the sale of 26,000 pizzas, and it’s a nice consolation for a man whose team ended up
with a losing record and failed to make the playoffs. Even with the New England Patriots’ lamented absence from Sunday’s big game, some Portland businesses are expecting a solid day of business as Steelers, Packers and NFL fans in general load up on game day essentials. “The Super Bowl is a pretty big day for pizza,” said Amy Cyr, who works at Leonardo’s Pizza on Forest Avenue. “We’re usually really busy, so we’ll be fully staffed,” she said. Nation-wide, pizza sales on Sunday will jump between 30 and 50 percent higher than a regular Sunday, with Domino’s Pizza alone expecting to sell around 1.2 million pies, according to USA Today. Locally, Pizza Hut expects to move a lot of pies with large, three-topping pizzas selling for $10 and a customer base that seems committed to the annale championship games, Pats or no Pats. “Last year, even without the Pats, we still did quite a bit more business than a usual Sunday,” said Jamie Troiano with the Pizza Hut location at 295 Forest Ave. But it’s not a big night out on the town. Nine out of 10 U.S. households will be watching Super Bowl XLIV at home or at a friend’s or relative’s house instead of a restaurant or bar, according to a survey by Nielsen. “We do a pretty decent crowd, but I think it’s a pretty big house party day as well,” said Ryan Guite, general manager of Gritty McDuffs at 396 Fore Street. “Leading up to it people are not as keyed up as normal, it just turns into a good excuse to drink for a lot of people.” see BUSY page 3
Restoring a pre-fire landmark BY DAVID CARKHUFF THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
Jeremy Fitzsimmons scales scaffolding at 384 Fore St. late last month during a masonry restoration job by Knowles ISC of Gorham. (DAVID CARKHUFF PHOTO)
When this Portland home was built, Andrew Jackson was on his way to winning a presidential election against John Quincy Adams; Maine’s first and the nation’s third African–American Church, the Abyssinian Church in Portland, was being founded in Portland; and the Portland waterfront was a bit closer. The Akers building at 384 Fore St. was built in 1828, placing it squarely on the waterfront. Today, the Old Port landmark is receiving a makeover. Knowles ISC of Gorham is repointing mortar joints, removing paint and repairing the brownstone, part of a masonry restoration job that should take about three months to complete.
The building survived the Great Fire of 1866 (as did the Abyssinian Church up on Munjoy Hill). The Akers building started out on the waterfront, and out the back windows was Portland Harbor, notes local historian Herb Adams. Commercial Street was built in 1852. A century later, hard times would come to the Old Port. In the 1970s, urban blight set in, endangering many historic structures. “The Old Port was a derelict part of the city, boarded up buildings and drunks,” Adams recalled. The building’s namesake is not its original builder — the 2 ½-story home was built in 1828 by the Fox family, see LANDMARK page 8