Dear Editor:

I first met Holly Stover when she drove down our driveway before the election two years ago. She struck me as a smart and compassionate woman who took seriously her commitment to represent the people in her district and across Maine. 

I am the father of two daughters, and have two granddaughters. Extreme, unthinkable laws in other states politicize women’s healthcare rights and enable the exploitation of children. Women are forced to bring incest and rape pregnancies to term, and must drive hundreds of miles for the care we see in Maine as normal. Project 2025, and statements of extremist legislators and judges all the way to the Supreme Court, aim to further remove protections for women and for children. 

Holly helped pass H.P. 857, which when enacted will preempt legislation to regulate a person’s decision to terminate her pregnancy. She has been a strong advocate for victims of sexual assault, and co-sponsored multiple bills to protect women and young girls from sexual exploitation. 

She has also fought hard for our fishermen and veterans, and addressed climate-based flooding and school gun safety. All of these affect the women of Maine and their families. Holly Stover is an important voice in our community and our state and she has my vote.

John G. Ives

South Bristol

The Wiscasset Selectboard is announcing a tentative settlement in its real estate tax assessment dispute with Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company. Following a full-day mediation session led by Jerrol Crouter, the parties, with the assistance of their legal counsel, reached a tentative agreement valuing the Maine Yankee Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation and its Bailey Point land at $80 million. This agreement represents a substantial increase in value compared to the previous 20-year agreement, which concluded with a final valuation of $30 million.

The Town’s appraiser had valued the property at approximately $130 million, while Maine Yankee’s appraisals totaled $2.8 million. The mediation process allowed the parties to find common ground between these extremes. Town Manager Dennis Simmons, Selectboard Chair Sarah Whitfield and board members Pamela Dunning and William Mahoney participated in the mediation in person, while board members Terry Heller and James Andretta joined via Zoom. All discussions took place in executive session.

The agreed-upon valuations will apply retroactively to the last two tax years and continue for an additional five years, through 2029. In addition to paying annual taxes based on the $80 million valuation, Maine Yankee has agreed to pay a $365,578 impact fee. This fee represents the difference between the taxes at the agreed valuation and the actual taxes assessed for 2023 and 2024.

The tentative settlement is subject to approval by both the Wiscasset Selectboard and the Maine Yankee Board of Directors. Upon finalization and signing of the settlement agreement, the owed taxes and impact fees will be promptly paid to the Town. The Wiscasset Selectboard is scheduled to review the settlement at its meeting on Oct. 15.

The Selectboard expresses its appreciation to Simmons and legal counsel Sarah McDaniel and Peter Murray for their many hours of dedicated work in reaching this agreement. Their efforts were critical in navigating the complex negotiation process and securing a favorable outcome for the Town.

Anna McDougal said being inducted into the Maine Sports Hall of Fame last month was one of the best moments of her life.

The Wiscasset woman said skiing in the 2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games in Austria was awesome, and a big deal, “but I think this was more of a big deal.”

She loved the Hall’s induction ceremony, including the heavy trophy and the standing ovation she and the other inductees got, McDougal, 45, shared in a phone interview Monday. 

She said her whole family was at the ceremony; so were her ski coach Connie French-Smith, Special Olympics Maine and Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows. In a same-day post at x.com, Bellows called McDougal’s induction historic, a first for a Special Olympics athlete in Maine.

Last January, the Hall announced this year’s inductees to be. And McDougal said Monday, as a result of being part of the Hall’s Class of 2024, she has a new friend, fellow 2024 inductee Kissy Walker, the award-winning Husson College basketball coach.

“It’s nice to have a friend I can relate to about sports, someone who understands me,” McDougal said.

In the 2017 Games, McDougal won silver in Alpine novice slalom and bronze in Alpine novice giant slalom. 

Her favorite memories from the Sept. 15 Maine Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony, at Portland’s Merrill Auditorium, were having her family there and the standing ovation. “That meant a lot to me.”

Giving her speech, she got to talk about determination, being prepared and her love of skiing, she said. “I think my speech was very powerful because I showed a lot of emotions, and I just wanted to cry, because I was so happy in that moment. And all of the inductees, they were in that moment, too. That’s what I loved about it.”

What’s next for the artist, author and advocate for people with disabilities? McDougal’s latest book, “Ski Dreams,” is still set to come out. McDougal said it will be paired with her earlier autobiography, “A Look Back,” about growing up with Down Syndrome. “Two books in one.”

And she will keep on skiing, for her love of it and always in loving memory of her grandfather Harry Shartar, who was proud of her skiing.