The State of Maine has selected a section of state-owned Sears Island, north of the city of Portland and located in Penobscot Bay as its preferred site for a port facility to support the offshore wind industry. The site would be about 100 acres in total, which is about one-third of the state-owned parcel or a little more than one-tenth of the entire island, with Governor Janet Mills saying that she believes it is the best spot to support the emerging industry.
The selection of the site followed an extensive review process led by the Maine Department of Transportation and Maine Port Authority to consider the state’s primary port development options, including multiple potential sites in the Port of Searsport, the Port of Eastport, and the Port of Portland. The state concluded that the Sears Island parcel is the most feasible port development site in terms of location, logistics, cost, and environmental impact based on input from port and offshore wind stakeholders, including the University of Maine, and technical and engineering analyses.
“This was not an easy decision, nor is it one that I made lightly. For more than two years, my administration has evaluated Sears Island and Mack Point thoroughly…,” said Governor Janet Mills. “Sears Island is the best choice for an offshore wind port because it is already owned by the state, designated for the purpose of port development, will cost less in the short-term and long-term, and is expected to result in less environmental harm.”
Sears Island is a 941-acre island off the coast of Searsport. In 2009, Sears Island was, by agreement, divided into two parcels, with approximately 600 acres, or two-thirds of the island, placed in a permanent conservation easement held by the Maine Coast Heritage Trust. The remaining one-third, or approximately 330 acres, was reserved by MaineDOT for future development.
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The proposed port would be a purpose-built facility for floating offshore wind fabrication, staging, assembly, maintenance, and deployment. The governor cited that in addition to the state owning the land, it has the deepwater access necessary for a port facility. Unlike other possible locations, they do not expect it would require dredging. The estimated port construction cost on the Sears Island site is approximately $500 million.
Maine released its Offshore Wind Roadmap a year ago, citing the importance of developing the port facility. It builds on a 2020 study in which the governor directed MaineDOT to study the port needs to support Maine’s offshore wind industry. The study, delivered in November 2021, evaluated various locations in the Port of Searsport for an offshore wind port, including Mack Point and an area of state-owned Sears Island.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is moving forward with the review process for the offshore sites and a year ago released its draft area for potential commercial offshore wind leasing in the Gulf of Maine. The area is expected to be one of the later to be developed because the geography requires the use of floating wind turbines.
The port proposal is subject to extensive and independent State and Federal permitting processes, including assessments of environmental impacts and alternative sites. MaineDOT, on behalf of the State, intends to apply for permits later this year, which will also include additional opportunities for stakeholder and public input on the project.
Maine’s Wild Blueberry Weekend is back for its fourth consecutive year and scheduled for Saturday to Sunday, Aug. 3 and 4.
The event is organized by the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine. Residents and visitors are invited to celebrate and learn more about the state’s native berry by exploring multiple Maine wild blueberry farms that are open for free to the public in Cumberland, Franklin, Hancock, Lincoln, Kennebec, Knox, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Waldo, and Washington counties.
Over the last four years, Wild Blueberry Weekend has become a popular annual tradition with locals and visitors and has helped to boost direct, fresh wild blueberry sales for participating Maine farmers. The Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine estimates that 7,533 individuals visited one or more of the 15 participating farms in 2023. Visitors can tour farms, rake wild blueberries, meet their farmer, take in scenic wild blueberry vistas, and purchase fresh wild blueberries and other wild blueberry products like jams, pies and syrups.
“Maine’s wild blueberry crop has been an integral part of our state’s agricultural heritage for generations. Most farms are family owned and have been passed down from generation to generation for years,” said Eric Venturini, Executive Director of the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine. “Wild Blueberry Weekend promotes and celebrates our state’s iconic fruit and helps to educate visitors about Maine’s important wild blueberry industry while also providing economic opportunity to our hard-working Maine farmers that harvest this wild crop.”
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To learn more, visit wildblueberryweekend.com.
Check out other upcoming area events!
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SNAPSHOT: Youth, teen drama camps set in Rangeley
Miscommunication between drivers and police officers sometimes leads to dangerous outcomes, but a new program is taking root in Maine to aiming to avoid such interactions.
Chief of Police Marc Hagan holds the blue envelopes available for pickup at the Topsham Police Department. Other police stations in Maine are adopting the program. Courtesy of the Down Syndrome Advocacy Project of Maine
The Blue Envelope Program provides blue envelopes to drivers on the autism spectrum, with Down syndrome, or other intellectual disabilities or high anxiety. Inside, drivers can store a driver’s license, vehicle registration and proof of insurance so they’re easy to access. If the driver is stopped by police, they can place the envelope on the dashboard or hand it to the officer. This prevents the driver from having to fumble around looking for each item, and the blue envelope serves as a signal to the officer that the driver could have an intellectual disability or high stress level.
Topsham Police Department is the latest agency in Maine to join the program.
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Erica Koch, co-founder and co-chairperson of the Down Syndrome Advocacy Project of Maine, contacted Topsham Chief of Police Marc Hagan about the Blue Envelope Program and wanted to know if the Topsham Police Department was interested in distributing the blue envelopes at the police station. The first police station to adopt the Blue Envelope Program in Maine was the Cape Elizabeth Police Department back in September 2023, according to a press release by the town of Cape Elizabeth.
“I thought it was a really interesting concept and something that we needed here in Maine,” Koch said.
Topsham Police Department adopted the Blue Envelope Program in the last week of May, at no extra cost to taxpayers and with no heavy lifting for police, Hagan said.
“After talking to [Koch], it seemed like a no-brainer that it would be something good for law enforcement to be involved in,” Hagan said. “If we stop somebody or we come up on a crash, the driver hands us this blue envelope and it immediately provides us an awareness level to something we may be seeing that normally might give us some safety concerns. … If we understand why people are acting the way they are, it helps our own officers calm down a little bit.”
The Down Syndrome Advocacy Program of Maine is looking into spreading the Blue Envelope Program across the state. It has provided other special needs advocacy groups, such as the Autism Society of Maine, with blue envelopes to spread around in their regions.
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The Down Syndrome Advocacy Program provides blue envelopes to police departments or any requests from individuals, Koch said. Down Syndrome Advocacy is looking into applying for grants and private donations to cover the costs of printing the envelopes, with $1,000 covering the cost of about 4,300 blue envelopes.
“I have reached out to as far south as Wells to as far north as Madawaska, so we are going statewide,” Koch said.
The program started in 2020 in Connecticut. It soon spread to other states like New Jersey, New York, California and now Maine. Other police departments that have adopted the Blue Envelope Program include Westbrook and South Portland. The blue envelopes are available in the Topsham Public Safety building lobby across from Town Hall.
“You don’t have to have Down syndrome in order to use [the blue envelopes]; we are making them available to anyone,” Koch said. “So whether you are autistic or you have anxiety, for example, the envelopes are going to be available to you.”
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Bowdoin College Museum of Art hires new manager of student programs
The Class A Maine State Track and Field Championships were held on Saturday, June 1st at Thornton Academy.
Andre Clark of Marshwood High School set the State Record in the 100 Meter Dash with a time of 10.59 beating Aidan Walcott’s (Bonny Eagle) record of 10.80 set in 2021.
Arnaud Sioho of South Portland set 2 state records. 1st in the Long Jump he jumped 23-02.24 beating Frank Morang’s (Cheverus) record of 23-00.75 set in 2021. The in the Triple Jump he jumped 47-02.00 beating the record set by Scott Sawyer (South Portland) of 46-05 in 1991.
Here are the Girl’s Team Results
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1. Scarborough – 101
2. Bangor – 86.50
3. Falmouth – 57
3. Portland – 57
5. Lewiston – 47
6. Brunswick – 46
7. Windham – 44.50
8. Mt. Ararat – 35.50
9. Cheverus – 32.50
10. Mt. Blue – 30
11. Brewer – 26
12. Hampden Academy – 24
13. Edward Little – 23
13. Deering – 23
15. Thornton Academy – 21
16. Massabesic – 16
16. Camden Hills – 16
18. Bonny Eagle – 13
19. Marshwood – 8
20. South Porland 7.509
21. Gorham – 7
22. Kennebunk 5.
23. Oxford Hills – 4
24. Skowhegan – 3
24. Noble – 3
26. Messalonskee – 1.50
To see all the individual Girl’s Results CLICK HERE
Here are the Boy’s Team Results
1. South Portland 79.50
2. Gorham – 79
3. Portland – 65
4. Lewiston – 60
5. Mt. Ararat – 58
6. Sanford – 53
7. Scarborough – 48
8. Marshwood – 44
9. Bonny Eagle – 32
10. Hampden Academy – 28
11. Kennebunk – 25
12. Falmouth – 22
13. Noble – 21
13. Brunswick – 21
13. Bangor – 21
13. Cheverus – 21
17. Skowhegan – 18
18. Windham – 11
19. Westbrook – 9
20. Deering – 8
21. Brewer – 6
22. Camden – 4
22. Thornton Academy – 4
24. Oxford Hills – 3
25. Edward Little – 0.50
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