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Zoning can’t be ignored in Maine’s housing crisis | Letter

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Zoning can’t be ignored in Maine’s housing crisis | Letter


I read Peter Ryner’s April 12 op-ed, “Zoning won’t solve Maine’s housing crisis — and zoning didn’t create it,” with interest. His central assertion, “Zoning … is neither the source nor the solution to Maine’s housing problems” is incorrect and not supported by his argument. Many cities, towns and villages in Maine could not be rebuilt today. Most buildings in these places are “non-conforming,” i.e., they don’t meet current zoning regulations.

In many instances, municipalities have applied suburban building standards to their traditional town centers. Requiring a half-acre lot in the center of a town or village doesn’t just prevent the “warehousing” of people, as Mr. Ryner frets, it prevents the building of anything at all. Not only are most towns not adding housing to their historic centers but, as housing is lost, it’s not being replaced. This is bad and we should address the problem: outdated zoning regulations.

Maine’s recent law permitting accessory dwelling units statewide was a good step in the right direction. Still, we must do better. Allowing, and encouraging, the “thickening up” of the historic centers of our cities and towns would be a great place to start. Eliminating minimum lot sizes, shifting to a focus on form rather than use or density and, perhaps, eliminating zoning requirements altogether around transit hubs would all be good next steps.

Zoning reform is not a panacea, however any meaningful expansion of housing opportunity will require at the hard look at the constraints zoning imposes.

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Brian Banton
Topsham



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Maine

Police warn of scam targeting sex offenders in Maine

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Police warn of scam targeting sex offenders in Maine


A letter is being sent that asks registered sex offenders to email personal information

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Maine State Police

scam letter targeting sex offenders in maine

SOURCE: Maine State Police

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State Police warn of scam targeting sex offenders in Maine

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A letter is being sent that asks registered sex offenders to email personal information

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Updated: 11:10 AM EDT Apr 8, 2026

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Maine State Police is warning of a scam that is targeting sex offenders in the state.The issue was brought to those who run the Sex Offender Registry that the scam is targeting registered people on probation in Maine. A letter is being mailed to people, claiming to be from the ‘Maine Probation Tonduary.’ The letter claims there has been a data migration error in the Records Management System and the registrant needs to email personal identifying information (PII) to an email address listed on the letter. Police say neither the Maine Sex Offender Registry nor the Maine Department of Corrections would ever send such a letter asking a person to send sensitive information in this format. If you have received such a letter, you should not email your information to the address on the letter. Instead, report it to the Maine Sex Offender Registry at 207-624-7270 or local law enforcement.

Maine State Police is warning of a scam that is targeting sex offenders in the state.

The issue was brought to those who run the Sex Offender Registry that the scam is targeting registered people on probation in Maine.

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A letter is being mailed to people, claiming to be from the ‘Maine Probation Tonduary.’ The letter claims there has been a data migration error in the Records Management System and the registrant needs to email personal identifying information (PII) to an email address listed on the letter.

scam letter targeting sex offenders in maine

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Police say neither the Maine Sex Offender Registry nor the Maine Department of Corrections would ever send such a letter asking a person to send sensitive information in this format. If you have received such a letter, you should not email your information to the address on the letter. Instead, report it to the Maine Sex Offender Registry at 207-624-7270 or local law enforcement.

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Maine

2026 Primary Election

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2026 Primary Election


Voting is the cornerstone of democracy, and in 2026 Mainers will have a lot of important decisions to make when casting their ballots — from the very top of the ticket to the bottom. On June 9, Mainers will participate in the state’s semi-open party primaries, choosing Democratic and Republican nominees for governor, as well […]



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Maine

Regular gas tops $4, premium over $5 in Maine amid severe Trump Iran threats

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Regular gas tops , premium over  in Maine amid severe Trump Iran threats


Brady Chapman fills up one of four trucks he uses for his business Wednesday at Irving Gas Station in Bethel. Regular gas was $4.09 at the station. (Rose Lincoln/Staff Writer)

Maine’s average price for regular gasoline rose to its highest point since August 2022, as the conflict in Iran continues to drive up global oil costs.

A gallon of regular gas averaged $4.03 here Tuesday, ticking up more than 6 cents overnight, according to data aggregated by motor club AAA. That price has risen 38.5% — about $1.12 — since Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel struck Iran, triggering a conflict that has since spilled into the broader Middle East.

Maine’s average price crossed the $4 threshold a week after the national average did so. The national average was up to $4.14 Tuesday, AAA data shows.

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Premium gas was up to $5.07 per gallon in Maine, topping $5 for the first time in nearly four years. Diesel, meanwhile, averaged about $5.90 per gallon Tuesday.

Collectively, those figures mark the state’s highest average gas prices since the summer of 2022, when the Russian invasion of Ukraine drove gas prices to record highs. A gallon of regular gas peaked at $5.09 that June, the highest ever recorded by AAA.

This week, Maine’s prices were the 21st highest among the 50 states and Washington, D.C., according to AAA. California, Hawaii, Washington, Nevada and Oregon all saw average prices above $5 per gallon Tuesday.

This is a developing story.

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