• SAD 1 took a pro-active approach with the H1N1 virus, known as the ‘swine flu,’ offering tips on preventing spreading the flu.
• Citizens were asked by the Downtown Revitalization Committee to cast their vote for one of two logo designs: a star including colors blue, yellow and green, representative of water and agriculture, and blue snowflakes denoting winter recreation.
• Job Corps students helped clean up Aroostook State Park.
• UMPI received $600,000, from the late Caroline Gentile.
• Maureen Pike, an NMCC nursing program grad from Baileyville, was recognized by President Barack Obama at a press conference at the White House that discussed job creation and training.
• G.E. shipped windmill components from Pensacola, Fla., with parts destined for projects in Maine and Canada, via the intermodal system at the Industrial Park in Presque Isle.
• An auction at Slopes: Northern Maine Restaurant & Brewing Company, formerly owned by Dr. Hank Ford and Dr. Imbesat Daudi, drew a large crowd, as everything from dishes to the building and property went up for bid. The closure was being blamed on the nation’s poor economy.
• UMPI held a windmill-commissioning ceremony during one of the windiest days in Aroostook County, making UMPI the first in the U-Maine System to ‘go green.’
• Wind gusts up to 50 mph were reported in Aroostook, blowing down trees and causing significant property damage, including the destruction of barn in Westfield.
• Steve Berry was in Aroostook County researching Maine farms, trying to identify 50 rolls of film taken in the 1960s, with plans to include the data in a future book.
• Owen H. Smith, an area farmer who passed away April 28, was remembered as a ‘natural leader.’
• Building of SAD 32’s new K-12 school began in Ashland.
• The PIPD received several grants that were being used to enhance safety in the Star City.
• The PIFD received the Best Practice Award from the Maine Fire Protection Commission for its Junior Firefighter program. The PIFD also sought applicants for a new Junior Firefighter class.
• Easton students prepared for a ‘new’ France trip, thanks to donations following the announcement earlier in the year that the travel agent they had initially made plans with had filed for bankruptcy.
• A broken water main causedearly dismissal for students at PIMS.
• Community members in SAD 1 adopted a 2009-10 budget of $22.8 million.
• SAD 1 honored seven retiring employees June 3. Retiring with a combined 222 years of service to the district were: Syd Smith, Dave Sowers, John Eivers, Gail Gibson, Carolyn Rigg, Cathy Hotham and Jim Ouellette.
• Students at Ashland Community Middle-High School claimed top honors in the junior level category of Maine Public Service Co.’s annual BE Energywise Program project competition.
• Presque Isle’s economic picture looked promising, with a number of projects under way, including: a ground-breaking ceremony by NorState Federal Credit Union; the announcement that Tractor Supply Company planned to build; a local businessman was looking to build a restaurant/bakery; the Hampton Inn was nearing completion.
• City Council approved amended figures for Presque Isle’s 2009 municipal budget of just over $13 million, cutting approximately $412,000 from the amount they’d approved in December 2008, with the final figure made public in July, once voters determined the budget.
• SAD 1’s budget was defeated at referendum, by a 2-1 margin.
• Bridgewater Grammar School marked its last day, effective June 30. The 60-year-old building was being turned over to the town.
• The American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, at NMCC, raised over $40,000 for cancer research.
• A Mars Hill woman was arrested and charged with gross sexual assault after international investigation linked online child pornography in England to U.S.
• SAD 1’s board slashed over $419,000 from the budget.
• The Maine Potato Board announced the families of Ward McLaughlin and Trent Lundeen of West Ridge Acres were the recipients of the 2009 Farm Family of the Year. They were later honored during the MPB’s annual Industry Dinner in Fort Fairfield.
• Fraser Papers Inc. sought financial protection, filing Chapter 15 bankruptcy papers, in hopes of restructuring the company. Fraser, with a paper plant in Madawaska and sawmills in Ashland and Masardis, was one of many businesses hit hard by economic difficulties worldwide.
• Washburn Fire Chief Leigh “Arnie” Devoe retired from the Washburn Fire Department.
• SAD 1’s budget process passed its first hurdle, with a revised 2009-10 budget of $22.7 million being approved 134-0 in the first of a two-step process, after voters rejected the $22.8 figure June 9.
• Presque Isle City Council approved just over a 1-point increase in the city’s mil rate, bringing the 2009 figure up to just over $24 per $1,000 in valuation.
• SAD 1 revised budget passed by voters, to the tune of $22,726,580.
• Members of Maine Change that Works, concerned about the rising cost of health care, presented a video to Sen. Olympia Snowe’s Presque Isle office entitled “Begging for Change.”
• A lighting upgrade was performed on Main St., Presque Isle to improve traffic flow and safety.
• Taylor Hedrich, Presque Isle, was named Little Miss Potato Blossom 2009. Molly Kingsbury was named Little Miss Presque Isle.
• The Environmental Protection Agency’s farm tour brought bureaucrats to county farm fields.
• Presque Isle City Council held a public hearing to amend Chapter 16 of the Land Use and Development Code ordinance — a change that would set size and setback limits on installation of wind generators in the community.
• Late blight was discovered in Aroostook, beginning in southern Aroostook and spreading north.
• Tomato plants from out-of-state that were sold by local retailers were being considered the primary cause, with wet weather factoring into the problem as well.
• Politicians and members of the potato industry found the legislative tour to be an informative gathering.
• Fire temporarily closed the Ashland One Stop store.
• Mia Carney was named Little Miss Ashland 2009.
• Miss Mapleton Katelynn Hartt qas crowned 2009 Maine Potato Queen.
• Mike Corey, chair of Eason’s Board of Selectmen, said Easton’s mil rate was down 21 percent, to 15.65 mils, in part, to an area business’s TIF agreement ending.
• Fort Fairfield Fire Chief Paul Durepo accepted SHAPE award.
• Videographer Frank Grant, Presque Isle, created a DVD about the Presque Isle Ice Company, with a portion of proceeds designated for the PI Historical Society.
• Presque Isle Sesquicentennial Committee announced it had collector plates available for sale.
• Results were announced for the annual 4-H Baby Beef event held at the Northern Maine Fair.
• The Star City ATV Club took over management of an area at Arnold Brook Lake Park, Presque Isle.
• Dan Duprey was named principal at Mapleton Elementary School.
• Members of PIHS’s Class of ’75 donated a honey locust to the city, planting the tree in Downing Park, just off State St., in honor of the community’s sesquicentennial.
• Warm weather caused early dismissal at PIHS on at least twice in a week, when temperatures neared 90 degrees.
• The SAD 1 Board of Directors was unhappy with the city’s decision to discontinue crossing guards. City officials cited a drop in students using the service and a need to curb spending and keep the city’s budget balanced.
• Eldora Carter retired as the correspondent for Easton, after over 25 years with the Star-Herald. Officials joined family and friends at a luncheon held to honor her.
• The Sesquicentennial Parade in Presque Isle had over 500 Anah Temple Shrine members.
• Chris Hallett named principal at Ashland Community Schools.
• The Presque Isle Planning Board met with City Council to work out details of Section VIII, Small Wind Energy Systems, providing local regulation of wind systems.
• City Manager Tom Stevens reported the city’s budget was under strain, despite over $400,000 in cuts, and faced upwards of $200,000 in additional cuts, in part, due to a drop in revenue sharing . Effort continued to keep the 2009 budget of nearly $13 million balanced, he said.
• Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Commissioner Roland “Dan” Martin was on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Ashland, marking the opening of the expanded DIFW headquarters.
• Ashland native Joel Hall was named ‘dean of students’ for Ashland Community Schools.
• TAMC and KeyBank joined as sponsors of the 2010 USSA Cross Country Junior Olympic Championships, at the Nordic Heritage Center March 6-14, 2010.
• Organizers deemed the Crown of Maine Balloon Fest a success.
• City Council stood firm on its decision to eliminate city-paid crossing guard positions.
• Annual Paint Presque Isle: A Fresh Paint Event and Auction raised $5,300.
• City officials served as tour guides for officials from Main Street Maine, who were in town to offer tips on ways Presque Isle’s downtown area could be enhanced.
• Displaced mill workers in Ashland offered aid through Trade Adjustment Assistance program.
• Officials from NMCC and Larkin Enterprises, Inc., signed an agreement to provide internship for wind power program students.
• Over $11,000 was raised for The CAUSE (Central Aroostook United for Student Emergencies), with syndicated radio personalities Bob Lacey, Sheri Lynch and Lamar on hand at UMPI for the dinner and auction.
• NMDC and APP hosted the Mobilize Maine “Discovery” Forum at UMPI, an event designed to encourage leaders to shape Aroostook’s future.
• Community leaders met at UMPI to discuss the future of Aroostook rail service, following Maine, Maritime and Atlantic Railroad’s proposal to discontinue service from Millinocket to Madawaska due to the slumping economy.
• Tentative enrollment data showed a dip in SAD 1 schools.
• The SAD 1 Health Services Office hosted a seasonal influenza clinic at the PIMS.
• A large group of local residents attended City Council, speaking in opposition to a renewal of a nude entertainment license. Councilors said it was a renewal based on an existing ordinance and the business met all the requirements as outlined in the ordinance.
• The Aroostook Band of Micmacs planned to establish a tribal farmers’ market next year with money it received from the USDA.
• Classes were cancelled at NMCC followin separate bomb threats.
• City Council heard the concerns of several people, including Patti Crooks, Charlie Beck and Attorney Norm Trask, who expressed dismay at the Council’s decision to not renew City Manager Tom Stevens’ contract. Trask, Stevens’ lawyer, requested the Council meet with him and Stevens to discuss the matter and options, but Council upheld their decision to not renew Stevens’ contract beyond 2009.
• State officials joined citizens, business and community leaders from across Aroostook for a meeting held at UMPI to consider the future of rail service in Maine.
• Wayne Kilcollins, NMCC’s wind power technology instructor, saw opportunities for future students, after his participation in Gov. John E. Baldacci’s Maine renewal energy mission to Spain and Germany.
• A new partnership between the PI Rec & Parks Department and the Wintergreen Arts Center offered children learning opportunities.
• Matt Bell, owner of Northeast Pellets LLC, Ashland, began the process of reconstructing the mill, which was destroyed by fire in March. Bell hoped to have the facility operational by early 2010.
• The Aroostook Band of Micmacs received $500,000 in grants, with a large portion earmarked for the purchase of land in Winterville Plantation that will serve as a protected area for Canada lynx.
• SAD 1’s wind power plan received FAA approval.
• A student was arrested for making bomb threats at NMCC.
• The Star-Herald was named among the best weekly publications in its circulation division during the MPAs Better Newspaper Contest for 2009.
• City Council gave little comment on the reason members voted to ‘go in a new direction,’ and not renew City Manager Tom Stevens’ contract beyond 2009.
• The Battered Women’s Project marked Domestic Violence Awareness Month with a walk.
• Presque Isle City Clerk Nancy Nichols was named 2009 Maine Clerk of the Year during a MMA meeting in Augusta.
• The PIHS Shipmates’ Playhouse put on the play, “The Pajama Game.”
• Students, family and community members in Presque Isle were encouraged to start a chain reaction of kindness and compassion by attending a special Rachel’s Challenge assembly — named for the first person killed during the Columbine High School tragedy 10 years ago in Littleton, Colo.
• Fire destroyed a century-old schoolhouse that once served as Easton High School.
• Presque Isle voters elected a number of officials, including SAD 1 board members and City Councilor Randy Smith.
• A ceremony was held in Washburn, dedicating the elementary school in honor of former Superintendent David Lyon, naming the school: David L. Lyon Washburn District Elementary School.
• Fire destroyed a Washburn structure that once served as the McCain Foods plant.
• The Braden Theatre hosted a film premiere on UMPI’s wind project, a Frank Grant documentary: “Wind 101: The UMPI Builds a Wind Turbine.”
• Arson was identified as the cause of a fire in Presque Isle that destroyed a building used by Northeast Packaging Company on Rice St. The Fire Marshal’s Office investigated and charged a volunteer firefighter from Easton.
• SAD 1 vaccinates over 1,000 students for H1N1 (swine flu). TAMC offered a flu update and information on current resources available.
• Former State Rep. and State Sen. James McBreairty, Washburn and Perham, was remembered, following his death Nov. 10.
• The Maine Warden Service promoted Kevin S. Adam and Thomas D. Ward to lieutenant.
• Nearly 100 Aroostook babies got a jumpstart on their college savings thanks to the Harold Alfond College Challenge.
• Presque Isle department heads gave City Council an overview of their portions of the 2010 budget. With just over a $100,000 increase from 2009 to 2010 budget, no increase in the mil rate — which was 24 in 2009 — was anticipated.
• Valerie Josephson, of Stockholm, N.J., held a book-signing for her book “Who Would Not Be A Soldier!” at Mark & Emily Turner Memorial Library in Presque Isle.
• Det. Seth Blodgett, of the Maine Attorney General’s Office, was featured speaker at an informational meeting at PIMS, advising parents to protect children online.
• ACAP received $875,000 in DHHS funds.
• Mapleton, Chapman, Castle Hill Fire Department received the Maine Department of Labor and the Bureau of Labor Standards’ SHAPE award.
• USDA Rural Development State Director Virginia A. Manuel announced Thomas R. Stevens was selected as USDA rural development area director at the Presque Isle-based regional office.
• Presque Isle City Council presented a plaque to outgoing Councilor Ron McPherson’s over 18 years of service.
• Jan and Evelyn Kok were recognized at an UMPI reception at UMP for their contributions to the UMPI and the community.
• A Business Breakfast held at UMPI, hosted by LEAD, UMPI and NMCC officials, focused on the future of Aroostook wind projects.
• The 62nd annual Presque Isle Rotary Club Radio/TV Auction was deemed a success, raising over $30,000, with proceeds going to benefit a number of area programs and organizations.
• Non-profits weighed in on their needs, asking for the public’s help to provide food and necessities in the community.
• Bobbi Jo Guerrette, a Mars Hill three-year-old in need of ear surgery, will get it thanks to a donation by anonymous benefactors.
• Gregg Garrison, Blaine, was named 2009 Young Farmer of the Year.
• Representatives from MDOT, Morris Communications and HNTB Corp. met at UMPI, explaining dependable southern Maine rail service was needed to ensure access to points south.
• The Presque Isle Elks Lodge hosted about 200 guests at its annual Christmas dinner.
• Gail Hagelstein received the Maine Association for Middle Level Education’s Exemplary Practice Award.
• The Presque Isle Planning Board supported rezoning sections of NMCC’s and SAD 1’s PIMS property to allow construction of wind turbines.
