Articles
Rockland to welcome 2,500-passenger cruise ship
When Royal Caribbean Cruises’ Jewel of the Seas comes to Rockland it will be the first stop in a seven-day roundtrip cruise from Boston and a big step forward in boosting Midcoast tourism. The cruise, departing Boston October 3, has a planned itinerary of stops in Bar Harbor, Saint John, New Brunswick, Halifax, Nova Scotia. This just
Portland wharf owners seek changes in waterfront zoning
When Portland’s City Council meets this September, a re-written, drastically cut version of the ordinance governing the Waterfront Central Zone (WCZ) will be up for review. What once was a 75-page hodgepodge patchwork of overlay ordinance is now a streamlined 25-page document fully prepared to square off with public opinion. The discussion of how to
The spiny dogfish: a fish for the recession
Every late June/early July, Maine’s coast is just the right temperature for the spiny dogfish. These long, flat sharks, with their pointed snouts and white bellies, cruise the ocean’s sandy, muddy floor, feasting on young ground fish. While all the young cod, halibut, haddock and flounder (to name a few) try to grow; it’s this
New rules in place to help Bar Harbor cope with bigger cruise ships
Since 2000, Bar Harbor has steadily increased as Maine’s most popular cruise ship port of call. “The cruise ship industry has been growing very quickly,” says Chris Fogg, executive director of the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce. “In 2000, 30 ships visited, but this year 96 cruise liners are scheduled to dock here-and we’re a
Recession hits summer rental market
Typically, repeat renters of the homes and cabins on the islands of Maine rush to re-up for another summer by January or February-knowing well that the best places get snapped up quickly. However, in these days of deep recession, as of early May, Maine’s summer rental business has been slammed by the same economic waves
Portland wharf owners seek help with dredging plan
In 2010 or 2011, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expects to receive budget approval to dredge 600,000 cubic yards of silt and clay from Portland’s 35-foot Federal Channel. In anticipation a group of harbor wharf owners hope to coordinate their dredge crisis with the scoop-and-dump plans of the federal government. The amount of contaminated
Peaks Island Winter Concert is diverse, eclectic
On Sunday, December 14, the Peaks Island Winter Concert will mark its 22nd year of celebrating not only the holiday season, but the spirit of diversity that thrives on this Casco Bay Island. According to Nancy 3. Hoffman, the concert’s director (whose middle name, “3.” is correctly noted), “multi-denominational” performances promise the audience a little
Portland’s eastern waterfront: ambitious projects now on hold
An aura of mystery shrouds the city block on Portland’s eastern waterfront where Jordan’s Meats is closed and the weeds grow profusely beyond the chain link fence. It’s been two long years since the Procaccianti Group abandoned their plans to transform the site into a $110 million Emerald City-a 223-room hotel, 97 luxury condominiums and
Portland can’t decide what to do with Maine State Pier
The stubborn cloud of stalemate has yet to lift from Portland’s waterfront. Two companies — Olympia Cos. of Portland and Ocean Properties of Portsmouth, N.H. — continue to bid for the Maine State Pier project, and in a surprise move in mid-October both were asked to quickly come up with “options” that would build a
While Bar Harbor solves its mega ship problem, “mega berth” becomes embroiled in Portland’s waterfront debate
Last January, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines faced an unanticipated problem that required an inventive solution. The problem: The cruise line’s Voyager-class Explorer promised New England fall-foliage cruises, but while this mega ship was scheduled to drop anchor in Bar Harbor fully equipped with state-of-the-art amenities like oxygen therapy and kidney dialysis, it would not have