By Nancy Beal

Some 30 Beals residents gathered in the elementary school gym April 7 to act on a 58-article warrant at their annual town meeting.

Moderator Terry Beal guided voters in a meeting lasting a little over two hours. In the end, voters agreed to raise a total of $348,251, as well as reelecting all incumbent town officers to their posts. 

One departmental position — road commissioner — was absorbed into the selectmen’s duties, and the $3,000 salary, raised for that role last year, was moved into the surplus account. 

By Nancy Beal

Jonesport Fire Chief Boyde Crowley brought good news to his town’s selectmen April 9; the department’s pumper truck that was destroyed while battling a fire on Beals on March 28 is covered by insurance. 

And he had even more good news to share with the board. The town of Cutler has loaned the Jonesport Fire Department a 40-year-old pumper until a permanent replacement for the destroyed vehicle can be found.

Jonesport’s truck was pumping water on a massive, fully involved house fire on Beals Island last

By Paul Sylvain

Whitneyville Selectboard Chairman Nate Pennell is disputing claims at a public meeting that his town was invited but failed to attend a March 21 meeting in Machias to discuss a regional policing plan being floated by Machias Police Chief Keith Mercier.

By Paul Sylvain

Any team is only as strong as its weakest member. It’s true in sports, the military, and with first responders. And as Machiasport volunteer firefighter David Cale will tell you, strength comes from teamwork and training. Lots of training.

By Will Tuell

It is a cornerstone of life Downeast that, when a beloved community member is in distress, his or her family members, friends, and the broader community respond to the crisis in a big way. 

By Paul Sylvain

A handful of Machias voters at a special town meeting two weeks ago enacted 180-day moratoriums on commercial solar farm applications and development and, in a separate warrant article, on commercial wind energy facilities.

The pause will give the town time to formulate specific ordinances addressing both endeavors and could, in fact, be ready in time for the annual town meeting warrant on June 11.

By Paul Sylvain

Looking for something fun to do with your children or grandchildren this coming weekend? We have it on good authority from Jonesboro Grange 357 that the Easter Bunny will be making an appearance via Jonesboro Volunteer Fire Department truck at 1 p.m. Saturday, April 12, outside Jonesboro Elementary School for a free Easter egg hunt. Rain date is April 13 at 1 p.m.

By Paul Sylvain 

Maine Veterans Homes — the state-run nonprofit providing long-term care for Maine’s veterans and their spouses — is once again warning that, without roughly $13 million in state funding, two or more of its facilities in the state, which includes homes in Machias and Caribou, will have to close their doors by 2026. 

The news comes three years after MVH nearly closed its Machias facility, located on the Down East Community Hospital campus, and a facility in Caribou before lawmakers intervened with emergency funding. 

By Paul Sylvain

Musicians Alan Cook and Gary Lamb, appearing individually and as an occasional duo, are familiar to Downeast music audiences. Although the popular duo were among last year's performers at the Bad Little Falls Park Summer Concert Series, be prepared to meet and hear the remarkably talented duo of guitarist Matt Chase and drummer/percussionist Gary Lamb — appearing as Chase ‘n’ Lamb — on July 17 at this year's renamed Kitchen Summer Concert Series at Bad Little Park.

The University of Maine at Machias celebrated the completion of the long-awaited Reynolds Gymnasium renovation, as students, regional and state leaders, and guests took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony and facility rededication on April 4.

Extensive renovations to the gym include a brand new, NCAA-compliant hardwood floor, modernized bleachers with computerized mechanisms, upgraded scoreboards, a new sound system, and various other enhancements to support both student and community events.