by Eric W. Austin When Dan L’Heureux was hired at the start of 1996, the China Select Board had two primary goals for the new town manager. First, they were looking to foster more economic development in the town. Second, they wanted someone who could achieve a stable mil (tax) rate that could be maintained […]
by Eric W. Austin Looking at Rachel Kilbride, you wouldn’t think she’s the type to hear voices, but that’s exactly what prompted her to buy the St. Bridget Catholic Church, in Vassalboro, and turn it into a local community center. “I wasn’t planning to retire in Vassalboro,” Rachel told me. A Winslow native, she was […]
by Eric W. Austin On June 9, Neil Farrington, chairman of the China Bicentennial Committee, along with selectmen Bob MacFarland, Irene Belanger and new town manager Dennis Heath and his wife Mary, together with a small crowd of local citizens, formally dedicated the China Bicentennial Monument to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the incorporation of […]
by Eric W. Austin It’s hard to find anything more American than McDonald’s, or more emblematic of the American spirit than the family business. The recent remodel of the McDonald’s, in Winslow, represents both these traditions and it’s a story more than 30 years in the making. In 1986, Bob Ortins moved his family to […]
by Eric W. Austin In the beginning, claim the physicists, the universe existed as a single point — infinitely small, infinitely dense. All of time, all of space, literally everything that currently exists was contained in this unbelievably small cosmic egg. Then, before you can say “Big Bang,” quantum fluctuations caused it to rapidly expand […]
by Eric W. Austin Do you think it’s a hassle when you have to cancel a lost or stolen credit card? Are you annoyed when your email gets hacked? Does it unnerve you to know your Facebook and Twitter posts are used to target you for advertising? Are you alarmed at the idea of Russian […]
by Eric W. Austin “Nothing’s foolproof,” Augusta Deputy Chief Jared Mills told me at the beginning of our meeting on the issue of school safety. “The best laid plans are not going to prevent this from happening.” What is ‘this’? Take your pick. Terrorists and school shooters. Bomb threats and bullying. Our students and teachers […]
by Eric W. Austin How does it feel, sitting there on the digital shelf? Have you checked your best-buy date? I think I’m still good for a few more years yet. It may not feel like it, but on the internet, the product companies are selling is you. Facebook isn’t a social media company, it’s […]
by Eric W. Austin Pssst! I know a bit about my fellow China residents. I know, for example, that 96 percent of you want to stay in China as you age. In fact, on the whole, most of you think China is a pretty great place to live. There is high confidence in our emergency […]
by Eric W. Austin Her name? It’s not important. She lives right here in China and could easily be your next-door neighbor or relative. You’ve probably passed her going into the post office or exchanged neighborly smiles down at Hannaford. Maybe she goes to your church. In her early 60s, with long, graying hair pulled […]