David Lemoine: Blame it on the Dog

AUGUSTA (Dec 14): Late last summer, State Treasurer David Lemoine invested $20 million in short-term Maine funds in a high risk offshore venture. In November, the Treasurer meekly informed the Appropriations Committee that the investment had gone south. Now widely reported, Lemoine blames Merrill Lynch for the problem and seems to take no personal responsibility for the loss of our tax dollars. This in a time when the state deficit is closing in on a $100 million and probably headed for $200 million before the legislative session closes in the spring.

Reminds me of the lyrics of my friend Warren Nelson’s song “Blame it on the Dog”. It goes like this:

“Blame it on the dog. Blame it on the dog. When something real bad happens, blame it ooooon the dog.”

Lemoine is claiming that the funds will eventually be returned, albeit without interest. That’s a cover story not supported by investment professionals. The funds are likely gone or at best tied up and greatly diminished. Sure, fire the boys at ML but accept some personal responsibility for an irresponsible act Mr. Lemoine.

In Maine, the majority party appoints the State Treasurer. He is not elected and the position has no prerequisites for experience. The Democratic Maine legislature appointed Lemoine, a lawyer without an investment background, to this important post. Lemoine had termed out as a legislator from Old Orchard Beach and his party cronies decided to help the gentlemen out with a patronage plum: the position of Treasurer of the Great State of Maine.

It’s an important position with great responsibilities. For instance, the treasurer serves on the following boards:

* Finance Authority of Maine
* Maine State Housing Authority
* Maine State Retirement System
* Maine Municipal Bond Bank
* Maine Government Facilities Authority
* Maine Health and Higher Education Facility Authority
* Baxter State Park Investment Committee
* Adaptive Equipment Loan Board
* Maine Educational Loan Authority
* Maine Public Utility Financing Bank
* NextGen Investment Advisory Committee

The treasurer manages the state’s 37 bank accounts, controls all state revenue receipts and issues over two million checks and a half million electronic payments each year. David Lemoine is responsible for investing money from the state's cash pool (an average daily balance of $675 million). The treasurer manages revenue forecasting, assists with CMIA compliance, and acts as trustee for a number of state trusts. He issues the state's general obligation bonds and coordinates Maine's presentations to bond rating agencies. He distributes monthly revenue sharing funds to almost five hundred municipalities and manages Maine's unclaimed property.

That’s quite a responsibility for a guy whose only experience with finance appears to be balancing his own check book. Is it too much to ask that the state appoint a treasurer with a financial management background?

Can you imagine this happening in the private sector? Would any Maine company appoint someone to manage company finances who had no financial credentials? And what do you suppose would happen to an employee who blew $20 million in the course of thirty days on a speculative investment that verged on a spin of the roulette wheel? Look, we all know patronage is part of the political menu. (To the winner goes the spoils). The majority party gets a taste - maybe a truck driver here, a toll booth operator there. Fine. I can deal with that, but a STATE TREASURER? That’s beyond the pale.

The Democrat leadership of Maine should fire Lemoine and start a search for an experienced individual with a financial and accounting background. Shame on them for the appointment in the first place, but now they can at least correct the wrong.

We can do better than this. –H-

athenahealth Arrives in Maine

BELFAST/ROCKLAND (Dec 4, 07): We had big news last week as Jonathan Bush, CEO and President of athenahealth, announced the purchase of the former Bank of America (MBNA) property on Rt. 1 in Belfast. Situated on 53 acres, the 134,000 s.f. facility will house 100 to 150 jobs in the next year and up to 500 more in coming years; it's great news for our area and our state.

athenahealth went public in September and was one of the top three I.P.O.s in 2007. With patented software and an industry leading system, athenahealth presents promise that the ten year old company is about to take off. Belfast stands to see a stronger tax base and a fully employed workforce. Underemployment should be a thing of the past.

While all of the economic development entities in this state work together to try to make things happen - DECD, KWRED, PBRCC, CEI (and other lettered acronyms), in this case the kudos go to Maine & Company - Matt Jacobson, its president and CEO and Peter Del Greco, the deal maker. We've worked together for two years now to bring athenahealth to Maine. And Dave Tassoni, now managing director of athenahealth in Maine, showed his management capabilities in driving the process. Maine owes all three a major debt of gratitude.

I also want to congratulate Governor John Baldacci for creating the Pine Tree Zone program that he initiated when he first came to office. Pine Tree Zones create economic incentives that allow Maine to compete with other states to attract business and jobs to our state. The PTZ was critical to attracting this fine company and serves as the primary economic development tool in Maine. Thanks Governor. -H-

Return to Civility

ROCKLAND (Nov 23, 07): Friday night at 6:00 pm the Rockland community comes together again to light the community Christmas tree. Consisting of lobster traps stacked 34' high, it's a thing to behold. Lighting the tree has been a long time ritual in the Rock City; one I look forward to each year.

It's also the night that the new mayor and council is introduced to the crowd. I'll be introducing new mayor Hal Perry.

As we prepare to enter into a happy New Year, let us hope that this council returns the dialogue to a civil conversation. We're not going to agree on everything. Sometimes it may seem like we can't agree on anything. But can't we at least agree to treat each other with decorum and class?

I think this board has that capability and am looking forward to meetings where the rhetoric is dialed down, the grandstanding placed on hold and the business of the community being completed in a friendly and orderly manner.

Happy holidays! -H-

Aw Shucks. It Twarn't Nothin'

We keep a guest register on our desk. Recently I was thumbing through it and was thrilled with the comments I saw there and so I asked a volunteer to convert it to a word document. Here are the comments unedited:

2007 Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce
Guest Register Comments

• Excellent
• Very Good
• Cool
• Love it here, come here all the time
• Wonderful
• Very, very pleased with service
• Great place, we’ll be back
• Great to see the beautiful coast of Maine
• Very well done
• A good place to visit
• Helpful for information on things to do in the area
• Congrats to all the volunteers, Great job!
• Very impressed, thank you
• Awesome
• Eager to come back
• Outstanding
• Maine is a beautiful place!
• Great work, friendly people
• Extremely helpful people
• Beautiful
• Great info
• We love it here, thanks for everything
• Great help
• Found just what I needed, thanks
• Beautiful Town
• Maineacks galore
• Nice welcome to Maine
• Spring in Maine is marvelous
• Love your new building, well done
• Love your town, lots of fun, very friendly people, thanks
• We love it
• Great place to spend your time
• Very informative
• Just splendid
• Send us some rain
• Beautiful facility
• Comfortable and informative
• Thank you Rockland
• Bravo
• We’re impressed
• Beautiful, well done
• Thanks for all the info and help
• Excellent Maine
• Just full of information, loved it
• Great addition to Rockland
• Very nice and the ladies behind the counter were even nicer
• Pretty area, friendly people
• Everyone is very helpful and kind, I love the floor
• We came for ten minutes and spent an hour
• The visitor center is sp interesting, I couldn’t leave it
• Wonderful, very inviting, nicely organized and displayed
• Wow, great job
• Excellent info display
• Very informative, and lovely layout and great display
• Very helpful
• Lovely harbor
• Staff very helpful
• Beautiful visitor center
• Wonderful destination
• You have been very helpful, thank you
• Most informative and enjoyable
• Such a beautiful and friendly area
• Helpful staff, great facility
• Beautiful town and great people
• Beautiful area, Chamber of Commerce very helpful and nice
• Gorgeous
• Glad we came
• A treasure
• Thank you very, very much for all your great help
• A great resource
• Thank you for the great directions
• So happy to visit here, people were so nice
• Very helpful with suggestions, thanks
• Breathtaking
• Wonderful, we will revisit
• Neat and friendly
• First time in coastal Maine, exceptional
• Loveable
• Love our Maine experience
• Wonderful, we will revisit
• Neat and friendly
• First time in coastal Maine, exceptional
• Loveable
• Love our Maine experience
• Great Center, beautiful town
• You folks are the best, thanks
• So glad to be here, have always wanted to visit Maine
• Outstanding, great improvement from last location
• Very informative, well laid out
• Lovely new complex, thanks for your help.
• Staff went out of their way to help us
• Rockland is a very special place
• What a great place! You'vedone a wonderful job here Thank you.
• Very good lots of fun. Very accommodating facility and staff
• Great visitor center and friendly folks
• Neat, staff has lots of great stories
• Perfect!
• Should have started here, lots of info
• Information Staff were extremely helpful
• It’s been great, Love the lobster
• Thank you for your hospitality
• Extremely nice building and people
• It was very informative and interesting
• Very helpful assistance, thanks
• Wow! Magnificent.
Great assistance from staff.
The people who work here are amazing

Congratulations to our fantastic staff and wonderful troupe of volunteers. Our members and the community at large should be pleased with the service they deliver. -H-

When Technology Attacks

ROCKLAND/ROCKPORT (Nov 1): As an aging Baby Boomer, I’ve always felt that I did a fairly competent job of being technically up to speed. I’ve used a P.D.A. since the 90’s and am pretty much paperless at work. I don’t text message, but what boomer does? I was part of a team that created innline.com in the mid-90’s, arguably the Internet’s first on-line hotel reservation system. While I was the weakest member of that team, the technology is now commonplace worldwide.

But now my technological world seems to be falling apart. It started with my TV. I got a great buy on one three years ago, seven hundred and fifty bucks – a real guy machine. It has a 42” high definition screen is hooked up to a DVR (digital video recorder) and needs two remote controls to operate. The picture is terrific and the ability to record programs prior to being on air was a wonderful thing. I never miss a play during a Patriot’s game and take pleasure doing my own replays on controversial calls.

Then came the black outs. First it was gun shots that did it. If there was a gun fight on a given show, the TV would shut down for about ten seconds on the first flash from the barrel. I put up with it for a while; it was an irregular occurrence. Then it got to the point that I couldn’t watch a war movie because the TV would shut down every couple of minutes. Now just about anything will instigate a shut down – a beat on a drum, a flash from a camera, you name it and it will shut the TV down.

Repairmen weren’t able to figure it out. It was just the something I would have to live with – get over it. That was until last week. “The bases are loaded,” said the announcer, “the count is three and two and Big Pappi is at the plate. The runners will be advancing. And the pitch…” And the damn thing shut down for two minutes. (“Damn” was not the word(s) that came out of me). That was it. Time for a new TV but not, Donna tells me, for a few months or so. The property tax bill is due.

But that wasn’t the end of my technical problems. My home computer decided that it too should have the ability to stop on its own accord. And it does. It locks up over and over until the frustration becomes unbearable. It clicks and flashes all the time, probably commandeered by a terrorist or worse, a spammer using my computer to jam yours. A new computer is needed. To hell with the taxes Donna, I’m going to put it on the card.

I’m not done yet. My handy little Palm Pilot that I take with me everywhere has decided to not cooperate either. It stores the agendas and minutes from every meeting that I’ve attended since 2002. As a chamber director, I attend hundreds of meetings in a year and store hundreds of names in my data base. When I synchronize it to my computer, it now has decided to double up the calendar. So when I enter, say, “Board Meeting”, then synch up, it shows “Board Meeting, Board Meeting”. The next time I synch up it shows “Board Meeting, Board Meeting, Board Meeting, Board Meeting”. The next synch repeats the entry 8 times, then 16, then… Guess it’s time for a new PDA too.

Now my cell phone has developed a mind of its own and is storing voice mails for a few days before allowing me to know that they’re there. To the caller, it would seem that I don’t return my calls, which I generally do. The frustration is building.
A glutton for punishment, I decided that my 2000 Microsoft Office Suite was outdated at work, so I replaced it. While the new 2007 software is slick, if too complicated, I learned how to take advantage of the new technology and began to enjoy using it. The only problem is that I’ve found that when I send an Excel spread or a Word document to the staff or to others, they can’t open the documents because their technology isn’t 2007. That’s not going to work. Now what?
The Technology Gods have apparently aligned against me. It looks to me like all I can do is go into debt and start to replace all this stuff. I am grateful for one thing however. At least I don’t have a pacemaker. –H-

Now a Citizen of Red Sox Nation

ROCKLAND (Oct 15, 07): The Red Sox had me up until 1:30 in the morning last weekend and it was an unsatisfying conclusion to my new interest in baseball. Seven runs scored in the tenth inning ended my delusion of a four game series.

As an adult, I have never been much of a fan for the game until I made my move to New England. I would watch bits and pieces of the last games of the World Series, regardless of who was playing. But that was about it.

Six years ago I started to take interest in the Sox. (It’s hard not to be a fan since the Nation is so much a part of life here). So when I made the decision to be a fan, it was wonderful for my team to win the World Series right off the bat. That must be frustrating to those who have been waiting a lifetime for such an occurrence. It’s a distinct advantage of being a fair-weather fan.

My lost interest in baseball came as a result of childhood trauma. As a little kid I was a huge Milwaukee Braves fan. I think I could still tick off the whole Milwaukee lineup: Mathews, Spahn, Crandall, Torre, Schoendienst, Covington, Bruton, Adcock and of course Aaron. I wore my Braves cap every day to the point that my teacher would yell at me to remove it in class. I fastened a Braves baseball card to the spokes of my bike with a clothes pin to make a motorcycle noise. (Jeez I wish I had that card back. I would make a fortune selling it). I listened to every game on the radio and thrilled to their World Series win.

Then came the news - they were moving to Atlanta. My world came crashing down. I couldn’t believe you could move a team and was too young to remember that Milwaukee stole the team from Boston only a decade or so prior. That was it. The next season I threw away my ball cap and pledged never to watch a game the rest of my life. I almost made it.

I attended a few Brewer games over the years, always on the invite of Brewer owner, Bud Selig, now commissioner of baseball. He would invite Chamber directors from around the state to join him for lunch and a game. It was quite a rush, but I still never developed a love for the game. Then I moved to Maine.

So now I’ll glue myself to my really big leather chair and watch all the games of the championship series, even to the early morning hours. And I’m prepared to suffer if the outcome isn’t what is expected. I pledge not to go negative though, always assuming that the Sox will pluck defeat from the jaws of victory. I spew enough negativity as it is dealing with Maine politics and that’s quite enough. –H-

Oh No. Another Retail Blog

I really don't like shopping and am the typical guy shopper - I walk out with exactly what I went in to buy, nothing more. Point of purchase generally doesn't work on me. Buying presents for birthdays and Christmas generally sends me into a panic. I wander aimlessly through the store trying to figure out what my wife would like for her birthday. I have no ability whatsoever to imagine what a dress or a sweater might look like on her. I can't tell the difference between haute couture and J.C. Penney.

Sometimes I feel like a secret shopper, sent in to a store by management or a competitor to check out the service. When I'm in the stores shopping, the chamber guy in me can't help judging the customer service I receive.

For instance, I happened to be in a very nice store a few minutes before 5:00. I was purchasing an item when I heard the bell ring on the store's door. "I'm sorry," the owner said to the woman trying to enter the store, "we're closed". "But I just want to buy a gift certificate", said the one-minute too late shopper. Once again, "I'm sorry we're closed; you'll have to come back tomorrow." I wonder if that happened.

Then this week, I needed a special shaving mirror and couldn't find one in Rockland or Camden. I happened to be at a conference in Augusta so stopped off at a specialty bed and bath shop. You can figure out which one that was. I found just what I was looking for and walked up to the counter to check out. I was the only shopper in the front of the store. The young clerk looked at me with a blank stare then turned around and argued with another clerk about her not getting her 15-minute break. This while I waited impatiently to pay and go. It was probably only a thirty second delay but quite a turnoff for this reluctant shopper.

Finally, Donna knew I was going to Augusta and asked me stop at THE CLUB and load up on tissue, paper towels, bar soap - all the commodity goods that THE CLUB is known to sell in huge quantities at supposedly great prices. She gave me her THE CLUB card so I could buy merchandise at this apparently very exclusive facility. I roamed around the store for 45 minutes grumbling under my breath at the indignity of it all - me in my suit and goofy bow tie pushing around a huge cart of stuff. I finally found the elusive box of Bounce and headed for the checkout. I handed the clerk my THE CLUB card, (or actually Donna's THE CLUB card), and was told that while they were sorry, I could not buy the goods I selected because my picture was not on THE CLUB card. I explained that Donna is my wife, they could check the address to verify that and the fact that we have the same last name is not just a coincidence. Didn't matter. I left a gigantic pile of merchandise on the counter and exited the store. (I didn't wait to see if they wanted me to put it all back). I was hot. When I got home we cut up THE CLUB card. How goofy can that be to deny a sale to a customer at the checkout? A small retailer would have figured how to make the sale.

So with the big box argument in full swing here in Maine, the secret shopper in me has come to some conclusions. National retailers are here to stay and will be players in the marketplace. They're here because the demographic research tells them that there's a market for what they sell and they represent the changing face of retail.

On the other hand, those that see the national retailers as destroyers of downtown aren't giving the small business people the credit they deserve. Look how downtown Rockland has thrived in recent years and this in the face of new big box competition. The secret to success in retail isn't so secret after all. Give great customer service, provide value and quality of product and the store will do just fine. Great service can come in either a big or a small package and so can bad. -H-

Working as a Region

KNOX/WALDO COUNTY (Sep 20, 07): A few years back, I went to the county board and requested $20,000 in funding for Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC) to start up an economic development effort for our region. Up to that time, no organization was really in place to assist us on a day-to-day basis in retaining business or attracting new industry to our region. The county board agreed to provide the funding. As a result of that modest initial funding EMDC set up an office in Rockland run by energetic and extremely competent Alan Hinsey.

Alan has been a tireless driver of economic development here on the MidCoast. Working hand-in-glove with the local chambers and town and city government, EMDC has made a significant difference in our ED efforts. He founded the
Knox/Waldo Regional Economic Development Corporation, a regional organization focused on creating jobs and improving the business environment in this part of Maine. The board of directors is made up of representatives of both counties and we work together as a regional entity. It’s a pleasure to see an organization working for the greater good with little regard for hometown politics. Work as a region; think of ourselves as a region. The rest of the world sees us that way.

Now, armed with Pine Tree Zone benefits and a regional mentality we can succeed in attracting new business and work to retain the business that we have. Stay tuned. There are great things ahead. -H-

Be Careful What You Ask For...

ROCKLAND (Sep 12): Last week was a big one for Rockland, the Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce and most importantly the Maine Lighthouse Museum. We were able to purchase the real estate (Unit One of the One Park Drive Business Condominium) that houses the museum, the chamber, our regional visitor center, the American Lighthouse Foundation and the Maine Lobster Festival. The deal is done.

Five years of planning, fundraising and physical labor culminated with a few signatures on a closing statement that allowed us to purchase a 15,500 s.f. facility for $250,000. (A great deal when you consider that an M.A.I. appraiser just appraised the facility for $1.675 million). We’re grateful to Bank of America for the final settlement, to the city for closing the deal quietly and professionally, and to Mr. Charles Cawley and other former MBNA executives who helped to make Ken Black’s vision a reality.

More than 60,000 people will come through the Discovery Center this year. The facility has served to preserve the nation’s largest and most important collection of Fresnel lenses and lighthouse artifacts. It has helped us to strengthen the regional chamber of commerce (now an 800 member organization) and has already been a factor in generating economic development in Knox and Waldo counties. We are blessed as a community to have such a facility.

Now we're working to eliminate the debt. Our second phase of a development campaign is underway. A number of prominent local businesses and individuals have already stepped up for a second time to support this worthwhile project. With the help of more businesses and the generosity of a few special people with capacity, we will complete the original vision that put us on this path. So when the fund request comes, please realize that our campaign is not yet at an end. With your help we will have a facility that will serve our community for decades to come. –H-

Tourism Trends and Possible Remedies

Donna and I just got back from a trip to Wisconsin to visit our daughters and grand children. It was interesting to see how tourism in Door County compared to what's happening here. It was practically a mirror image.

It has been a long-term trend nation-wide for vacation periods to be shortened from the traditional week long vacation that we enjoyed when we were kids. Today people are busy and vacations tend to be three to four days; this holds here in the Northeast and in the Midwest as well. This does not bode well for cottage rentals that are still in the Saturday-to-Saturday or Sunday-to-Sunday mode. It limits the market. I think you’ll see more cottage rentals change their traditional week long rentals to allow shorter stays in the future.

It’s also been a trend, but now is simply reality, to see reservations come in just prior to a planned stay. The Internet is a marvelous planning tool for the tourism industry. Today, 60% of all tourism planning takes place on line. The good news is that little places like Camden, Rockland and Door County can (and do) have great websites that are as good as anything in the country. We can’t cross promote like Orlando or Aspen or San Diego, but we can give the viewer a great experience.

Only ten years ago, most people made their summer and fall hotel reservations months in advance to be sure to guarantee a room in the inn. Today, the same potential visitor can go online and check out room availabilities. If there are plenty of occupancies in the area, they can hold off on making a reservation. Add to this the fact that most of us have become amateur meteorologists. We can get reliable weather information online for weather up to ten days out. If it looks like a rainy weekend ahead, it may be better to stay home and rake the leaves. The tourism destination loses out.

This has resulted in many tourism destinations becoming weekend, holiday and weather-driven. That’s not healthy for the tourism industry.

The answer may be in refocusing tourism marketing efforts to places that require a plane trip to get here. Right now we are primarily a drive market for people who are a tank away. What if the state shifted some promotion from our core markets of Boston and New York to cities that are one hop away from Portland, Bangor or Manchester airports? Think about it. When you fly somewhere you book early to get a great rate. Then you book a car to be sure there’s one waiting for you and you reserve your hotel room so that you don’t get stuck without a reservation. Now if you go on line the week before your trip and see that there may be some inclement weather, the process of canceling the plane trip, the rental car and the hotel is pretty problematic. You go, regardless of the weather. We win. The hotel has a reservation and the restaurants, stores, museums and other attractions get customers trying to stay dry.

I think it’s an experiment worth trying. -H-

Dot Black Cleans Up the Mess

Not one to let grass grow under her feet, Dot Black put together a crew of Coast Guardsmen and other volunteers to clean up the graffiti at the Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse. They worked all morning Saturday and got the job done.

They repainted shutters valued at over $20,000 and worked with special cleaning agents to clean the hundred-year-old brick walls.

Our lighthouse has been returned to its original state and web cameras may end up catching the felons who created the mess in the first place. Onward. -H-

Of Losers and Other Lowlifes

ROCKLAND (Aug 23, 07): One has to be appalled at the outbreak of graffiti in Camden and Rockland. The attack on the historic Breakwater Lighthouse in Rockland was particularly upsetting. The Breakwater is Rockland’s icon and has stood guard over the harbor for over 100 years, protecting those at sea. It is the first impression for those entering our harbor from Penobscot Bay.

It was great to see that an alleged loser has been arrested for defacing property in Camden. We can only hope that the ignorant little felons who attacked the lighthouse left their own initials in place to help the police pin charges on them.

I just don’t get it. What’s the big deal about writing on a public place? Are the perpetrators so pathetic that the act is the only way that they can gain any attention for themselves?

Right now the Camden and Rockland police departments are working together to solve the crimes. Let’s hope the judge throws the book at them. –H-

Chamber Opposes Diesel Ordinance

At the August Board of Directors meeting of the Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce, the board voted unanimously to oppose the proposed City of Rockland ordinance regulating diesel emissions from train engines. The proposed ordinance would create fines for the railroad if diesel fume emissions exceeded a certain prescribed level of acceptability. Board members were concerned in particular that the ordinance could destroy passenger service between Rockland and Brunswick and as an unintended consequence affect railroad cement deliveries from the Dragon plant in Thomaston to the barge wharf in Rockland. Enforceability of the ordinance has been called into question.

Chamber C.E.O. Bob Hastings stated that achieving passenger rail service to Portland and tying in with the Downeaster to Boston is a priority for the organization. The proposed Rockland ordinance could permanently damage that effort and negate the millions of dollars spent on rebuilding the rail between the two cities. “Bath just celebrated the $1.5 million rehabilitation of their historic depot. There are millions invested in state and local infrastructure to support rail service here.”

The chamber board was empathetic about environmental concerns over diesel fumes expressed by some homeowners adjacent to the tracks. “The fact is that each Dragon barge load takes 360 diesel truck trips off the neighborhood streets of Rockland,” said Hastings. “Those trucks would emit diesel fumes as well and the noise and safety threat to the neighborhoods would be unacceptable. In addition, a fully loaded passenger train takes scores of automobiles off of MidCoast highways for the trip between the two communities. We submit that while the diesel train engine does in fact create emissions, it reduces overall emissions and is therefore more environmentally responsible in the long run.”

Maine Eastern Railroad has voluntarily agreed to reduce engine idling times. In addition, Rockland city attorney Carol Emery reported to the council that the railroad was in compliance with EPA and other federal requirements.

The chamber also expressed concern for Rockland taxpayers regarding the potentially dramatic legal costs of defending the ordinance. Federal law pre-empts local communities from regulating railroads and reserves those rights at the federal level. In a recent case this summer in Southern California a federal judge ruled against a local air regulation district and said that the regulators could not require railroads to shut down idling locomotives or obey other local laws designed to clean up diesel pollution. That district spent over $3.5 million on the case and lost to the railroads and national railroad organizations. That does not bode well for Rockland taxpayers.

Go to http://www.ble-t.org/pr/news/headline.asp?id=18521 to read more about the court case.

Next Up: Maine Boats, Homes and Harbors Show

The third great 2007 Rockland waterfront event is set to take place on Friday, August 10 through Sunday the 12th. Following the great success of the North American Blues Festival and the Maine Lobster Festival, publisher John Hanson and his great crew are in the process of setting up the grounds for New England's premier boat show.

This is the show where the finest of Maine's boat builders exhibit over 120 custom creations on the docks at Public Landing and on the grounds of Harbor Park. The show features some of Maine's finest artists, architects, boat builders, furniture makers, craftsmen, designers, marine gear vendors, and musicians. There are great food vendors and music played on show stages throughout the event.

My favorite event takes place on Sunday when the 5th Annual World Championship Boatyard Dog® Trials takes place. Watching the antics of these lovable boat companions is worth the price of a ticket.

Tickets for the Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors Show, will be available at both gates starting at 9:45 on the days of the show: $10 for adults, children under 12 free. No pets allowed. (Except of course for the contest entrants on Sunday).

Chief Justice Needs a Little Peace and Quiet

PORT CLYDE: Well by now the world is aware that Chief Justice John Roberts has been dismissed from Penobscot Bay Medical Center and is reportedly doing well following his seizure while vacationing at his summer home on Hupper Island, a few hundred yards off of Port Clyde. What was for a while the lead national story is about to be relegated to the back pages of the nation's newspapers.

TV trucks filled the parking lot at the hospital as reporters waited for the judge to emerge from the building. Apparently the political reporters lack the skills of the paparazzi that stalk Paris Hilton, for all they got out of their all night vigil was a long distance friendly smile and a wave from his honor as he jumped into his waiting red Ford SUV. Come on guys, you can do better than that. A nurse's outfit, a dime store stethoscope, it doesn't take much to go under cover here to get that $10,000 shot for People Magazine.

My sister called from the Midwest, having seen the Rockport byline on the story. She was surprised that the judge was here in the first place. I explained that there are many famous people summering along this part of the Maine coast. They’re here to enjoy the cool Maine summer with our spectacular scenery (where the mountains meet the sea). They’re here because of our proximity to Boston and New York but here because the local people give them their privacy. Politicians, musicians, writers, actors and other famous folk know that they can relax here in relative anonymity. We know they’re here; we just leave them alone and allow them to enjoy their time here on the coast of Maine.

So now let's give our famous neighbor some peace and quiet. Ship the sound trucks back to Portland and Boston. It's summer on the Maine coast and all is right with the world. -H-

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