The County

1 week ago | thecounty.me | Chris Bouchard

PRESQUE ISLE, Maine – Presque Isle City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a $3 million dollar increase to a USDA loan that will help the city pay for a multimillion-dollar airport terminal project, bringing the total loan amount up to $15 million. The term of the loan was also changed from 40 to 30 years. Interim City Manager Sonja Eyler introduced the item to council during a special meeting, acknowledging the project’s magnitude and concerns that community members have about its cost.

1 week ago | thecounty.me | Chris Bouchard

PRESQUE ISLE, Maine – Three people shared comments about a major Loring Commerce Center water rate hike during an April 16 public hearing hosted by the Maine Public Utilities Commission at Northern Maine Community College. The rate hike would charge consumers roughly ten times more than before. For 900 cubic feet used per quarter, the previous rate was roughly $40. Under the new rates, it would cost $471 per quarter for the same amount.

1 week ago | thecounty.me | Chris Bouchard

FORT KENT, Maine – Fort Kent Town Council will hold a public hearing on Monday, April 28 in which residents can weigh in on proposed changes to the town’s charter. Town Manager Suzie Paradis discussed some of these changes during an April 14 council meeting. The first change would be to move the annual town meeting to the third Tuesday of March. Town Council meetings would also occur monthly instead of biweekly on Mondays.

1 week ago | thecounty.me | Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli

HODGDON, Maine — A northern Maine school district has adopted language pushed by the Trump administration that only recognizes two sexes of students — biological males and females — and bars students from using private spaces reserved for members of the opposite sex.

1 week ago | thecounty.me | Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli

A white supremacist has taken out an advertisement in a small northern Maine newspaper promoting a book-burning event later this year — a public display that reflected a growing comfort that hate groups have felt in promoting their messages in Maine and elsewhere in recent years. While racist groups have long used keyboard activism to spread their messages online, where it’s easy to remain anonymous, they’re now using various tactics to spend more time in the public eye.