The Town Line

The Town Line is a community newspaper that operates as a nonprofit entity in South China, serving over 20 towns in central Maine. Managed by a volunteer board of directors, The Town Line, Inc. relies on a team that includes a managing editor, bookkeeper, and advertising manager. Additionally, many volunteers play a crucial role in helping with the newspaper's weekly production and are always welcome to join. Incorporated under the Maine Nonprofit Corporations Act, The Town Line has received nonprofit status under §501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. The paper fulfills its mission primarily through revenue generated from local business advertising, along with memberships, subscriptions from community members, and support from private and municipal grants.

Local

English

Newspaper, Non-profit

Outlet metrics

Domain Authority

Ranking

Global

#3096140

United States

#1048707

News and Media

#20231

Traffic sources

Monthly visitors

Articles

SCORES & OUTDOORS: Surveillance report from UMaine Extension Tick Lab highlights tick-borne disease risk

2 days ago | townline.org | Roland D. Hallee

by Roland D. HalleeIn 2024, University of Maine Cooperative Extension Tick Lab processed 4,776 tick submissions including samples from 398 towns, representing all of Maine’s 16 counties. The majority (3,650) were identified as deer ticks, also known as blacklegged ticks, while American dog ticks accounted for 1,045 samples.
SCORES & OUTDOORS: One in three Mainers admits they have lost interest in playing sports

1 week ago | townline.org | Roland D. Hallee

by Roland D. HalleeRecently, LiveSportsonTV.com sent along this statistic. It’s truly disturbing that Americans have gone to couch surfing as their national pastime. I used to participate in many sports in my younger years – softball, golf, tennis, table tennis, hockey, volleyball – to name a few. One of the more interesting games was walleyball, where you play volleyball in a handball court using the walls – pretty intense. Today, I only play golf, for various reasons.
VASSALBORO: Conservation commission looks at three different projects

1 week ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowAt their April 9 meeting, Vassalboro Conservation Commission members continued planning work at two town parks; talked about the pending three-lake watershed survey; and rediscussed the contentious subject of cemetery trees. Chairman Holly Weidner added information on a record tree in town, a slippery elm measured in 2014 and listed as the largest in Maine on the Maine State Big Tree Registry.
China transfer committee members present list of goals

1 week ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowChina’s Transfer Station Committee members put revisions to the 2021 vision statement for the facility in near-final form at their April 8 meeting. The single-page document is a list of goals. Much of the discussion was about how to help China residents, and those in Palermo who use China’s facility, realize how much money recycling saves for local taxpayers.
CHINA: No new ordinance changes proposed for June 10 town meeting

1 week ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowChina Planning Board members devoted their April 8 meeting to review of town ordinances, with references to the town comprehensive plan. They decided a joint meeting with China’s comprehensive plan implementation committee would be a useful next step; chairman Toni Wall will invite that committee’s members to the May 13 planning board meeting. No more ordinance changes are proposed for the June 10 annual town business meeting warrant.
Vassalboro planners give approval to Novel Energy’s planned solar farm

1 week ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowVassalboro Planning Board members approved Novel Energy’s planned community solar farm, at 2235 Riverside Drive, at their April 7 special meeting, despite last-minute surprises from neighbors (see the April 20 issue of The Town Line, p. 9). Novel representative Ralph Addonizio brought the additional information board members requested at their April 1 meeting, an updated map showing required buffers and larger copies of the site plan, to accompany the two-inch-thick application.
Vassalboro school board initiates plans if school is needed for voting

1 week ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowBefore they began discussing the proposed 2025-26 school budget at their April 8 meeting, Vassalboro School Board members dealt with monthly business items. Major topics were how to prepare in case November voting is at Vassalboro Community School, and how to provide financial aid to families of students attending the Maine School of Science and Mathematics.
Up and Down the Kennebec Valley: Courts – Part 3 - The Town Line Newspaper

2 weeks ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowRemembering that Maine’s early population centers were along the coast, and mostly from Portland south, it is not surprising that three of Maine’s first four state Supreme Court chief justices came from that area. The first (mentioned last week) was Prentiss Mellen, from Portland, who served from July 1, 1820, to Oct. 11, 1834, when he reached mandatory retirement age. He was succeeded by Augusta’s Nathan Weston, serving from Oct. 22, 1834, to Oct. 22, 1841 (see below).
Vassalboro planners review Novel Energy’s proposal, again

2 weeks ago | townline.org | Mary J. Grow

by Mary GrowVassalboro Planning Board members again reviewed Novel Energy’s proposed community solar farm at 2235 Riverside Drive at their April 1 meeting (see the March 13 issue of The Town Line, pp. 2 and 3). Novel representative Ralph Addonizio gave each member a copy of an application almost two inches thick. Board members found it was missing necessary information: the updated site plan did not show the expanded buffers they had required at the initial review.
SCORES & OUTDOORS: The advantages of having Bobolinks around

2 weeks ago | townline.org | Roland D. Hallee

by Roland D. HalleeA couple of weeks ago a friend asked me about the songbird, Bobolink, and are there any in Maine. Well, bobolinks and other grassland birds are true agricultural allies to central Maine farmers – they eat large quantities of insects that damage crops. The Bobolink is one of the world’s most impressive songbird migrants, traveling some 12,500 miles to and from southern South America every year.