April 18, 1990

Mayor Fred Wescott said in advance of last night’s Westbrook City Council meeting that he would veto the council’s acceptance of Mill Brook valley land from the Woodbury Estates developer. And he seemed more optimistic that his veto would stick. “I believe this project should by reviewed by the Department of Environmental Protection,” he said.

Aldermen were handed a $12,490,027 Westbrook city budget last night, calling for a tax rate of $14.88 for city government, up 12.3 percent from this year’s $13.24. The School Committee is working on a budget of $15.6 million, calling for a tax rate of “more than $24.64,” up more than 19.3 percent from this year’s $20.64.

Westbrook School Superintendent Edward Connolly publicly criticized the American Journal last week for printing an anonymous letter April 4 that said, “After Mr. Connolly got his money he hired teachers, created new jobs and programs.” Connolly denied that was the case. “We haven’t hired anybody for new positions.” The American Journal reported that 54 employees have been added to the Westbrook School Department in Connolly’s years as superintendent. The numbers were derived by counting names in the school department’s annual directory. In the 1984-85 directory, in Connolly’s first year, 347 names were listed. In the 1989-90 director, that number grew to 401.

Celebrity guests will read from their favorite books in celebration of National Library Week, April 25 at Baxter Memorial Library in Gorham. Guest readers will be Channel 13 weatherman Paul Cousins, local author Sis Boulos Deans, and David Kurz, Gorham police chief.

Bowdoin College sophomore Brendan Rielly, son of Edward and Jeanne Rielly of Westbrook, is one of 92 national Truman Scholars recently named. He will get a stipend of up to $7,000 a year for his next two years of undergraduate study, and for up to two years of graduate study. The scholarships honor promising students who plan careers in public service.

Eric Vanni, a senior at Westbrook High School, has been given the 1990 Principal’s Award, sponsored by the Maine Secondary School Principals’ Association. He is the son of Bruce and Judith Vanni, Duck Pond Road.

Gorham issued building permits for $675,000 worth of construction in March. The largest single permit was for $250,000 to S.D. Warren Co. for repairs on the Dundee Dam.

April 19, 2000

Not only is the proposed Gorham Middle School on the “fast track,” it could also be on the racetrack. One of seven sites being considered for the new $16 million school is the former harness racing track on Narragansett Street, school Superintendent Michael Moore said yesterday. It’s within walking distance of the high school but on the other side of the street. Hannaford Bros. owns the 75-acre parcel. Another site being considered is the town-owned, 50-acre Weeks property, off South Street, Moore confirmed.

There were still some sticking points yesterday on the road to an agreement between the Hamlet mobile home park and its tenants association before court cases including those parties and the city of Westbrook will be dismissed. One is reportedly a request by park owner Ham/Westbrook LLC that all tenants sign a lease. “We haven’t seen the proposed lease and its terms,” Tina Schneider, attorney for the tenants association, said. “All I am comfortable saying is, we’re working on the settlement agreement itself, and in doing that, there are some provisions that we still need to discuss with the other side,” Schneider said.

Two yellow pylons about 3 feet high have been placed at each of three crosswalks on William Clarke Drive in midtown Westbrook. They are the city’s answer to complaints that the busy state highway is a peril to pedestrians trying to get to or from the downtown business district. Those complaints swelled after the Jan. 9 death of Patricia l. Harris, 44, of Westbrook, after she was hit by a pickup truck while crossing William Clarke Drive near Brackett Street.

For Westbrook’s Todd Fields, being Maine’s Teacher of the Year is an opportunity to promote the value of vocational education. Since winning the award in September, he’s been busy spreading that message to educators and service organizations all over the state. Now he’s going national. Fields, 35, will be in Washington, D.C., May 9-11 to meet President Bill Clinton and participate in a ceremony in which the National Teacher of the Year will be announced. Fields said he is not one of those finalists.

The Gorham High School Chamber Singers will make a three-day trip to Montreal for the Heritage Festival Music Competition, May 4-7. The School Committee approved the trip Wednesday. Choral director Darrell Morrow said the Gorham singes received “many first-place honors last year” at the same festival. Music ensembles from all over the U.S. and Canada will attend, he said. He added that the group of 26 students has set a goal of scoring in the top three of its divisions.

Clement Maxwell built this house and a barn at 214 Main St. in the late 1800s. This house and barn, with a large tract of land, was used for farming and remained in the Maxwell family until it was sold by John Maxwell around 1977. The property was purchased by a real estate broker representing Shaw’s Supermarkets with plans to clear the land and build a store on the site. The barn was resold, dismantled and taken out of state. The house was used by the fire department for live fire training. Shaw’s later decided to build a store at Pine Tree Shopping Center and this land remained undeveloped until it was purchased by the Lee Auto Dealership, which now occupies this site. The Maxwell family was prominent in Westbrook for many years and also owned the Deer Hill Farm with a large tract of land across the street at 201 Main St. Westbrook City Hall and adjoining office building are on the site of the farm buildings. The farmland was developed into house lots and the area took the name Deer Hill, which was the original name of the Maxwell Farm. To see more historical photos and artifacts, visit the Westbrook Historical Society at the Fred C. Wescott Building, 426 Bridge St. It is open Tuesdays and Saturdays, 9 a.m.-noon, and the first Wednesday of each month at 1:30 p.m., September-June. Inquiries can be emailed to westhistorical@myfairpoint.net. The website is www.westbrookhistoricalsociety.org. Photo courtesy of the Maxwell family; research courtesy of Mike Sanphy.

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