Thumbs up to the Biddeford School Committee and City Council for setting aside a time last week to hear from those who are concerned about air quality at Biddeford High School. The industrial hygienist hired by BHS students has suggested the same measures that are already planned. We hope the situation will cool down as parents and students see that their health concerns are being addressed as appropriate to the results of studies at the school.
Thumbs up to Sanford’s Allen Mapes, who is heading up an effort to raise funds for an upgrade to Goodall Park. The baseball park is an important asset to the town and has not been renovated in more than 10 years, despite heavy use. Mapes’ efforts should be supported by others in the town and surrounding areas who enjoy the park ”“ and by those who may benefit from new uses that it could host after a sprucing up.
Thumbs up to the Biddeford Solid Waste Commission for conducting a survey and contest for ideas on how to increase the recycling rate in the city. The commission plans to pursue education and advertising about recycling to help residents realize its importance. Part of their efforts will also be to remind Biddeford residents that the city does have a recycling facility for a few types of plastics, tin cans, glass, paper and cardboard. Unfortunately, their efforts will probably have little success in significantly increasing the recycling rate until the city institutes a curbside pickup program. It is an embarrassment that York County’s major city still requires residents to store up their recyclable trash and haul it to the transfer station themselves ”“ something few people are willing to do, no matter how often they’re told that it’s a good idea.
Thumbs up to Arundel Recreation Director Jenn Dumas for pushing the town to reconsider its parking ban near the Eastern Trail. Selectmen recently put a ordinance in place that prohibits people from parking anywhere near the trailhead, suggesting instead that people walk down the busy road ”“ which has no sidewalks ”“ all the way from town hall. This approach is arguably more unsafe than the sight distance problems that parked cars pose and keeps residents from making use of this public asset. Hopefully, a compromise can be reached to put in a small parking lot for trail users this spring, a plan to which selectmen now seem amenable.
Thumbs up to Mark Johnston of Saco for his inspired choices of worthy causes to receive funds from a lawsuit that was settled between him and the Maine Energy Recovery Company. Whatever one thinks of Johnston’s decision to sue the company for its odors, there is no arguing that he is putting the $30,000 settlement to good use, with $15,000 in donations so far toward restoring the Civil War statue at Eastman Park; for lighting upgrades at the Saco Museum; and for the Historic Preservation Commission to conduct surveys of potential historic buildings.
Thumbs up to all those who volunteered their time to complete service projects to mark Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 17. First Parish Congregational Church in Saco has a particularly notable program, offering personal care and laundry services to those in need, and coordinating with social service agencies to make people aware of what’s available for them. The students of local Interact, National Honor Society and other youth groups should also be commended for helping out their communities in various ways to honor the legacy of Dr. King.
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Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you would like to respond, please write the Reader’s Forum via e-mail at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford or Sanford offices.
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