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I hope everyone had a fun Thanksgiving (and a safe one, given the weather). Winter is definitively here, and those of us that enjoy winter sports are pulling our skis, snowshoes and sleds out of storage.

Last year, the western Maine foothills received more than a foot of snow at around this time, followed a couple weeks later by torrential downpours that caused widespread flooding that closed state roads, completely isolated communities and claimed four lives. 

The state commission that spent months studying that and other storms has made a series of recommendations, which include better coordinating emergency response and additional technical support for communities.

Hopefully, the state will have a quiet season to allow those changes to be implemented and we will be able to focus more on ski conditions and less on flood reports.

Maritime officials fear ‘catastrophic’ outcome if mariner shortage worsens

A number of factors, including the pandemic, have left the U.S. with a marked shortage of merchant mariners, who largely work on commercial ships that at times transport weaponry and supplies to the U.S. military, provide disaster relief and support international trade.

Many mariners have postponed retirement so the true magnitude of the situation has yet to be felt.

Read this story by Jacqueline Weaver of The Maine Monitor

While The Maine Monitor does not place its content behind paywalls, some newsrooms we link to in this newsletter may. 

ICYMI from The Monitor: In the first major update to assisted living and residential care regulations in more than 15 years, Maine DHHS has proposed significantly increasing staffing requirements, among other changes. | The Maine Monitor

Sugarloaf Mountain began its winter season Wednesday morning, with skiers and riders greeted by eight inches of snow. | Daily Bulldog

A survey of 1,600 voters in the Oxford Hills school district indicated support for a new, state-funded $70 million elementary school in Norway. | Advertiser Democrat

There are more than 7,000 affordable housing units in Maine, particularly in rural portions of the state, that are supported by USDA mortgage subsidies, which are increasingly ending as the mortgages mature. | Maine Public

ICYMI from The Monitor: Maine outlines steps needed for climate resilience | The Maine Monitor

Selectmen in Livermore discussed spending the town's remaining American Rescue Plan Act funding on a number of local projects. | Franklin Journal

A $735,000 project that would construct two Gateway Connectors in town-owned parking lots and improve the 35-mile long Rangeley Lakes National Scenic Byway. | The Rangeley Highlander

Recounts of close state legislature races largely upheld the initial results, leaving Democrats with slimmer majorities over Republicans in the State House. | Maine Public

Know of a story that we should be digging into? Send it to our newsroom. 

The Maine Monitor is a publication of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, an independent and nonpartisan nonprofit news organization that produces investigative journalism. We believe news is a public good and keep our news free to access. We have no paywall and do not charge for our newsletters. If you value the reporting we do for Maine, please consider making a donation! We cannot do this reporting without your support.