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Welcome to Monitor Local, an initiative of The Maine Monitor to provide people in Western Maine with a new source for local news about their communities.
It's Wilton's turn to join a long list of Maine towns undergoing property revaluations, which means a year from now Wilton taxpayers can expect to receive new valuations and tax rates. Letters will be sent to property owners explaining the entire process in detail before they receive a visit from an assessor.
While the school year is still fairly young, there's good news at the Mt. Blue Campus where students — now cell phone free — are "more focused, engaged and socially present." Mt. Blue High School and the Foster Career and Technical Education Center banned the use of cell phones in classrooms at the start of the school year.
Students are required to drop their phones into magnetically locked pouches at the start of the school day, and teachers are reporting fewer distractions and more focused students in class. Teachers are also reporting more interaction between students, particularly in hallways, and a "calmer school culture overall."
Tuesday is Election Day, and there are a number of issues to be decided in towns across the state, including two statewide ballot questions. Find out what the voting hours are in your town, and get out and vote. Your voice matters.
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Wilton has launched revaluation assessment; property values could double: Wilton follows at least 10 western Maine towns that have
gone through revaluation since 2022: Carthage, Temple, Jay, Livermore Falls, Farmington, Starks, Sumner, Buckfield, New Sharon and Oxford. Read this story by Bob Neal
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Donations needed for third house being renovated in Waterville for low-income families: The Waterville Community Land Trust needs to install heat pumps for its third project home in the Milliken Neighborhood to continue renovations over the winter. Read this story by Judith Meyer
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Improvements to Farmington’s Main Street, Hippach Field given preliminary review: The project includes shifting the centerline of Main Street through the curve near the Sweatt-Winter Child Care and Early Education Center to make it less sharp. Read this story by Ben Hanstein
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‘Transformational’ cell phone ban delights RSU 9 staff: The district is using Yondr pouches to prevent students from accessing their cell phones during the school day. Read this story by Ben Hanstein
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While The Maine Monitor does not place its content behind paywalls, some newsrooms we link to in this newsletter may.
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Ahead of two judges ordering the Trump administration on Friday to use contingency funds for SNAP payments during the shutdown, local efforts to bridge the gap ramped up in Rumford. | Rumford Falls Times
In related food pantry news, The Old School Food Pantry in Mexico has lost nearly half of its monetary backing in recent months. | Rumford Falls Times
The government shutdown is impacting MaineHousing’s heating aid program. | WMTW
Oxford County has started its budget process with a draft spending plan that would represent a decrease in the county’s tax assessment, but more changes are likely. | Sun Journal
West Paris residents are debating the future of the Agnes Gray Elementary School, which was closed in early 2024. The town must either acquire it from MSAD 17 or allow the district to sell it. | Advertiser Democrat
Kingfield grocery store Mainely Provisions has reopened with lower prices and a greater variety as an independent Hannaford affiliate. | Rangeley Highlander
Mt. Blue-area schools report 251 students learning at home this year. | Franklin Journal
Jay residents will vote on whether or not to accept an updated comprehensive plan as part of the Nov. 4 ballot. | Franklin Journal
In Bethel, a Greenwood man is attempting to start the first wood bank in Oxford County. | Bethel Citizen
It could be a snowier winter this year, with more temperature variation and storms than previous years. | WGME
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Have feedback, a correction or know of something we should look into? Send it to our newsroom. You can reach Monitor Local editor Judy Meyer directly via email: judy@themainemonitor.org.
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.
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