WESTBROOK

Father, who is a minor, charged in baby’s assault

The father of a 32-day-old child has been charged with aggravated assault.

Westbrook police Capt. Tom Roth said the baby is being treated at Maine Medical Center with an apparent skull fracture and bruising.

Roth said police were notified of the child’s injuries by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services. Such notification is standard when a child suffers an injury that is questionable or inconsistent with the described circumstances.

Roth said the assault allegedly occurred Saturday at a home on Cole Street. The child’s father, who is a minor, was arrested after he and several other people were interviewed.

OGUNQUIT

Fire marshal investigating blaze at Rose Cove Cafe

Route 1 was shut down Monday night after a fire broke out in the Rose Cove Cafe on Main Street.

A police dispatcher said the fire, which was reported around 8 p.m., was quickly brought under control. No one was injured.

Firefighters were still at the scene late Monday night, trying to determine what started the fire. The state Fire Marshal’s Office was brought in to investigate.

AUGUSTA

Forestry award presented to Yarmouth’s tree warden

The former Yarmouth tree warden who cared for the giant elm nicknamed “Herbie” has been recognized for his years of work with trees.

The Maine Forest Service dedicated its annual community forestry excellence award to 101-year-old Frank Knight, who tended to Herbie for decades before the tree was cut down in January after succumbing to Dutch elm disease.

As part of Monday’s Arbor Day Celebration at the Maine State Museum, Gov. John Baldacci presented the 2010 Frank Knight Excellence in Community Forestry Award to Debra Hopkins, Yarmouth’s current tree warden, for her work in preserving Herbie and developing the “Herbie Project” tree trust.

The governor also presented the National Arbor Day Foundation Poster Contest Prize to John Lane, 11, of Yarmouth, a fifth-grader at the Harrison Middle School. The theme for the poster was “Trees Are Terrific energy wise!”

PORTLAND

Driver whose car hit moose remains in critical condition

A Portland man remained in critical condition Monday night, one day after his car collided with a 500-pound bull moose.

Justin Webster, 31, had to be extricated from his 1997 Chevrolet Lumina after it hit the moose on Oak Hill Road in Standish late Sunday night.

A passenger in Webster’s vehicle suffered injuries that were not life-threatening. The moose was killed.

 

Jetport celebrates service to Toronto by Air Canada

Officials at the Portland International Jetport are celebrating new service between Maine’s largest city and Toronto.

Firetrucks gave a water-cannon salute as the first flight landed late Monday afternoon.

Air Canada’s twice-daily service with a Beech 1900D will help connect the home of TD Banknorth Financial Group in Toronto with executive offices of TD Banknorth in Portland.

Jetport marketing manager Greg Hughes said Toronto is a major international hub, providing additional opportunities for international travel.

The Portland airport was without international service for a time. Now, Toronto is one of two Canadian cities served from Portland. The other is Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.

DOVER-FOXCROFT

Missouri firm gets option to purchase furniture plant

An out-of-state company has taken out an option on a well-known manufacturing plant that has been vacant for the past three years.

Selectmen in Dover-Foxcroft have given Arnold Development Group of Kansas City, Mo., a one-year option to buy the former Moose-head Manufacturing furniture plant. The town took ownership of the four-story, 85,000-square-foot plant after Moosehead Manufacturing shut down.

The redevelopment proposal calls for a mix of retail, office space, light manufacturing and/or housing with a minimum investment of $4.8 million over four years.

BANGOR

Group rallies to support protester who was arrested

Opponents of Plum Creek Timber Co.’s planned development in the Moosehead Lake region are rallying behind a man who was arrested while protesting the plan.

The Bangor Daily News said about 30 people gathered Monday outside the Penobscot Judicial Center, where Christian “Will” Neils, 33, of Appleton is on trial for refusing to submit to arrest, disorderly conduct and carrying a concealed weapon, a knife.

Neils and five other people were arrested at a meeting of the Land Use Regulation Commission in September, shortly before the board approved the sprawling resort and residential development at the gateway to Maine’s North Woods.

The prosecutor says that Neils was loud and disruptive, and that police were right to arrest him. Neils’ attorney says police went too far.