WINDHAM

Town to consider monitoring noise from live entertainment

The Town Council will meet Tuesday night to consider changes to the town’s amusement ordinance that would monitor noise levels at businesses offering live entertainment. A public hearing will be held at 7 p.m. at Windham Town Hall.

The changes include testing sound levels in 15-minute intervals and determining when town officials could collect the data. The ordinance says the maximum sound at a performance should not exceed 50 decibels when measured four feet above the ground at the property line.

Town Manager Tony Plante said the proposal is an effort to address ongoing complaints from residents about noisy bars.

He said the proposed amendments would be used to determine if a business is in compliance with the town’s amusement ordinance.

PORTLAND

Season brings 71 ships, 75,563 cruise passengers

The cruise ship season is rapidly coming to an end as the fall foliage season draws to a close.

The final two cruise ships of the 2010 season, the Jewel of the Seas and the Crystal Symphony, are calling on Portland.

The Jewel of the Seas, carrying 2,112 passengers, was scheduled to arrive Sunday. On Friday, the Crystal Symphony, carrying 940 passengers, will visit Portland for her maiden call, and to close out the season.

Those visits will bring to 71 the number of cruise ships visiting Portland this year, carrying a record-setting 75,563 passengers.

Co-creator of price index to speak at housing forum

The co-creator of a widely used barometer of national home values will speak at the Maine Affordable Housing Conference in Portland.

Karl Case, co-creator of the Case-Shiller Home Price Index, will speak today at the Holiday Inn by the Bay as part of a panel with Maine economist Charles Colgan. They will discuss the future of Maine’s housing market.

The conference keynote speaker is Donna Beegle, nationally known lecturer and author, who will detail her experience in rising from poverty.

ORONO

Study: Elders’ need for legal services to exceed resources

A new study says the number of older Mainers needing legal services will outweigh available resources in the future.

According to the study by the University of Maine Center on Aging, up to half of all older adults in the state will need legal assistance in the next five to 10 years. Among low-income elderly, the percentage is higher, with 45 to 86 percent of residents in their 60s needing legal intervention to help solve problems.

The nonprofit Legal Services for the Elderly and the Maine Office of Elder Services commissioned the study.

Jaye Martin of Legal Services for the Elderly said he hopes the study will help to guide the agency to those most in need.

AMITY

All-terrain vehicle accident leaves 47-year-old man dead

The Maine Warden Service says a 47-year-old Amity man has died in an all-terrain vehicle accident.

Officials said Mark Howell’s ATV crashed into trees off Estabrook Road in Amity. Wardens were contacted at 2 a.m. Saturday.

Wardens searched during the night, and Howell was located around 8 a.m. Saturday. He was not wearing a helmet and was dead at the scene.

The incident remains under investigation.