Four candidates for City Council opening

All four South Portland District 1 residents who took out papers to fill the City Council seat vacated by Tom Coward, who resigned Jan. 1 to become a county commissioner, will appear on the ballot, according to South Portland City Clerk Susan Mooney. All four met the Friday deadline for returning the minimum number of qualified signatures.

The candidates for the March 12 special election are: Richard “Rick” L. Carter of Thompson Street, Robert A. Foster III of Front Street, Michael R. Pock of Grand Street and Rob W. Schreiber of Stanford Street.

Three of the candidates hold other positions with the city, which they would have to relinquish if elected. Carter is the chairman of the school board while Schreiber sits on the city’s Planning Board. Foster sits on the energy and recycling committee. Pock is a self-employed carpenter. The winning candidates will serve out Coward’s term, to November 2014.

District 1 represents South Portland’s east end, including the Willard Square and Ferry Village neighborhoods. However, voting is open to all city residents. Polls will be open from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. at the South Portland Community Center, 21 Nelson Road. Residents may obtain absentee ballots at city hall, or request that one be mailed by calling 767-7601. Residents may vote in person via absentee ballot at city hall until March 7, the Thursday before the election.

City schools adding new security buzzers

In the wake of the Dec. 16 school shooting in Newtown, Conn., the Cape Elizabeth School Board put the fast track on new security doors at its three school buildings to deny entry to anyone not “buzzed in” by the main office. Now, South Portland has taken the same tack, putting a similar contract out to bid.

The systems were planned in both districts, officials say, but gained added momentum following the Newtown tragedy. The plan in South Portland is to install a buzzer system, along with audiovisual equipment office staff can use to interact with visitors, at all five elementary schools and at the front entrance of the high school. The middle schools already have such security. Dyer Elementary will require electrical systems work to accommodate the new equipment. Superintendent Suzanne Godin said last week that bids are due back later this month and that the new security measures should be in place by “late winter or early spring.” Godin said money for the upgrades (expected to ring in around $40,000) will comes from unspent money in a reserve account created the last time the elementary schools were renovated.

Cape Elizabeth Superintendent Meredith Nadeau has said the door upgrades in her district should be installed over February vacation. No cost estimate has been released, but Nadeau said that even after a $200,000 state subsidy curtailment announced last month, savings on fuel and insurance contracts should leave enough room to reallocated funds from the department’s operating budget.

City annual report online

South Portland’s annual report is hot off the presses, or available for digital download at southportland.org. As usual, the 72-page report is chock full of financial data and department reviews for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2012.

But could this be the last such report issues in the city? A bill before the state Legislature, submitted by Rep. Archie Verow of Brewer would excuse any municipality that does not hold an annual town meeting from publishing an annual report.

According to South Portland City Manager Jim Gailey, in reply to emailed questions, that exemption would save South Portland roughly $1,700 annually in printing costs, not to mention staff time from the in-house production. But would South Portland take advantage of such an exemption, if available? Gailey’s email did not contain a reply to that part of the inquiry.

Library plans vacation events

The Scarborough Public Library is offering free programs for children and families that are sure to solve the “what to do” problem during February vacation.

The library’s monthly Pajamarama story time for children ages 4 and up will be offered a second time on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 6:30 p.m. Wear your PJs and bring your favorite thing to cuddle to hear beloved tales based on the theme “What to Wear Today?” And children will create and color paper clothes for their own paper doll of Jesse Bear, a favorite story time character.

In place of the weekly story times, a special Readers Theater will be presented on Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 10:30 am. A selection of stories will be acted out by talented children volunteers and members of the Library’s Youth Room staff.

And of course, the library offers a wide selection of books, audio and eBooks, and movies to read, listen to, and watch together – all free with a Scarborough Public Library card.

Check the Library’s website for more information at www.scarboroughlibrary.org, or call the Library Youth Room at 883-4723, option 3. All events are free and open to the public.

Local students honored

The following students from your readership area have been named to the dean’s list at Husson College for the fall semester 2012

Cape Elizabeth: Sarah M. Gleeson and James M. O’Rourke.

Scarborough: Victoria L. Fortin, Amy M. Jorgenson, Kylie R. Prosser and Sonya M. Walker.

South Portland: Curtis J. Chapin.

Fairfield University has announced that the following local residents have been named to the dean’s list for the fall 2012 semester: Daniel Jones, of South Portland; Sarah Marshall and Julie Passarelli, both of Scarborough; and Lindsay Stephen, of Cape Elizabeth.

The following local students have been named to the dean’s list for the fall 2012 semester at the University of Rhode Island: Amanda Ellen Junkins of South Portland, Cameron M. Elliott of Scarborough, Elizabeth A. Hardy of South Portland, Garret C. Hazelwood of Scarborough, Jack H. Clark of Scarborough, Louis A. Perrotta of South Portland, and Matthew Merritt Propp of Cape Elizabeth.

The following local residents were named to the Wake Forest University fall 2012 dean’s list: Brian Brett of Cape Elizabeth, and John Passarelli of Scarborough.

Dominique Burnham of Scarborough has been named to the dean’s list for the fall 2012 semester at Salve Regina University. Burnham is a freshman majoring in accounting .

The following students from Colgate University were recipients of the dean’s award for academic excellence during the 2012 fall term at Colgate University: A member of the Colgate class of 2014, Nathan Lynch is a graduate of Scarborough High School and lives in Scarborough; and a member of the Colgate class of 2015, Sarah Cummings is a graduate of Cape Elizabeth High School and lives in Cape Elizabeth.

Summer Solstice tour set

The Scarborough Garden Club Summer Solstice Garden Tour will be held June 22, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., at the Historic Hunnewell House, on Black Point Road, a half-mile down from Route 1 Oak Hill area, in Scarborough.

The Summer Solstice garden tour features eight unique gardens to visit. Arrow signs will guide you to each garden around Scarborough. The tour is held rain or shine. Limited advance tickets will be available starting June 1 for $15. Proceeds go toward the club’s scholarship fund and its many other community projects.

Tickets on the day of the tour will be $20, while they last. For more information, call 956-2753.

Scholarship available

The deadline to apply for the Joseph A. DiPietro Scholarship is May 15. The scholarship serves students in the Portland Water District’s member communities who will be attending college and are striving towards the same mission as PWD – protecting public health and the environment. To apply or for more information on eligibility and criteria, go to www.pwd.org.

The Joseph A. DiPietro Scholarship was established in 2003 in memory of respected businessman and longtime Portland Water District trustee, Joe DiPietro.

Scarborough Garden Club ?to meet

The Scarborough Garden Club’s monthly meeting will be held Thursday, Feb. 21, at 12:30 p.m., at Hillcrest Community Recreation Center, 108 Hillcrest Ave., Scarborough.

The program is a demonstration on making fabric flower pins with guest speaker Elaine Toher.

Guests and new members are always welcome, and meetings are free unless otherwise noted.

For more information, visit http://home.roadrunner.com/~garden/ or call 510-1514.

Lt. Frank Clark of the South Portland Police Department presents a token of sympathy from the American Cancer Society to, from left, Kathy, Kelly and Ian MacVane, surviving family of Officer Peter MacVane, who died Dec. 5 after a long battle with cancer, one of the many causes for which he continued to raise funds up until his final days. At the same Jan. 23 City Council meeting, state Sen. Rebecca Millett also presented the family with a copy of a legislative sentiment when both houses adjourned in “honor and lasting tribute” to MacVane.    
Five South Portland firefighters were honored at Monday’s City Council meeting under a new awards program launched by the Fire Department. Shown at the event are, from left, Call Company Officer of the Year Capt. Phil Viola, Call Company Firefighter of the Year Lou Leary, Fire Chief Kevin Guimond, Mayor Tom Blake, Deputy Fire Chief Stephen Fox, Fire Officer of the Year Lt. Phil Selberg and EMS Provider of the Year Brian Cousino. Firefighter of the Year Phil Rumery could not be at the ceremony.