PORTLAND — The Portland Public Schools for the first time will offer online student registration. The pilot program, for kindergarten only, is an attempt to minimize errors and make enrolling students quick and convenient for families. Kiosks connecting parents to a new registration portal will be available at each elementary school starting Feb. 26. Parents can […]

PORTLAND — Laying down a musical track no longer requires a studio filled with expensive equipment and musicians; it can now be done with a laptop computer, or even a cell phone. That’s one reason Jake Hoffman, partnership program coordinator at the 317 Main Community Music Center in Yarmouth refers to this digitized form of music […]

PORTLAND — While all those involved seem to agree it’s important to move on and set aside differences, the appointments process for the School Board’s new Building Committee has been controversial and emotional. The latest kerfuffle occurred when School Board member Marnie Morrione walked out of a Feb. 6 workshop. Morrione left following renewed debate over […]

PORTLAND — Skiers and snowboarders are invited to flash their moves Saturday, Feb. 17, at the Payson Park Rail Jam. The event, from 12:30-3 p.m., is a fundraiser for the expansion of the city skateboard park on St. James Street, city spokeswoman Jessica Grondin said in a press release Monday. “The Payson Hill Terrain Park […]

PORTLAND — With Deputy City Manager Anita LaChance preparing to retire in July, the city has started the search for her replacement. “We are looking for someone who will bring new ideas … who will push the envelope with me,” City Manager Jon Jennings said Feb. 8. Applicants have until March 1 to respond to an ad […]

PORTLAND — Zoning rules and land use on Munjoy Hill will be discussed at public meetings Feb. 26 and March 24. Both sessions will be held at East End Community School, 195 North St. The Feb. 26 meeting begins at 7 p.m., the March 24 meeting begins at 11 a.m. City Councilors on Feb. 5 approved […]

PORTLAND — A 14-year-old girl, missing since Jan. 27, has returned home. Police Lt. Robert Martin said Hilda Vanessa Sanaguaray-Upaya was found unharmed in New York City Feb. 10 by New York Police Department detectives. Martin said Sanaguaray-Upaya’s family lived in New York before moving to Portland. Sanaguaray-Upaya, a student at Deering High School, was last seen […]

PORTLAND — Temporary design standards for Munjoy Hill construction and the concert lineup for the Maine State Pier gained City Council approval Monday night. Mayor Ethan Strimling’s desire to serve as a council representative on the Greater Portland Transit District wasn’t successful; councilors instead returned former Councilor Ed Suslovic to the transportation board. Under the new […]

PORTLAND — The first part of revising rules for hiring, training and promoting police and firefighters proved easy at the City Council meeting Monday night. Changing rules pertaining to the Police Citizen Review Subcommittee was more contentious; councilors and Mayor Ethan Strimling argued for an hour over how to proceed during a 3 1/2-hour meeting in […]

PORTLAND — Can the political divide be bridged when those across the spectrum not only come to the table with their opinions firmly embedded, but with their own sets of facts, too? That’s the question Waynflete School, a private school on the city’s West End, is attempting to answer with a program designed to bring juniors […]