PORTLAND — Change is coming soon to Congress Square Plaza, and not just in the form of a renovated hotel or a controversial “event center.” Vinland, a 39-seat restaurant serving locally sourced food, is scheduled to open in early fall at 593 Congress St., on the eastern edge of the plaza. Since spring, the plaza […]

PORTLAND — The annual Peaks to Portland swim is a long-running city tradition, but many may not know that it’s been happening far longer than 32 years. With this year’s swim in Casco Bay coming up Saturday, organizers are trying to shed light on the event’s history, which goes as far back as the 1920s. […]

PORTLAND — The city’s first charter school is steadily renovating its building near Commercial Street and is on track to open this fall, school officials said this week. Baxter Academy for Technology and Science at 54 York St. still has a long way to go before it will be ready for students. But Kelli Pryor, […]

PORTLAND — Mayor Michael Brennan will host an informal public discussion of city policies and issues on Thursday evening, the first of what could be an ongoing series of such forums. “This is a bit of an experiment, and we’re still trying to think through the format,” Brennan said Monday. “But we’d like to try […]

PORTLAND — What may be one person’s trash, or at best forgotten on a closet shelf, may be another person’s museum rarity. Just ask Nancy 3. Hoffman, the founder, director and curator of The Umbrella Cover Museum on Peaks Island. (Yes, “3.” is Hoffman’s middle name, she explained. She changed it from “Arlene” 20 years […]

PORTLAND — Police made four arrests Sunday night during an undercover operation to combat prostitution in the city’s Parkside neighborhood, Assistant Chief Vern Malloch said Monday. Charged with engaging a prostitute were Robert S. Flagg, 61, of Westbrook; Jose O. Menjiva, 29, of Portland; Christopher C. Pierce, 32, of Naples; and Rumen Shopov, 55, of […]