Visitors enjoy sitting on the town dock in Castine’s harbor area. The dock was destroyed by the January storms, but the new decking material will allows waters from storm surge to rise through while encountering less resistance. PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Building a better waterfront

But even as the storm raged, Harbormaster Scott Vogell was planning the rebuild. Rather than return the decking—which was the typical wood, an estimated 3-3/4-inches thick by 8-inches wide—Vogell inquired about new materials. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Public, private don’t always play nicely

Imagine the reaction to a town renting out offices in a public library built through the beneficence of Andrew Carnegie a century ago. Or a John D. Rockefeller-donated carriage trail in Acadia National Park being turned into a for-profit go-cart track. It’s not quite as dramatic as all that, but… SEE MORE

Jimmy Steele poses with the beginnings of one of his legendary peapods in a photo by Everett “Red” Boutilier. PHOTO: PENOBSCOT MARINE MUSEUM

Working Waterfront

Intriguing photo reveals a boat’s essence

I have always been drawn to unusual photographs. I love how the camera can take a slice out of the real world, which, once removed from its context, becomes a riddle for the viewer to figure out. I had this reaction when I first saw the accompanying photograph of Jimmy… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Community at the heart of resilience plan

Our community resilience plan was created this way, with residents offering what they had to give, their knowledge of history and place, their ideas and visions, and what they valued. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Historic buildings live on

Not long ago—well, I guess that just because I remember it doesn't mean it wasn't long ago—Vinalhaven’s downtown was an architectural wonderland, lorded over by three Second Empire Victorian structures, each three stories, and a fourth building, marginally more magnificent, but lacking the Victorian’s mansard. This fourth edifice was the… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Raspberry bounty leads to recipe

Seven or eight years ago I asked my neighbor Mary, who was off island at Surry Gardens to buy some plants, if she would pick up three small raspberry bushes for me. It has always been my dream to have a raspberry patch in my own yard, one that would… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Oh for a life on the rolling sea…

First things first: I have to express my gratitude to all of you who reached out after my last column. I did, very fortunately, find out that my biopsy was benign. I also learned a lot about how commonly experienced, and how terrifying, this process is for so many people.… SEE MORE

The fog lingers over Lunt Harbor. PHOTO: TOM GROENING

Working Waterfront

Sunbeam cuts through foggy day

On Frenchboro, more than 100 people sat on the church lawn to eat lobster, which had been donated by island fishermen, and bid on various donated goods and services. The event is a fundraiser for the church. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Christa Thorpe brings global perspective to Bremen

To connect with others is a deeply human experience, and Christa Thorpe has been fostering those connections her whole life through roles as teacher, community development coordinator at Island Institute, school committee member, and chairwoman of a town broadband committee. SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Bike and walk to a better climate future

Climate change arguably is one of the biggest challenges we face as a nation, as a world. It is a challenge that does not have a single solution, but requires us to deploy a wide range of actions to drastically reduce global warming, pollution, and to prepare for the climate… SEE MORE