Belfast city manager / Local partisan politics / Perfect spring hikes

Today is Thursday. Temperatures will be in the high 40s to low 50s, with heavy rain throughout the state. Here’s what we’re talking about in Maine today.

Here’s the latest on the coronavirus in Maine

Another five Mainers died and 251 coronavirus cases were reported across the state on Wednesday, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The statewide death toll now stands at 743. Check out our COVID-19 Tracker for more information.

Puritan Medical Products will receive up to $147 million from the Department of Defense to renovate a facility in Orlinda, Tennessee, and prepare the space to produce millions of foam swabs used to test for the coronavirus by February 2022.

Belfast is surviving the pandemic thanks to its city manager, who was sworn in 3 days before Maine’s 1st COVID case

Belfast City Manager Erin Herbig, who took office just a week before the pandemic came to Maine, reflects on her first year on the job. Credit: Abigail Curtis / BDN

When she was sworn in as Belfast’s new city manager on March 9, 2020, Erin Herbig was facing ordinary issues as budget drafting and resolving development disputes. But on March 12 that changed.

Maine’s local politics has taken a distinctly national turn

Fort Fairfield Town Councilor Bob Kilcollins talks in February about the Second Amendment sanctuary resolution the town passed. A number of other Maine towns have followed suit, as local politics becomes increasingly nationalized. Credit: Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli / BDN

National partisanship is now trickling down to local politics.

4 of 5 Maine adults who haven’t received COVID-19 vaccine plan to get it

A marquee sign along Central Street in Millinocket informs people where to register for a COVID-19 vaccine. Credit: Linda Coan O'Kresik / BDN

It’s one of the highest rates in the nation and a positive sign as the state hopes to achieve population-level immunity from the deadly virus.

Prosecutors: Mainer charged in Capitol siege threatened Chellie Pingree if she voted to impeach Trump

Kyle Fitzsimons of Lebanon has been charged in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Credit: Courtesy of federal court documents

Kyle Fitzsimons allegedly threatened to “give it to her hard.” He also allegedly told a staffer that “we’re coming for her,” meaning Chellie Pingree.

A Mainer’s digital art gallery raised $9M on the latest crypto craze

Jonathan Perkins of Portland sits at a desk in his Munjoy Hill apartment, where he runs one of the leading online marketplaces for non-fungible tokens, the digital collectibles that are fueling a new financial craze. Credit: Troy R. Bennett / BDN

Many dismiss it as a bubble, but Jonathan Perkins’ company SuperRare said Tuesday that it drew a $9 million round of venture capital from billionaire investors including Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

Maine dancers’ 1st live indoor performance will pay homage to our pandemic year

Dancers with the Portland Ballet rehearse at the Westbrook Performing Arts Center on Wednesday March 31, 2021 in preparation for their first in-person, live performance since an outdoor show last fall. Credit: Troy R. Bennett / BDN

Nell Shipman, the ballet’s artistic director, said it’s time they got back on stage in front of a live audience.

6 hikes in Maine that are perfect for spring

The first major overlook on Hatchet Mountain Trail offers an open view of Hobbs Pond, Bald Mountain and Ragged Mountain.

Many hiking trails are great to visit during this time of year, and the sunshine and birdsong beckon us outdoors in the spring, to hike and explore the waking wilderness.