A version of this story first appeared in the Morning Update newsletter. Sign up here to receive the Morning Update and other BDN newsletters directly in your inbox.
Happy Tuesday!
It’s going to be a chillier day with temperatures in the low 40s and low 50s.
Our dry spell is not changing anytime soon, according to the National Weather Service, which won’t help the deepening drought. The coast from eastern York County to the edge of Hancock County is either in a severe or extreme drought. That severe drought reaches deep inland and across the northern third of the state.
Meanwhile, we are a week out from Election Day, and that means the major parties are pulling out all the stops to sway undecided voters and get their base to the polls.
This week U.S. Sen. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, waded into the 2nd District race, endorsing Democrat Matt Dunlap. King, a former governor whose terms in the Blaine House overlapped with Dunlap’s time as a state representative, called the state auditor and former secretary of state “tough and smart.”
“He also has been a strong advocate for the sportsmen and women of Maine,” King said. “In fact, he has a hunting license. He can represent the whole Second District. I think Matt will be a great member of Congress, and I look forward to working with him.”
The race also has drawn endorsements for Paul LePage from President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, who called the 2nd District race one of the “top five” in the nation.
King, though, has been silent in the race top of most Mainers’ minds this cycle: the U.S. Senate showdown between Susan Collins and Troy Jackson. King backed Collins in her 2014 reelection bid but stayed quiet in 2020 and is again this year.
Historic downtown Bangor building being converted into apartments
New housing doesn’t always need new buildings. Especially in historic downtown areas, where upper floors often sit vacant and unnoticed for years or even decades.
In downtown Bangor, the upper floors of a five-story building with curved glass windows facing the intersection of State and Harlow streets is being renovated into 14 studio apartments.
The Pearl Building, as it’s known, went up after the Great Fire of 1911 and served as office space for the Pearl & Dennett Co., a large insurance and real estate company that was outlived by the building named for it.
How long the upper floors have been vacant is one of those “as long as anyone can remember” things. But amid the housing shortage, turning those spaces into apartments seems so obvious that it’s a wonder no one did it sooner.
“More people in the downtown area are going to inevitably help the downtown businesses as well the overall atmosphere and spirit of the downtown,” said Zack Pike, one of developers behind the plan. “More people here means a more thriving community.”
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From the Opinion Page
“For nearly a decade, Democrats have had complete control in Augusta, and what do they have to show for it?”
Opinion: Elect Republicans to turn Maine around