2008: A year in review

• The Caribou City Council presented the Caribou Children’s Discovery Museum committee with a 1.68-acre parcel of land on Glenn Street, to serve as the future home for the museum. • ATX in downtown Caribou announced the company was changing direction. Scores of ATX employees received an e-mail informing them of a meeting to discuss strategy for the upcoming tax season but once the meeting started employees were instead informed of how the sales and technical support segments of the business were moving to Rome, Ga. Employees were faced with two options, either move or lose their jobs.
• Officials with the United Way of Aroostook announced plans to conduct a County-wide search to find the top vocalist in northern Maine via the fourth Aroostook Idol.
• Aroostook County residents experienced above average snowfall already with a total accumulation of 76. 4 inches already  in the Caribou area, which was 31.7 inches above average for that time of year.
• More than 50 displaced ATX employees attended sessions to learn about unemployment benefits and retraining opportunities after losing jobs at the ATX facility.
• In a 5-2 vote, the Caribou City Council re-elected Miles Williams as mayor during a brief public session.
• Meagan Lyn Martin became Caribou’s New Year’s baby when she arrived at 9:11 p.m. Jan. 2,  at Cary Medical Center.
• Discussion became heated during the Caribou City Council meeting when a councilor questioned why taxpayers were being asked to pay for bleachers and flooring coverings for the new Wellness Center. The cost of the items was not included in the original bid.
•The Limestone Community School Committee unanimously approved entering a contract with McCormick Consulting, a company which aids schools in facilities management.
• Scott Willey was unanimously elected as chair of the Caribou School Board.
•An estimated 400 Aroostook County residents depending on weekly assistance with household chores and errands faced losing that help due to Gov. Baldacci’s plan to curtail the state budget.
• Research began on the Bubar farm in Fort Fairfield regarding a very different type of crop — wind with the placement of a tower featuring several anemometers, measuring wind speed and wind direction vanes.
• Thirty year Aroostook County law enforcement veteran, Daniel Robertson, known as a “go to guy”, received state-wide recognition from his peers for his work.
• Alan Moir, of Woodland, was named Young Farmer of the Year by the Maine Potato Board. Working with his father and brothers, Moir Farms produces 700 acres of potatoes annually.
• Floor coverings and bleachers for the new community wellness center were approved by the City Council but not before another heated discussion about accountability surrounding the project. The council voted 5-2 to spend $68,918 for the two items which had not been included in the original construction bid.
• Brian Monson, 34, of Caribou, was charged with arson in connection with a fire which occurred at his mother’s trailer home.
• More than 200 potato growers and other industry members attended the 23rd Maine Potato Conference held in Caribou. The event featured about 30 presentations from Cooperative Extension scientists, state industry officials, with the primary subject relating to how the efficient use of water and energy would be key to successful agriculture in the future.
• The Limestone Selectpeople met to consider renewal of the dispatching contract with the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Department.

February

• During his review of the $8.4 million Caribou city budget, City Manager Steve Buck said that if the budget is not changed and the city’s valuation stayed the same, taxpayers could see a .53 decrease in their tax bills.
• The U.S. Department of Labor issued a Request for Proposals, (RFP) for the continued operations of the Loring Job Corps Center in Limestone.
• Philip Knowlton of Woodland, was the sole Aroostook County recipient  of the governor’s Silver Star award.
• Fire and Ambulance Department Chief Roy Woods warned the public to ignore calls from phone scammers claiming to be raising funds for the Caribou Fire and Ambulance Department.
• A City Council member left a meeting in apparent frustration after he was not allowed to voice his opinion on a proposed labor contract for the Caribou Public  Works Department.
• The Caribou School Board met to discuss current initiatives at the Caribou Technology Center.
• After nearly 60 years of being located in the Star City, the American Red Cross moved to Caribou.
• State police continued the investigation into the death of a Woodland man who was found dead in his sawmill on the Thomas Road in Woodland.
• As part of the Aroostook Medical Center’s consolidations plan, the Horizons Health Center in Limestone was scheduled to close by the end of the year. Nearly 700 patients received medical care at the site.
• State police asked for the public’s help in the investigation into the death of Darrel F. Smith, 56 of Woodland.
• A 7-year-old local child , Marissa Emily Lloyd Forbes, was killed during a two-vehicle crash on an icy road in Woodland.
• After coming to a complete stop at the intersection of Hershel and Prospect streets, rather than turning right or left, a pickup operator drove directly across the street and into the garage adjoining the parsonage of the Gray Memorial United Methodist Church. According the Caribou Police Officer Doug Bell the 1998 GMC pickup took out a stairway, as well as the garage’s supports before lodging halfway through the back wall of the structure.
• After three shows in northern, southern and central Aroostook county a field of over 40 contestants has been whittled down to nine hopefuls competing for the title of Aroostook Idol.
• It was only a matter of time before the question came up: What’s to be down with all the snow?, as street safety becomes the main concern in snow removal.
• State police have concluded that a Woodland man, Darrel F. Smith, 56,who was found dead in his sawmill early in the month was shot to death and that the case will be treated as a homicide.

March

• Officials representing the city were scheduled to testify against a proposed state law that would allow state Native American tribes, including the Aroostook Band of Micmacs and Houlton Band of Maliseets, to have the same powers as a municipality in areas such as law enforcement and education.
• Larry Doody, 55, a local snowmobile shop  owner was killed in a snowmobile accident in New Sweden.
• Erin Buck, a sophomore at Caribou High School, beat out eight other singing contestants from throughout the county, capturing the 2008 Aroostook Idol title.
• At 158.8 inches of snow, approximately 13 feet, the winter of 2008(to date) tied the record for the second highest total snow amount on record, which was set in 1981-82 season.
• Aroostook Family Investment Center received a three-year $375,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to assist aging and disabled clients get the help they need to remain in public housing.
• Molly Bouchard, 17-year-old-daughter of Jeffrey and Bonnie Bouchard was named Miss Caribou 2008.
• The long-awaited opening of the new $3 million Wellness and Recreation Center drew hundreds of spectators for its grand opening.
• Two local business in the Skyway Plaza were evacuated when a propane gas leak was discovered on the roof of the building. Employees at the Maine Department of Health and Human Services and staff and students at Pierre’s School of cosmetology were told to leave the buildings after a strong smell of propane was detected. According the Caribou Fire Chief Roy Woods a half-inch propane fuel line had broken on the roof that led to the heating system.
• The Limestone School Committee agreed to have a comprehensive study of the community school completed by M.E. McCormick Facilities Management consultants with assistance from Trane Energy and Environmental Services of Westbrook. The basis of the study was to determine the feasibility of retaining the school as it was currently operating.
• A plan to revitalize the city’s business areas was approved by the City Council by a vote of 5-2. In a marathon session lasting nearly four and one-half hours, the council also debated which route a proposed bypass should take around the city.
• Jim Mockler, a lifetime resident of Caribou received the 2008 Citizen of the Year Award, at the annual Caribou Chamber of commerce and Industry dinner.
• As a result of a blizzard snowstorm the old record of 181 inches of snow set during the winter of 1954-55 was surpassed. The new season total was 186.3 inches, according to officials at the National Weather Service in Caribou.
• The Caribou Board of Education members were presented with a proposal regarding a facilities energy performance contract, which would entail a study of how energy could be saved within a particular building.

April

• The greater Limestone Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with the Limestone Rotary Club named David King, Citizen of the Year.
• Natasha Lucy  Bishop captured the title of 2008 Junior Miss Caribou.
• Gov. John Baldacci was in Caribou to speak with emergency management officials regarding the potential for flooding and the need for help to cope with the costs of snow removal.
• Committee members from the Caribou Children’s Discovery Museum, met with Tim Doak, (BR Smith Associates),  who is the design  architect for the museum project. The proposed energy efficient green building is to be located on Glen Street.
• The Caribou School Board of Education was still waiting and watching for the legislative action, regarding the state’s position on school consolidation.
• Kyleigh DeMerchant claimed the Little Miss Caribou 2008 title during the annual pageant held at the Caribou Performing Arts Center.
• With a larger than usual amount of snowfall, weather forecasters were predicting widespread minor flooding throughout Aroostook County. According to officials  emergency shelters were being identified and supplies stockpiled in the even of flooding. Areas labeled as “at-risk” were in Allagash, Van Buren, Washburn and Fort Fairfield.
• A former animal control officer claimed his rights were violated when town officials fired him when he claimed he was questioned illegally about a disability. Rodney Haskell filed the complaint in Aroostook County Superior Court. In the four-count claim, Haskell was asking for $10,000 for each alleged violations and other damages for emotions distress and costs of the lawsuit; he also was asking for his job back, retroactive pay and other relief the court deems just.
• Despite expectations to the contrary, in a 5-2 vote  the Caribou City Council approved an $8.5 million spending plan for the year. The budget represented a 3.5 percent increase.
• City officials approved a resolution that would endorse the alternative plan called 4B regarding a new highway that would connect U.S. Routes 1 and 161. The approved direction which would have the least impact on agriculture, historical property and wetlands.
• The Federal Emergency management Agency denied the state’s request for emergency assistance to help with the costs of snow removal after an already burdensome winter. State and local emergency management officials scrambled to gather more information to prove how Aroostook  county suffered during the Easter weekend blizzard.
• The state’s only magnet school signed an agreement with the University of Maine at Presque Isle that allowed students to complete at least one semester of college before graduating from high school.
• First Lieutenant Jason R. White assumed command of the Maine Army National Guard 185 Engineer Support Company during the Change of Command Ceremony. White assumed the command from outgoing Captain John Wilmot during the prestigious event.
• The Maine Legislature’s passage of a jail consolidation law would not save Aroostook  County any money, according to the country’s administrator Doug Beaulieu.
• A new organization was chartered in Aroostook county at the DFAS Limestone facility. Representatives of the Association of government Accounts welcomed its newest chapter, Aroostook County , to its ranks.
• With funds desperately needed for the Aroostook County Disaster Relief Fund, a division of the red Cross, a local grocer (Sleepers) decided to help bridge the financial gap by selling “American Red Cross Champion Cards” for $1 or more to each customer. The funds raised would benefit the local disaster relief fund.
• Life skills, relationships and personal responsibility were among the issues addressed by a new mentoring program at the Loring Job corps Center.
• A short play, A Tea in heaven, written by local historian Dr. Philip B. Turned, about four female spies during the Civil War was the result of a class that the playwright taught regarding the historic “war between the states. While the audience was served tea and sandwiches at the Gray memorial United Methodist Church, four women told their stories around a tea table, awaiting entrance into heaven.

May

• Members of the Caribou Board of Education approved a budget of $15,465,943, a 1.7 percent increase.
• Students in a Caribou Alternative High School class  placed third in the Northern Regional Envirothon, enabling them to participate in the state competition which was to be held at Unity College.
• Education officials in School Union 122 were continuing to struggle to come up with budgets that match dwindling state funds and increasing costs prior to annual town meetings and other deadlines.
• A group of Limestone residents were working hard toward seeing an expansion of the Robert A. Frost Library become a reality. The Capital campaign/focus group was in the midst of raising $300,000 toward the estimated $680,000 needed to fund the project. To date, $380,000 had been received through applied grants and memorial donations.
• The effort to form a consolidated school organization for several central Aroostook  County schools, including Caribou  and F ort Fairfield was restarted with most participants meeting in Woodland appearing frustrated and confused regarding the latest changes made by the concluded session of the Maine Legislature. “If the lawyers can’t figure it out and the state Department of Education can’t figure it out, what are we doing here?” asked Patricia Anderson, a consolidation member from Westmanland Plantation.
• Although more than $600,000 has been approved for flood relief assistance to individuals since President Bush signed the major disaster declaration for Aroostook County, federal officials believed there were still more that had not applied for the available help. More than 300 households had registered for assistance and 220 had visited the disaster recovery centers in Fort Kent, Van Buren and the mobile center.
•  The fact that City revenues were down while expenses were on the increase was the succinct summary offered by a city councilor following a lengthy review of the first four months of the municipal budgets.
• Captain Jerry Drake of Caribou received the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award from the Federal Aviation Administration, for his 50 years of flying service.
• A new plaque, commemorating the Caribou Performing Arts Center’s 20th anniversary was hung in the entrance to the city’s premier performing arts facility, listing businesses and individuals who had donated to CPAC’s celebration activities.
• The Caribou Board of Education members approved the proposal of a full-day kindergarten program.
• The City of Caribou became the headquarters for federal and state agencies providing relief and assistance to those areas ravaged by one of the worst floods to hit northern Maine in recent history.
• The town of fort Fairfield was recognized as the only StormReady community in the state of Maine.
• The Caribou Rehab and Nursing Center in Caribou celebrated 35 years in the business.