{"id":1324,"date":"2026-03-31T05:56:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T09:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/?p=1324"},"modified":"2026-03-31T05:56:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T09:56:00","slug":"03-31-26-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/31\/03-31-26-news\/","title":{"rendered":"03-31-26 News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two 19-year-olds charged in connection to Belfast fire<\/strong><\/p>\n

After Belfast police and fire responded to a fully engulfed structure on Friday, two 19-year-olds have been arrested.<\/p>\n

The state’s Fire Marshal’s office says 19-year-old Isaac Cummings and 19-year-old Rowan Locke, both of Belfast, have been taken into custody.<\/p>\n

Police say authorities determined the fire was intentionally set and both were charged with arson.<\/p>\n

The two have been taken to Somerset county jail with bail set at $10,000.<\/p>\n

Blue Hill residents prepare for vote on public safety building<\/strong><\/p>\n

During an annual town meeting on Saturday, April 4, residents in Blue Hill plan to vote on important matters.<\/p>\n

The decision to fund work for design and construction of a new public safety building will be at the forefront.<\/p>\n

The Ellsworth American says the town has provided a list of issues with the current building pointing out the lack of an exhaust system, poor insulation, the concern of disabling emergency services during a severe storm and more.<\/p>\n

The publication reports a town vote could strengthen the chance of approval for the funding application.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.ellsworthamerican.com\/news\/blue-hill-to-hold-public-safety-building-vote-saturday\/article_3a36b009-5a86-4ac6-b352-d4b78de15d1a.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Maine\u2019s Paid Family Medical Leave program opens<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Monday, applications for Maine\u2019s Paid Family Medical Leave program officially opened.<\/p>\n

The program offers up to 12 weeks of pay for Mainers who qualify and will cover medical, parental, military family and safe leave.<\/p>\n

According to WMTW, the state began collecting a 1% tax from worker paychecks and employees to build the funding.<\/p>\n

Maine joins 13 other states and Washington D.C. with similar programs.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.wabi.tv\/2026\/03\/30\/applications-maines-paid-family-medical-leave-program-open-monday\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Gas prices inch closer to $4 per gallon<\/strong><\/p>\n

As of Monday morning, gas prices across the state are inching closer to $4 per gallon.<\/p>\n

On Monday, the average price for a gallon of regular gas was $3.83 which is four cents up from last week.<\/p>\n

WABI news reports diesel in Maine has also gone up averaging at $5.72 a gallon which is nearly 15 cents higher since last week.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.wabi.tv\/2026\/03\/30\/maine-gas-prices-approach-4-per-gallon\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Coffee Klatsch at Ellsworth Public Library<\/strong><\/p>\n

There\u2019s nothing like conversation over a cup of joe or tea if that\u2019s your liking.<\/p>\n

For seniors in the area, the Ellsworth Public Library wants to do just that.<\/p>\n

On Friday, April 3, the library will host their \u2018Coffee Klatsch\u2019 where seniors can create connections over a warm beverage.<\/p>\n

The social gathering starts at 9 a.m. on the main floor of the library which is located at 20 State Street.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.ellsworthmaine.gov\/coffee-conversation-and-a-new-word-for-your-week\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Portland Pie Place to expand into wholesale business<\/strong><\/p>\n

After feeding the community through their food truck at a slew of community events and hotspots, the couple who owns Portland Pie Place food truck are expanding.<\/p>\n

The couple decided they will pivot their business to sell wholesale to area restaurants, pubs, and specialty stores.<\/p>\n

WABI news reports the couple naked a few thousand pies each week and this will be a great way to ensure their handmade pies don\u2019t go to waste while reaching father into the community.<\/p>\n

To learn more about the business, where you can get your favorite pies and more, just follow the link below.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.wabi.tv\/2026\/03\/30\/searsport-couple-expands-meat-pie-food-truck-into-wholesale-business\/?utm_source=taboola&utm_medium=organicclicks&tbref=hp<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two 19-year-olds charged in connection to Belfast fire After Belfast police and fire responded to a fully engulfed structure on Friday, two 19-year-olds have been arrested. The state’s Fire Marshal’s office says 19-year-old Isaac Cummings and 19-year-old Rowan Locke, both of Belfast, have been taken into custody. Police say authorities determined the fire was intentionally […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1324"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1324\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/star977fm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}