Thumbs up to those who have stepped up to fill the nine vacant seats of the York County Budget Committee, bringing the board to its full capacity of 15 members fro the first time in years. It took the lay-offs of several sheriff’s deputies and county employees to get people interested in helping to manage the county finances, but hopefully they will stay on past this period of turmoil and use their combined expertise to steer the county in the right direction.

Thumbs up to the mayoral candidates in the City of Biddeford, who took part in a structured, congenial debate Friday, Oct. 9 to discuss their visions for the future of the city. The four, and the students who questioned them, should be commended for giving voters an inside look at each candidate’s positions.

Thumbs down to the efforts of certain Goose Rocks Beach residents who want to close the beach to the public. If such sentiments are allowed to consistently prevail, there will be no beach access for anyone but the richest among us. Any problems the residents are having with beach-goers can be addressed through current law.

Thumbs up to Doug Sanford and his plans for North Dam mill and also to the City of Biddeford for helping him move those plans along. Sanford is planning retail, office and industrial use as well as a performance arts space and a food court in this latest phase. Parking has been raised as a possible problem area ”“ let’s hope that projects like Sanford’s make the downtown popular enough for parking to become a problem to be addressed.

Thumbs up to Christina Conway and her fellow volunteers who are taking action to keep Stop & Shop in Kennebunk open by submitting a petition to the corporate office. Word has come down that the location is due to close by the end of the month, and its supporters’ efforts will most likely be futile. But one never knows how much impact a few voices can make. The company may decide that closing the store would be a poor public relations move or realize that the community sees it as an asset and give the location more time to meet their expectations.

Thumbs down to the change of plans for the Sanford Mill redevelopment. The town had hoped that the building would be part of the downtown renaissance, with a mix of businesses and apartments, but it looks as though it’s going to be low-rent housing instead. It’s tough for councilors to voice their concerns about this without coming off as snobby or elitist, but their concerns are valid ”“ one need only take a walk through a low-rent district to understand that it’s not what they had in mind when they took the building over by eminent domain earlier this year.

Thumbs up to the four broadband Internet expansion proposals recommended by Gov. John Baldacci for federal funding. The Internet is becoming an integral part of daily life, from shopping to communication to research, making it harder to get along without it. The funding would allow the infrastructure to be built that would make it easier for  those in rural areas to gain access to this resource and give a Biddeford company ”“ Great Works Internet ”“ a major contract.

Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you would like to respond, please write the Reader’s Forum via e-mail at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford or Sanford offices.