Thumbs up to Maine Energy’s decision to eventually move its processing out of Biddeford, thereby eliminating most of the smell and traffic that have made up the core of complaints against the trash incinerator ”“ or so it is hoped. Much is left to work out, including deciding which municipality will accept a processing facility, but this is a step in the right direction of helping the downtown thrive.

Thumbs up to Principal Christian Elkington, Superintendent Frank Sherburne and the students and staff of Massabesic High School for getting serious about improving the school’s image and test scores. The school hasn’t been that far off from meeting the goal of Adequate Yearly Progress in recent years and the extra dose of pride and respect that Elkington is offering to students might just be enough of a push to get them off the AYP failing list.

Thumbs up to Waterboro Elementary School students and staff for making it off the Adequate Yearly Progress “continuous improvement priority school” list by making AYP schoolwide this past year. Training for teachers and tutoring for students has been at the heart of the plan to turn the school around and they should be proud of their accomplishments.

Thumbs up to all of the volunteers and business people who donated time and services to bring The Ballpark back to life. The first event at the revamped venue this past weekend, Woofstock, was a success and a tribute to the hard work of those who believed The Ballpark should be more than an eyesore ”“ it should be a community asset.

Thumbs up to the implementation of the new FEMA maps that depict flood zones. Though residents may not like it because they will have to pay for flood insurance in areas that did not previously require it, there is no getting around the fact that flood zones change and the maps must reflect that change. If your house is in a flood zone, the insurance is a good idea and there’s no sense trying to get out of it.

Thumbs up to the Town of Wells for extending the moratorium on water extraction. Debate is  heated in the town over likely efforts by Poland Spring bottling to commercially extract water and more time to contemplate the impacts of such a venture ”“ and how to respond to it ”“ will be a good thing. Since the proposed regulatory ordinance is up for a vote  next week, the town must be prepared in case it is voted down.