South Portland get major donation

South Portland took in nearly $10,000 in donations during the first two weeks of December, including the gift of 2,500 in heating oil for the needy.

Through its local office on Clark Road, Global Companies LLC of Waltham, Mass., one of the nation’s largest wholesale fuel distributors and the owner of 190 Mobil stations across New England, gave 2,500 gallons of No. 2 home heating oil, worth $8,473 at the Dec. 10 retail price. The fuel will be used by the city’s general assistance program to make emergency deliveries to qualified residents in need. Sea Land Energy of Windham delivers the oil to residents for a discounted $50 fee, which the GA program covers.

South Portland’s general assistance administrator, Kathleen Babeu, says Global has made the fuel donation for several years now, but this year’s gift comes an a particularly opportune time.

“I can say we’ve definitely seen an uptick in need,” she said last week.

During the last fiscal year ending June 30, South Portland spent $11,074 to help residents buy home heating oil.

Through the first five months of the current fiscal year, the city spent $74,381 on all general assistance payouts. That’s up 20.5 percent over the same July-to-November period in 2011.

Last year, from July 1, 2011, to June 30, 2012, South Portland’s general assistance program spent $179,732 to help city residents with heating needs, groceries, rent and mortgage payments and other household expenses. Half of the amount is reimbursed by the state.

SB Legacy Lending LLC also recently gave $750 to the general assistance program, while an anonymous donor sent in $50.

In other donations accepted by the City Council Dec. 17, the Service Memorial in Mill Creek Park got $150 from Historical Society Director Kathryn DiPhillippo and $100 from resident Martin Asdourian to help buy paving stones to encircle the monument. Also, the O’Connor family of Bremen Street – Jill, Jocelyn, Calvin and Bryan – gave $100 to the library to help it buy new children’s books.

City Council sets committee assignments

At a Dec. 17 workshop, the South Portland City Council set its committee and board assignments for the coming year. Any resident with an issue relevant to any of the following groups is referred to the appropriate council or staff representative. Contact information appears on the city website, www.southportland.org.

• Bus Service Citizens Advisory Committee: Councilor Alan Livingston;

• Community Access Television Regulatory Board – Livingston and councilors Melissa Linscott and Patti Smith;

• City Sustainability Team – Smith and Mayor Tom Blake;

• Deferred Compensation Committee – Councilor Jerry Jalbert;

• Ecomaine Board of Directors (three-year terms) – Jalbert, City Manager Jim Gailey and resident Linda Boudreau;

• General Assistance Fair Hearing Board – Jalbert and Linscot;

• Great Portland Council of Governments General Assembly – Blake, Gailey, Livingston and Councilor Linda Cohen;

• GPCOG Executive Committee – Blake;

• GPCOG Steering Committee – Blake;

• Jetport Noise Advisory Committee – Livingston and resident Margaret Shaw;

• Long Creek Watershed District – Jalbert;

• Maine Municipal Association Legislative Policy Committee – Cohen;

• Maine Service Center Coalition – Gailey;

• Open Space Planning Committee – Smith;

• Regional Metro Transportation Coalition – Gailey;

• School Building Committee – Linscott and Livingston;

• Secondary School Facilities Committee – Blake and Livingston;

• Spring Point Lease Committee – resident Tom Coward;

• Trails Advisory Group – Blake and Jalbert;

• Waterfront Alliance; Smith and Transportation Director Tom Meyers.

In 2011, Livingston was removed from the school building committee at the behest of Chairman Ralph Baxter Jr., who said the councilor’s single-minded lobbying for things the group had already decided against, like a laundry facility, was proving disruptive to the process.

Gailey said Friday that there was “no council discussion” about Livingston’s appointment and “the school department was not consulted.” Superintendent Suzanne Godin could not be reached for comment.

In other appointments, whoever is elected to replace Coward, who will resign effective Jan. 2 when sworn in as a Cumberland County commissioner, prompting a special election to represent East Side District 1, will serve on the GA Fair Hearing Board, Spring Point Lease Committee and the Waterfront Alliance.

A council representative to the Comprehensive Plan Implementation Committee will be selected following an upcoming workshop session, at which the council is slated to decide how to staff the balance of the committee.

According to Gailey, the council also debated whether to upgrade the ad hoc Bicycle/Pedestrian Committee to standing status. It is served by Smith and, as chairwoman, resident Rosemarie De Angelis.

Council approves amnesty period for tickets

The South Portland City Council has approved an amnesty period on overdue parking tickets through Feb. 28, 2013.

Fines normally double if unpaid after 15 days of the issuance of a ticket, unless appealed to Cumberland County Unified Court, but the late fees will be waived in hopes people will make good on their old tickets.

City Manager Jim Gailey said notices will be sent “in the next couple of weeks” to holders of “hundreds” of outstanding tickets dating to 2009. Finance Director Greg L’Heureux has said the city would take in “about $136,000” if all delinquent parking tickets were paid.

The amnesty offering follows council passage Dec. 3 of an ordinance update that will allow the clerk’s office to deny registration renewals on any car belonging to a person with unpaid parking tickets. That rule went into effect Dec. 23.

Labor unions subject of presentation

The Greater Portland Genealogical Chapter will hold their monthly meeting on Saturday, Jan. 5, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at 29 Ocean House Road in Cape Elizabeth.

The meeting will begin at 12:30 p.m. with a social time that includes refreshments. The program will begin at 1 p.m. The speaker will be Charles Scontras, who will speak on Maine labor unions. He is an historian and research associate at the Bureau of Labor Education at the University of Maine and author of “In the Name of Humanity: Maine’s Crusade Against Child Labor.”

Following the speaker program, there will be a business meeting. At the December meeting, the officers for 2013 were elected. They are: Paul Doucette, president; Sue Hawes, vice president; Pat McBride, treasurer; Lois Knight, secretary; and Diane Brakeley and Lynne Holland, program chairs.

For more information, contact Doucette at 839-2593.

Homer topic at history meeting

The monthly meeting of the Scarborough Historical Society will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 2, at 7:30 p.m. A brief business meeting is held and followed by a presentation. This meeting is held at the society’s museum and meeting room located at 647 Route 1 (adjacent to the Dunstan Fire Station). All monthly meetings are free to members of the public. However, donations are always welcomed. The presentation is about one hour in length.

This program was postponed in November due to weather conditions. However, Karen Sherry, curator of American Art, will present a program related to the Portland Museum of Art and, primarily, show pictures and discuss the restoration and the newly opened Winslow Homer Studio. Updated information regarding Homer’s life and his professional work and information relative to his studio will be informative. Winslow Homer is certainly one of the legends of Scarborough. His life and professional work at his home/studio at Prout’s Neck is world known.

Library offers senior iPad workshop

The Scarborough Public Library, 48 Gorham Road, will offer a skill-building iPad workshop for Scarborough seniors on Wednesday, Jan. 16, from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Snow date is Jan. 23. Pre-registration is required.

Seniors new to the iPad will learn how to find, borrow, and read eBooks from the Scarborough Library collections. This hands-on program will show iPad owners how to use the e-Reader function, including how to download eBooks to their iPad using the Cloud Library and the Download Library eReader collections.

Participants will also learn some tips and tricks to maximize their use and enjoyment of this popular device. An iPad and related Apple ID information is needed to download free eReader Apps. Class size is limited to 10 with no walk-ins.

This program is free. Registration is required by calling 883-4723, ext. 6279 or emailing cas@scarborough.lib.me.us.

Cape Elizabeth’s Sadie Stiles swims in the 100-yard breaststroke in a meet against Westbrook last Friday. Stiles, 13th in the event at the state meet last February, won the race in a time of 1:13.55 as the Caper girls swept all the events on the way to a 124-28 victory.