Aug. 17, 1988

Four years ago, Gorham school officials were told by their attorneys not to sue, but to work with the firms involved in a major repair job of the high school gym roof. That advice appears to have come back to haunt them. Now, many leaks later, the department is faced with at least an $80,000 bill to tear off the flat roof and completely replace it, and not only that, it must also come up with around $50,000 more to replace the gym floor that was damaged beyond repair by the water saturation. School officials hope the roof and floor can be replaced in time for basketball season. The Town Council will be asked to issue a bond for the roof replacement costs, a long as they come in under $100,000. Money for the new floor could be taken out of the school department’s operating budget.

Westbrook aldermen voted in committee Monday for replacing the flat roofs at Saccarappa and Prides Corner schools with pitched roofs. The flat roofs leak, and the one at Saccarappa is so low that young people take bikes up there and otherwise damage it. Superintendent Edward Connolly said he could get a contractor’s guarantee of no leaks for 10 years with a pitched roof, whereas Westbrook Junior High School’s flat roof began leaking after a year and a half. Aldermen voted to recommend borrowing $350,000 this year for the two pitched roofs. After the vote, however, they found out that the work may be delayed until next year, so they may put off the borrowing.

Felgar Nicely, Mighty Road, Gorham, proprietor of Nicely’s Market, Route 25, greeted his regular customer with some concern recently. It was Richard Remick, reserve officer with the Gorham Police Department, who was moving with some difficulty because of two cracked ribs. “How’d it happen?” asked Nicely. Came the short answer: “Oh, you’ll probably read about it in the American Journal.” Wondering what calamity had befallen the police officer, Nicely asked Mrs. Remick to enlighten him. “Would you believe,” she answered with a chuckle, “a 41-year-old man could fall out of a tree while playing hide and seek with his children!”

Full page advertisement: Congratulations to Two State Champions – American Legion Baseball, Stephen W. Manchester Post, Westbrook, and United States Swimming, The Westbrook Seals.

A dinner was held for Stanley Zelensky Sr., Cumberland Street, in honor of his retirement from S.D. Warren after 46 years.

The Moonbeams, an a capella quartet, will give a free performance Aug. 25 from the Phinney Bandstand in front of the Gorham Municipal Center.

Aug. 19, 1998

Saying that it’s too easy now for someone to drop by and sell dope, new Westbrook High School Principal Peter Curran will keep most of the school’s outside doors closed, and he also wants the School Committee to ban the wearing of hats and coats during class. Coats provide a place to stash drugs, he said. Curran is taking over as principal after two years as assistant principal. Curran also welcomes the addition of a full-time police officer to the school staff, he said.

The Westbrook City Council is expected to decide at its meeting Aug. 24 how to ask the voters on the Nov. 3 ballot if they want change in the city’s charter. One suggested change would create staggered terms for City Council members. Other changes discussed would be three-year terms for all city officials, increasing the amount the mayor and school department can spend without council or School Committee approval, and limiting the mayor’s power to dismiss city employees without council approval. The wording of how all the proposed changes will appear on the ballot must be decided before a public hearing on the matter.

The Westbrook School Committee refused Wednesday to buy $5,000 worth of books for the high school library, objecting to some choices made by the librarian, Deborah Locke. No one said so, but the targets appeared to be chiefly book on sexuality, including five on homosexuality. There was concern that the selections are made by an individual without requirements for consultation and review.

At age 29, Herman is a pretty laid-back individual. Herman is an eastern painted turtle owned by Ida Junkins, Chicopee Road, Buxton. He spends the better part of each day on the windowsill in her kitchen, watching the traffic go by. She bought him at Bradlees in Westbrook as a birthday present for her oldest son Kurt in 1969. He’s still in the Junkins home.

The Casco Bay Concert Band, founded in South Portland in 1980 and currently led by Dr. Peter Martins, professor of music at University of Southern Maine, is leaving South Portland for Gorham. The band will rehearse and hold concerts in Gorham High School’s auditorium. With the growth of the South Portland school system, the band had less and less rehearsal time and space to store instruments. The band’s first choice was to move into the new South Portland High School auditorium, but its request was rejected. Many other school systems in the area were approached until Gorham “welcomed the band with open arms.”

Because of continuing construction at Westbrook High School’s athletic fields, all fall season sports games and cross-country meet will be held away. Athletic Director Walter Hanson said that the football field has been completed, but cannot be used for another year so that grass can property root.

50 Years Ago

The Westbrook American reported on Aug. 14, 1963, that Dennis O’Brien of Cressey Road in Gorham is a chef at Atlantic Hotel at Kennebunk Beach.

Dana Elliott of West Buxton is a patient at Maine Medical Center in Portland.

Hebert’s West End Market operated from this building for many years. Hebert’s went out of business several years ago and the building was purchased by Peter Profenno after his restaurant at 920 Main St. was destroyed by fire. The building was renovated and is now Profenno’s Pizzeria & Pub. To see more historical photos and artifacts, visit the Westbrook Historical Society at the Fred C. Wescott Building, 426 Bridge St. Inquiries can be emailed to westhistorical@myfairpoint.net. The website is www.westbrookhistoricalsociety.org.