Members of the city’s public works department, where 17 of 60 maintenance positions are unfilled, are working grueling overtime shifts to make up for the openings.
Grace Benninghoff
Staff Writer
Grace covers city hall and Greater Portland for the Press Herald. She previously covered reproductive health for Texas Monthly and served as the local host of All Things Considered at Vermont Public. Before moving to Maine, Grace attended Columbia Journalism School in New York City and spent many years in Colorado and Oregon working in the non-profit sector. When she isn't reporting you can find her trail-running with her dog Loma, practicing her Spanish, surfing, or making pottery.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Portland City Council votes 9-0 to approve new housing program for homeless
The plan to put homeless people directly into long-term housing was passed as a one-year pilot and will be put into action immediately. The council also voted unanimously to continue the expanded shelter capacity until June 3.
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Posted inBusiness, Local & State, News
Portland Housing Authority vacating Bayside apartments after serious mold complaints
The building’s manager says his complaints were ignored until he posted photos online, leaving families living in unsafe conditions for months. The housing authority’s executive director admits that the agency took too long to address the problem at 25 Boyd St.
Posted inLocal & State
Portland council will vote on program to get homeless people directly into housing
The HOPE program would aim to get people living on the street into a house without a stop at the shelter.
Posted inLocal & State
No major encampments are left in Portland. So what’s next for the city’s homelessness task force?
The Encampment Crisis Response Team was formed to respond to an acute encampment crisis. Now that those camps are gone the future of the group is in limbo.
Posted inLocal & State
‘We can’t be everything to everyone’: Portland mayor warns city of looming costs
Mayor Mark Dion says he is concerned about budget challenges and plans to lobby the Legislature for more funding.
Posted inLocal & State, News
Portland facing possible 9.5% tax hike as City Council begins budget process
The council got its first look Monday night at the challenges going into next year as it begins months of work on the 2025 budget.
Posted inLocal & State, Politics
Maine Republican announces bid to unseat King at Collins’ urging
Demi Kouzounas, the former chair of the Maine Republican Party, announced on Friday that she will run against independent Sen. Angus King for his U.S. Senate seat. Sen. Susan Collins says she does not plan to make a formal endorsement in the race.
Posted inLocal & State
A waterfront park is overrun with rats. Rescuers are trying to find homes for them.
A group of volunteers believes the rodents at Harbor View Memorial Park in Portland are domestic, not wild, and is working to rescue them and find foster homes.
Posted inLocal & State
Portland City Council hears from the public about rats
The city is taking steps to rid the area at Harbor View Memorial Park of the rodents, but some believe they are domesticated and were released in the area.