SPRINGVALE — The old theater was empty Monday. A piano was covered with a dropcloth, props were perched willy-nilly in the reception area and the stage was in darkness. But Sanford Maine Stage company is hoping they’ll be able to tread the boards as usual in this theater perched on Hilltop Lane in Springvale come […]

BIDDEFORD —  It’s been at least 12 years in the making, but as of March 1, redemption centers have seen a half penny increase in the handling fee for each bottle or can purchased in Maine. The last increase was 21 years ago. With this increase, redemption centers make 3.5 to 4 cents for most […]

Diana McKee, co-owner of Biddeford Bottle and Can, holds a water bottle at the Alfred Street redemption center on Tuesday. (JEFF LAGASSE/Journal Tribune)

BIDDEFORD — In November, a citizen’s initiative to allow expanded rights of those using marijuana as prescribed by a medical doctor was passed in the state. State legislators are close to finalizing a bill, which, among other things, will spell out how dispensaries that would sell the substance are to be established. To ensure that […]

Clark Cole holds containers of fresh maple syrup up into the light to check their hue Wednesday at Cole Farm Dairy and Andy’s Agway in Dayton. (JEFF LAGASSE/Journal Tribune)

Clark Cole checks the temperature of a heated batch of maple syrup Wednesday at Cole Farm Dairy and Andy’s Agway in Dayton. (JEFF LAGASSE/Journal Tribune)

BIDDEFORD — With phones ringing off the hook for a multitude of items up for auction, the 21st annual television auction of the Biddeford-Saco Rotary Club and the Rotary Club of Saco Bay went off without a hitch Sunday. The event is televised courtesy of Time Warner Cable, and was broadcast throughout the state. The […]

The last weekend in March means one thing in Maine: Maple Syrup Sunday. On March 28, sugarhouses across York County and all over the state will open their doors for visitors for the 27th annual event. Different sugarhouses will offer various activities, including maple syrup demonstrations, samples, pancake breakfasts, and the opportunity to purchase maple […]

Interact club members staff the phones at the 21st annual Rotary Auction on Sunday afternoon held by the Biddeford-Saco Rotary Club and the Rotary Club of Saco Bay at the J. Richard Martin Community Center in Biddeford. (LIZ GOTTHELF/Journal Tribune)

Clark Cole measures the density of maple syrup using a hyrdrometer Wednesday at Cole Farm Dairy and Andy’s Agway in Dayton. Cole is preparing the syrup for the weekend of Maine Maple Sunday weekend, which Cole will celebrate on Saturday, March 27, but is worried that unseasonably warm temperatures may limit how much syrup is […]