Maine news

• There’s Still Time to Help those in Need

  19-12-2025 04:41 via beaconhilltimes.com
  It’s hard to believe that Christmas is just a week away. We realize that the compressed holiday shopping season has put even more pressure than usual on all of us, but we hope that all of our readers can find the time to remember those in need this holiday season.The stock market may be booming and unemployment is still near an all-time low, but there was the depressing news this past week that homelessness among Americans once again has increased in the past year and millions of American
  
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• Boston Planning Department advances zoning reforms

  08-01-2026 17:30 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesThe City of Boston Planning Department this year made its first substantial changes to the development review process in decades, continued comprehensive zoning reform of the City, and made progress on revitalizing Downtown Boston. Staff also made progress in creating more housing, including through the Office to Residential Conversion Program, the Neighborhood Housing initiative, and approval of projects by the BPDA Board.Staff advanced 60 new development proposals and 27 no
  
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• Looking Back at ’25 on the Hill

  08-01-2026 17:27 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Courtesy Photo
  Event organizer Ann Heimlicher of Boston Spot-Lite (center) is seen
  with Beacon Hill Business Association members Jack and Cassie
  Gurnon, owners of Charles Street Supply Co.; Brian Maglione of
  Boston Antiques & Lamp Shades and event co-chair; and Laura
  Cousineau, owner of Upstairs Downstairs Home and event co-chair,
  are seen on April 29 during the Beacon Hill Business Association’s
  Beacon Hill Concierge Stroll.
  2025 was yet another noteworthy year on Beacon Hill, marked
  
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• City Officials take Oaths of Office as Mayor Wu Promises, ‘Boston will be a Beacon’

  08-01-2026 17:27 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Staff ReportMayor’s Office Photo By John Wilcox
  Mayor Michelle Wu stands with her family as she takes her Oath of Office from Judge Sarah G. Kim,
  Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Court during the Inauguration Ceremony at Symphony Hall.
  Boston Mayor Michelle Wu took the oath of office for the second time on Monday morning, Jan. 5, before a capacity crowd who witnessed the traditional pomp and ceremony of a mayoral inauguration at Boston Symphony Hall.Ron Cobb, the official Cit
  
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• Prevent a Winter Blood Shortage: Give Blood or Platelets Now

  08-01-2026 17:26 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesThe American Red Cross is teetering on a blood shortage this winter, which could lead to a disruption in lifesaving care. Donors are urged to make an appointment to give blood or platelets now. The Red Cross blood supply is under pressure following a busy holiday season when winter weather and packed schedules made it even tougher to ensure hospitals have the blood products needed for critical care. Without immediate action, doctors may have to make d
  
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• Boston Man Pleads not Guilty in Hit-and-run Death of Man and his Dog on Comm. Ave.

  08-01-2026 17:26 via beaconhilltimes.com
   By Dan MurphyA 42-year-old Back Bay man is being held without bail after he pleaded not guilty on Monday, Jan. 5, in Boston Municipal Court to face charges alleging he caused a deliberate hit-and-run collision two days earlier on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall that left a venerable art collector and his dog dead.​Shortly after 8 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 3, the suspect, later identified as  William R. Haney Jr., drove a 2014 Toyota SUV on the mall’s pedestrian walkway  near
  
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• Breadon Elected City Council President

  08-01-2026 17:24 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Coletta Zapata withdraws her candidacyStaff ReportIn a major political development that stunned residents, Liz Breadon was elected the new president of the Boston City Council at its first meeting of the year Monday following the inauguration ceremonies.Local observers were expecting District 1 Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata, who represents East Boston, Charlestown, and the North End, to be elected to the top leadership position on the 13-member board. In the weeks leading up to the vote, Col
  
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• Wu Announces Community Benefits Agreement with Kraft Group for Everett Stadium

  08-01-2026 17:23 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesMayor Michelle Wu recently announced that the City of Boston and the Kraft Group have agreed on financial and operational terms of a community benefits package totaling nearly $48 million over the next 15 years and additional commitments around project design review, local hiring, and regional transportation coordination. In addition to annual payments, the Kraft Group will make substantial infrastructure improvements in Sullivan Square in Charlestown prior to the stadium&rsq
  
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• Nichols House Museum’s Annual Holiday House Tour Returns

  27-12-2025 06:51 via beaconhilltimes.com
  A group of friends enjoy the Nichols House Museum’s annual Holiday House Tour on Dec. 14.
  Holiday decorations at the Nichols House donated by Rouvalis Flowers and Gardens.
  
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• Vibrant Array of Talent Headed to City Hall Plaza and Beyond for First Night Boston

  27-12-2025 06:49 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesFirst Night Boston is proud to announce its full schedule of performances for New Year’s Eve, which will fill City Hall Plaza and surrounding venues in the hours leading up to 2026. Musicians, performers, and artists will perform in Boston’s downtown, with the stage, lights, and ice in City Hall Plaza serving as the event’s centerpiece. The latest schedule is included in this release, and all events are free for all.Festivities for the 50th First Night Bosto
  
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• Fundraising Campaign Underway to Raise Funds for Improvements to David Mugar Way

  27-12-2025 06:49 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Dan MurphyA  small nonprofit organization, Friends of David Mugar Way, is now soliciting donations from abutters, local businesses, and other nonprofit groups with the goal of raising $350,000 to landscape and maintain the roadway located between Arlington and Beacon streets.Joyce Tallent, a longtime Back Bay resident and president of Friends of David Mugar Way, recalled in an email to this reporter how some time ago, she was “disturbed by the rundown condition” of the David
  
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• Wu Hosts the First Annual Scaled Impact Celebration

  27-12-2025 06:48 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesMayor Michelle Wu and the City of Boston’s Department of Supplier Diversity hosted the first annual Scaled Impact Celebration. This event, which took place at Faneuil Hall, highlighted the important progress the City of Boston is making towards building a more inclusive economy leveraging procurement opportunities. Scaled Impact celebrated five departments committed to equity in contracting and the 27 graduates of the Supplying Capital and Leveraging Education (SCALE) p
  
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• City of Boston and Public Health Commission Warn Residents of a Significant Increase in Flu Cases

  27-12-2025 06:47 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesThe City of Boston and Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) are informing residents that flu cases are surging earlier this year than last year, with a recent increase of 114% in reported cases. Flu related emergency department visits also increased 44% in that same period of time. The rate of infection is increasing most rapidly among children, with those under age five seeing an 83% increase and those ages 5–17 experiencing a 217% increase. This uptick in flu cases
  
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• Boston Harbor Now Signs Memorandum of Understanding with City Formalizing Harborwalk Role

  27-12-2025 06:47 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesBoston Harbor Now – the leading organization advocating for a vibrant, accessible, and resilient waterfront, harbor, and islands – has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the City of Boston formalizing its role as a nonprofit steward of the 43-mile Harborwalk and harbor-wide advocacy organization.“Boston Harbor Now has played a critical role in preserving, promoting and enhancing Boston’s harbor and Harborwalk’’ said Brian
  
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• Winter Weather Advisory: Keep Animals Safe and Warm this Winter 

  27-12-2025 06:46 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesWith winter—and low temperatures—upon us, it’s important to think about how we’ll keep all our family members safe, warm, and healthy, including the four-legged ones. The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), the nation’s leading legal advocacy organization for animals, has tips for how you can make sure your companion animals stay safe even in the worst weather winter has to offer. Dogs, cats, and other companion animals are not equipped to han
  
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• Stop & Shop to Help Feed 2,000 Boston Students during the Two-week Holiday Break

  27-12-2025 06:46 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesStop & Shop is partnering with the YMCA of Greater Boston on a special holiday food distribution to ensure Boston students have access to nutritious meals during the extended two-week holiday break. 70% of Boston Public School (BPS) students are characterized as low income and depend on free school breakfast and lunch programs, but can be left without consistent access to food during extended school closures. To help bridge the gap for these families in need, the Stop &am
  
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• Advent School holds Coat Drive

  19-12-2025 05:20 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesAdvent School students hold signs advertising their Coat Drive. The school delivered more than 130 new coats to local children.
  Each December, The Advent School’s students and families join together for its annual Coat Drive, supporting an elementary school in Boston. This year, the school’s reach expanded to also include a new program, Kickoff for Kids, to provide winter jackets for children in need. Advent’s goal was a challenging&
  
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• Short Play Penned by Phillips St. Resident Rob Whitney to Premiere Next Month in Newburyport

  19-12-2025 05:19 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Dan MurphyPhoto Courtesy Marcy Axelrad
  Longtime Phillips Street resident
  and now playwright, Rob
  Whitney.
  A short play written by Phillips Street resident Rob Whitney will be among eight works featured in the two-day New Works Festival 2026, which kicks off Saturday, Jan. 24, at The Firehouse Center for the Arts in Newburyport.Over the past few years, Whitney and his wife, Marcy Axelrad, have regularly attend small theatre performances at the nonprofit Firehouse Center, along with Lyric Stage
  
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• Safety Concerns Rise around e-bikes, Scooters on Beacon Hill

  19-12-2025 05:18 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Milena FernslerOh, the weather outside is frightful … but thankfully you don’t have to face the frigid Boston wind to pick up your lo mein next door. An irresistibly convenient alternative is at the fingertips of most Americans. With the aid of a delivery app, a courier can deliver a steaming dinner to your doorstep within the hour. But what are the consequences of all the mopeds, motorized scooters and e-bikes necessary to carry out these orders?New regulations for delivery comp
  
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• Route 55 Service won’t be Extended due to Ongoing Bus Repairs

  19-12-2025 05:17 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Dan MurphyThe desired implementation of extended service on the MBTA’s Route 55 won’t come to pass this month as buses are now being taken out of service for maintenance.The T suspended service on the 55 bus route after the pandemic struck, and when service on the line was later restored in June of 2021, its daily hours were reduced to 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., from the previous hours of 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. The last stop on the line was also changed then to Copley Square from Park Street.A
  
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• City Council Hearings Identify Operational Issues within Boston Police Department

  19-12-2025 05:17 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Kiran RajamaniAn analysis of 10 months of Boston City Council hearings reveals that city councilors have repeatedly and consistently raised concerns about overtime spending, staffing levels, crime lab operations and a discriminatory promotion system at the city’s police department.An investigation by Boston University’s student newspaper, The Daily Free Press, revealed more than 200 instances of BPD-related concerns expressed during public meetings between Jan. 1, 2024, and Oct. 1
  
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• Healey-Driscoll Administration Awards Over $750,000 in Grants to Support Greater Food Access

  19-12-2025 04:44 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesThe Healey-Driscoll Administration announced $779,458 in funding to improve food access in underserved communities throughout Massachusetts by increasing local food production. The funding will directly support the growth of urban farms, community gardens, and food business operations, targeting areas that struggle with food insecurity.Among the recipients are: $20,979 to Trustees of Reservations for  Improving pathways for senior and mobility-challenged garden implement
  
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• Annual Holiday Event Connects Hundreds of Boston Older Adults with Safety Training 

  19-12-2025 04:44 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TinesOn December 12, hundreds of older adults visited Boston City Hall for the annual Holiday Connections event, hosted by Boston’s AgeStrong Commission and AT&T. This long-standing collaboration has been held for more than 30 years and provides Boston’s older adults with one-on-one technology help, scam and fraud prevention workshops, safety presentations, free domestic and international calling and a day of fun holiday activities.“Age Strong is so
  
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• Uber Drivers Worried about Lack of Safety Protocols

  19-12-2025 04:43 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Arielle ApplebyAfter a passenger looped a wire around an Uber driver’s neck and cinched it tight last month, police say the woman broke free and bolted from her car, screaming as she burst into the closest store in sight, pleading for someone to call 911.While sitting at a red light at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Columbus Avenue in Boston’s South End, police say Christopher Dawkins, 24, of Dorchester, looped a wire around an Uber driver’s neck and strangled
  
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• State Fire Marshal Reminds Residents Beware of Christmas Tree Fire Hazards

  19-12-2025 04:43 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesAs the holiday season gets underway, State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine is reminding residents to select Christmas trees carefully, water them every day, and decorate them safely to reduce the risk of a fire.“A dry Christmas tree can burn like a forest fire in your home,” said State Fire Marshal Davine. “Water it every day, or firefighters might have to do it for you.”The Department of Fire Services recommends the following Christmas tree safety tips to
  
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• MBTA Achieves Major Milestone with the Historic Daniels-Finegold Settlement 

  19-12-2025 04:43 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the TimesThe Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), disability advocates, and original plaintiffs of a landmark accessibility lawsuit came together December 10, 2025, to celebrate a historic milestone in the ongoing effort to make public transit accessible to all.  After 19 years of steady improvements to the accessibility of its system, the MBTA has fulfilled a substantial amount of its obligations under the 2006 Joanne Daniels-Finegold, et al. v. Massachus
  
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• Save the Harbor is giving out $300,000 for Free Beach Events

  19-12-2025 04:41 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Special to the Times Through the Better Beaches Program, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay and the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) are looking for input from community organizations, local groups, and artists to bring diverse and interesting events to DCR beaches in Nahant, Lynn, Revere, Winthrop, East Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, Quincy, and Hull.Events will be free for community members to attend and should reflect the many interests and identities of the community. Anyone
  
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• Obituaries 12-18-2025

  19-12-2025 04:40 via beaconhilltimes.com
  Edward Lorden DeMoreHe was a self-made man of intensity and authentic curiosity who lived life fullyEdward Lorden DeMore, 79, known affectionately to friends and family as Ed or Eddy, passed away unexpectedly at his home in the North End of Boston on November 28, 2025.Born on May 30, 1946, in Somerville, Edward was raised in humble beginnings, one of four children born to the late Anne M. (Lorden) DeMore and Vincent J. DeMore. A self-described “kid who grew up in Davis Square,” these
  
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• NHBA Holds Annual Holiday Stroll

  11-12-2025 16:32 via beaconhilltimes.com
  The Beacon Hill Business Association held its annual Holiday Stroll on Thursday, Dec. Shown above, The Flat of the Hill was one of the participants of the Holiday Stroll.
  J. McLaughlin The Back Bay Ringers preform.
  
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• E.R. Butler & Co. Marks 25 Years on the Hill

  11-12-2025 16:28 via beaconhilltimes.com
  By Dan MurphyPhoto Courtesy Nina Castellion (Courtesy of E.R. Butler & Co.)
  A look inside E.R. Butler & Co.’s showroom at 38 Charles St.
  E.R. Butler & Co. is marking 25 years on Beacon Hill this month, since the manufacturer and seller of American hardware first opened its sole retail showroom at 38 Charles St. in late 2000.The New York City-based company, which specializes in architectural hardware in early American, Federal and Georgian styles, was established in 1990, althou
  
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