Winter Gateway Farmers’ Market Opening Saturday, Nov. 5

YORK—

The Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce is pleased to announce our 2011 - 2012 Winter Farmers’ Market season beginning on November 5th at the American Legion!

Steph Oeser, the market manager, says, “We’re looking forward to kicking off this winter season! Last year was a great first year. It usually takes a few years to really establish and develop an event, but the market took off in a way we didn’t fully expect. It was a fantastic learning experience and I’m so excited to see how this season takes shape. Based on vendor surveys and customer feedback from last winter, we changed the hours to 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The new location at the American Legion also provides easy access from Route One and tons of parking (including designated handicap spaces).”

The market is again sponsored by The Bank of Maine.

The 2011 - 2012 Winter Gateway Farmers’ Market will take place on 11 Saturdays between November and March indoors at The American Legion (next to Hannaford), in York, Maine. The dates are as follows: Nov. 5 and 26, Dec. 10 and 17, Jan. 7 and 21, Feb. 4 and 18 and March 3, 17 and 31. The market will run from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and there will be 25-30 vendors each Saturday. Many of our vendors are back from last winter’s market and several of our regular summer food and craft vendors are also attending. Just like our summer market, this event is always free to attend.

The goal of this market is to support local farmers, food-producers, artists and artisans, while offering a one-stop shopping experience for customers looking to buy all of their produce, breads, sweets, meats and specialty foods for the week. The select crafters at this market offer locally made, unique gifts for you or someone special (especially during the holiday season)!

Check out www.gatewayfarmersmarket.com for a complete list of participants and when they’ll be attending the market. Vendors interested in participating should download an application at www.gatewayfarmersmarket.com or contact Steph Oeser at the Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce at 207.363.4422 or stephanie@yorkme.org. Space is limited and filling up quickly.

Photo Caption: Greens from Riverside Farm at last year's winter market. (Courtesy photo)

Updates from the Bridge

By Larry Favinger

Staff Columnist

KITTERY—

The replacement of the Memorial Bridge that connects Portsmouth, N.H., and Kittery continues to move forward on several fronts.

The New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) has named a Chicago firm as the apparent team for the design/build contract for the bridge and the Maine Legislative Council has unanimously approved the submission of a bill by State Sen. Dawn Hill, (D-York) to allow signage on Interstate 95 to aid downtown Kittery businesses by directing travelers to them.

Other legislation submitted by Sen. Hill to provide immunity from tort claim lawsuits for a New Hampshire based transportation company looking to expand its one Maine route through Berwick to include Kittery and Eliot since the closing of the Memorial Bridge failed to receive support from the Legislative Council. It was voted down in a 5-5 vote.

Sen. Hill said Monday she will appeal that decision.

A team headed by Archer Western Contractors had been selected for replacement of the bridge that carries Route 1 across the Piscataqua River.

Archer Western submitted a bid price of $81,420,000 to replace the 88-year old lift bridge that is closed to motor vehicle traffic. The projected date for opening the new span is July 2013.

The bid opening is “another important milestone in our aggressive approach in partnership with the Maine Department of Transportation towards building a new Memorial Bridge," Christopher Clement, NHDOT commissioner, said.

"We will get the successful bidder on the job to restore this vital transportation link between New Hampshire and Maine as soon as possible."

Design-build is a process in which the design and construction phases of a project are combined into one contract, with the goal of expediting project completion.

On the legislative front Sen. Hill said she appreciates “the support of legislative leaders to recognize the importance of signage on Interstate 95 “to the people and businesses of this area. I look forward to discussing this issue in the upcoming session.”

“The bridge may be closed, but the community is still open for business,” she continued. “This bill will help the people and businesses of Kittery during this period.”

Sen. Hill said the signage will not be billboard-type that is prohibited by State Law but will help direct traffic to popular local destinations, similar to detour signage.

As to the tort immunity proposal, Sen. Hill said she would like to reinforce the importance of it with help from the business community. She is seeking individuals and businesses to write in support of this legislation.

“I think once I am given the chance to explain the situation, there will be a clear understanding that this bill is of emergency status,” she said. “Input from local businesses and residents will be very helpful in garnering the support needed to move forward.”

At present the New Hampshire company does not fall under Maine’s immunity from tort claim lawsuits because it is located in New Hampshire.

Sen. Hill noted that without protection in Maine Law, the transit business faces insurance issues and is thus reluctant to expand its services. Maine transit organizations are protected from tort claim lawsuits.

A date for appeals has been scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 8.

Maine legislators filed over 290 bills for the upcoming session but none is allowed to be processed before the full Legislature unless approved by the council.

The State Constitution limits legislative business during the Second Regular Session to budgetary matters and legislation of an emergency nature.

The legislative session is scheduled to begin Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2012.

Young, Loud and Snotty: A Review of Steve Jobs’ Biography

By Chip Schrader

Staff Book Critic

Biographer Walter Isaacson has covered the lives of innovative thinkers Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, and Henry Kissinger. Being his latest subject, Steve Jobs approached Isaacson about being his biographer while still working on the Einstein biography nearly ten years ago. This was shortly after Jobs was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The book was released only weeks after Jobs’ death, but was not necessarily intended for a posthumous release.

The first chapters focus on Jobs’ childhood. His adoption, his biological parents’ more privileged background, and his adoptive parents’ blue collar background lead all the way up to the day his adoptive parents realize this emotional and manipulative child was more intelligent than they were.

The next several chapters borrow and quote heavily from Apple Co-founder Steve Wozniak’s autobiography “iWoz.” In fact, the chapters in this section mimic “Woz’s” autobiography by naming and organizing chapters after the Apple products that were being introduced at this stage in their lives: “Apple I, Apple II, Lisa, Macintosh,” etc.

Those who had read “iWoz” can almost skip a good portion of the first one hundred pages without missing too much vital information, but this fact also reinforces that Isaacson’s research seldom, if ever, conflicts in perspective. This consistency of facts about the relationship between Wozniak, Jobs, and the foundation of Apple validates Isaacson’s research. Moreover, Isaacson freely elaborates on many of Jobs’ associates’ backgrounds throughout the book, providing a small biography of each important personality that comes into his life.

Isaacson has interviewed ex-girlfriends, friends, foes, current and former colleagues. There are no pulled punches, and the cheap shots are free game, as they were in Jobs’ life. In later chapters, Isaacson reminds us of how Jobs had worked with the likes of Ross Perot, founded Pixar, and played a major role in Disney picking up a contract with Pixar to supply the 3-D animation technology. We even are given a glimpse at his part in the creation of the “Toy Story” Franchise.

Isaacson’s detailed account of these business endeavors and friendships brings the reader back to the eighties when Atari video games were king, and his description of American culture’s continual evolution. The cast of characters surrounding Jobs’ life paint a vivid reminiscence of a bygone era. Moreover, the biography shows how long and how short the span of thirty years really is, and how quickly the world changed.

Thoroughly researched, and written with a balanced perspective and detail, the book reads like an intelligent conversation. It never lags or gets dull, even the explanation of the technology and business negotiations keep the reader engaged. Isaacson keeps the details pertinent without driving the descriptions over reader’s heads, a tall order when trying to aptly explain such a rapid technological evolution.

With all of the headlines coming out showing how unpleasant Jobs’ disposition, hygiene, and ethics are, the story provides something deeper than just headline gossip. In fact, the last chapter consists mostly of Jobs’ own words and statements on his own life. This biography is a time machine that brings every reader back to recent eras we can easily access. It is epic in scope as it covers a revolutionary personality who forged a revolution.

Hardcover: 656 pages. Publisher: Simon & Schuster (October 24, 2011).

Photo Caption: (Courtesy book cover image)