Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 7 N OV E M B E R 1 1 , 2 0 1 9 The Portland International Jetport an- nounced that S&P Global Ratings has raised its credit rating on the Jetport Revenue Bonds to A- from BBB+. Heart care extended to rural areas Central Maine Healthcare has partnered with DFD Russell Medical Centers, a Leeds-based nonprofit, to expand access to cardiovascular care in rural central Maine. e program, which launches in November, will allow physicians from CMH's Central Maine Heart and Vascular Institute to see patients at DFD Russell's health center in Leeds, Androscoggin County. Instead of hav- ing to travel long distances, patients of DFD Russell will be able to see heart specialists at the center, at lower costs and on a more convenient schedule, CMH said in a news release. Diagnostic services will initially include electrocar- diograms, echocardiograms and stress testing. DFD Russell has health cen- ters in Leeds, Turner and Monmouth. N O T E W O R T H Y C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N Boys & Girls Clubs of Kennebec Valley in Gardiner received a $50,000 donation from Kennebec Savings Bank in honor of local business leader and philanthropist Richard O'Connor for four decades of service to the bank's board of directors. Good Shepherd Food Bank in Auburn re- ceived a $15,000 donation from Maine Credit Unions' Campaign for Ending Hunger program. The funds will support its Emergency Response Program. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife opened the Summerhaven Shooting Range in Augusta. The range, a $2.5 million state-of-the-art shooting range, was fund- ed through the Wildlife and Sportfish Restoration Act, which is funded through the sale of firearms and ammunition as well as the sale of hunting licenses. The Maine Grain Alliance in Skowhegan said it received a $97,000 grant from the Maine Technology Institute in sup- port of adding value to Maine-grown grains through enhanced on-farm clean- ing, drying, sorting and storing solu- tions. The funds will be matched by the C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N Five years ago, one small business owner departs for Massachusetts It was the fall of 2014 and the economy wasn't so rosy. A Freeport manufacturer and retailer, Lincoln Canoe and Kayak, packed up and left for Amesbury, Mass. The owner told Mainebiz at the time it was a matter of survival. Foot-traffic at the store was way down and the rent was too expensive. "It's very important that our customers know we're not giving up on them," the owner, Mark Bourgoin, said at the time. "It's just, economically, we have to move. We can't afford it." Lincoln moved to a space where it could share facilities with a company making related products, Speedboard USA, a manufacturer of standup paddleboards. "We're sorry it's come to this," Bourgoin said. "But in a real sense it was either shut this thing down or take a critical look at moving — and the reality is, our season is so short in Maine, the customer base we were drawing from was very limited." SP ONSORED BY FUN FACT Five years ago, in the Nov. 3, 2014, issue of Mainebiz, various sto- ries reported that the state unemployment rate was 5.8% and the median home price was $175,000. As of September of this year, the unemployment rate is 2.9% and the median home price is $288,750.

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