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V O L . X X X N O. V I I I A P R I L 1 5 , 2 0 2 4 6 Maine Community College System said it received $14.9 million in federal funding to support several projects at all seven of its colleges. Central Maine Community College in Auburn received $3.25 million to expand Kirk Hall; Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor, $1.65 million for instructional space and professional development; Kennebec Valley Community College in Fairfield, $513,000 for enhance- ment of its radiology lab and $803,000 to expand its plumbing lab; Northern Maine Community College in Presque Isle, $500,000 for Andrews Hall renovation, $410,000 for diesel equip- ment and technology and $550,000 for technology upgrades; Southern Maine Community College in South Portland, $4.1 million for a health care simulation lab and $500,000 for a Maine Fire Service Institute storage facility; Washington County Community College in $1.63 million for technology upgrades, professional development and virtual reality tech- nology; and York County Community College in Wells, $986,000 for equipment purchase and technology upgrades and supplies. Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston said it will contribute $23.4 million for affordable housing initiatives in Maine and other New England states. MEMIC, a workers' compensation specialist in Portland, added four B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state Mid Coast School of Technology Build the Next Generation The Mid Coast School of Technology provides hands on programs designed to prepare students for future academic and professional success. Sheridan proudly constructed this facility that houses 18 unique programs, serving 21 towns throughout Mid-Coast, Maine. W W W . S H E R I D A N C O R P . C O M Rockland, ME P O L I T I C S & C O. The scorecard for changes in town manager positions B y P e t e r V a n A l l e n W ith a wave of retirements of longtime town managers, at least four towns and a city in southern Maine have welcomed new faces in recent weeks and months. The most recent is Scott LaFlamme, who on April 4 was named town manager in Yarmouth, stepping into the shoes of longtime leader Nat Tupper, who retired in February after 32 years at the helm. LaFlamme, who joined Yarmouth in 2017, had been the town's economic development director as well as assistant town manager. In Cumberland, the town announced on March 26 that it had hired Matt Sturgis as town manager. Sturgis had been town manager in Cape Elizabeth since 2017. He will start June 3, which will allow a month overlap with current town manager Bill Shane, who is retiring. Other towns have town or city managers that were familiar faces in other towns or cities: Gray hired Michael Foley, who started in February after having served as mayor of Westbrook. He replaced Nate Rudy, who resigned in September 2023; Freeport hired Sophia Wilson, who started in December 2023 after serving as town manager of Orono. The for- mer Freeport town manager, Peter Joseph, left in March 2023 to take the same post in York; Saco hired John Bohenko, a longtime city administrator in Portsmouth, N.H., as city manager in October 2023. He took over from Bryan Kaenrath, who left to be city manager in Waterville. Other openings With Sturgis' planned depar- ture from Cape Elizabeth, that leaves that post open. In February, Greg Jordan left his position as executive direc- tor of Greater Portland METRO to become one of the assis- tant city managers in Portland. The transit agency is undergo- ing a national search for his replacement. "I haven't seen this much turn-over in my time in the Greater Portland area — eight years," said Kristina Egan, exec- utive director of Greater Portland Council of Governments. The changes are not limited to southern Maine. On the midcoast, Brunswick is looking for a town manager to step in for John Eldridge, who retired Jan. 31. Julia Heinz, the finance director, is serving as interim town manager. Job postings for town man- ager are active in Madawaska and Carrabassett Valley, accord- ing to the Maine Municipal Association job board. F I L E P H O T O P ROV I D E D P H O T O / T OW N O F C U M B E R L A N D P ROV I D E D P H O T O / T OW N O F YA R M O U T H Michael Foley Matt Sturgis Scott LaFlamme N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E S T A T E W I D E I haven't seen this much turn-over in my time in the Greater Portland area — eight years. — Kristina Egan Greater Portland Council of Governments N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N S O U T H E R N

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