Mainebiz

w w w. m a i n e b i z . b i z 9 Ja n ua r y 2 6 , 2 0 1 5 the American Hockey League's 30 teams, despite being in second place in the five-team Atlantic Division. At the mid-way point of this season's home schedule, the news- paper reported the team's average attendance is well below the 4,000 attendance figure that Ron Cain, the Pirates' new majority owner, cited as the minimum benchmark to main- tain a viable franchise. N O t E w O r t h y S o u t h e r n Putney Inc., a pet pharmaceuti- cal company in Portland, received FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine approval for its Enrofloxacin Antibacterial Injectable Solution, the generic of Baytril Antibacterial Injectable Solution. The Children's Museum & Theatre of Maine in Portland received over $38,000 from Maine-based funders to support of its theatre, literacy, arts and science programs. Words@Work, a marketing firm in Portland, relocated to The Lunt Professional Building in Falmouth. Norton Insurance acquires Winthrop agency Norton Insurance, based in Cumberland, has acquired an insur- ance agency in Winthrop, but the agency will not change its name or lose any employees as a result. Norton announced its acquisition of Brennan Insurance Agency on Jan. 14, adding six employees to Norton's 41. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. e deal comes more than a year after Norton acquired Davis Insurance Agency in Monmouth and merged it with Fairfield Kilgore Agency in Winthrop, an agency run by Norton. Madison paper mill faces temporary layoffs UPM-Madison's paper mill is cut- ting down production and laying off hourly workers for two weeks, attributing the move to energy costs, international competition and mar- ket conditions. e Bangor Daily News reported that Madison Paper Industries President Russ Dreschel wrote to Maine's congressional del- egation on Jan. 13 that the shutdown would occur between Jan. 24 and Feb. 9. In his letter to Maine's delega- tion, Dreschel complained that a competing mill in Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia, had received more than $125 million in subsidies from the Canadian government. He said the subsidies exacerbated the Madison mill's efforts in offering competitive prices in the face of rising energy costs. U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King said they will "continue to press the [Obama] administration to investigate this subsidy and pursue remedies," adding that they will "con- tinue to fight unfair trade practices that threaten Maine jobs." Verso's Jay mill's value to be reduced by $223M Jay town officials have voted to lower the valuation of Verso Paper's mill there by approximately $223 mil- lion, but the company said it should be even lower. e Lewiston Sun Journal reported that Jay's Board of Selectmen unanimously voted to lower the mill's value from $815 mil- lion to $591.9 million for the 2013 tax year. It also voted to grant the company a tax abatement of $829,258. e newspaper reported that Verso was seeking to have the mill's value lowered to $460 million. Verso will be able to appeal the decision. N O t E w O r t h y C e n t r a l & w e S t e r n Norway Savings Bank opened its 24th Maine location at 1 Libby Hill Road in Gray. The bank also presented New Beginnings, a nonprofit in Lewiston that serves youth in unstable situ- ations, with $10,000 to support its Campaign for a New Beginning. Central Maine Community College in Auburn is now offering advanced certificate programs in network administration, network security and server administration for students who have completed an associate degree in criminal justice, accounting or computer technology. Maine Community Health Options, a nonprofit health insurance coopera- tive in Lewiston, awarded community benefit grants totaling $125,000 to the Center for Tobacco Independence and CarePartners/MedAccess pro- grams, both led and administered by MaineHealth. HARRIMAN.COM AUBURN PORTLAND MANCHESTER Find us on ARCHITECTURE ENGINEERING SUSTAINABLE DESIGN PLANNING INTERIOR DESIGN Central Provisions Restaurant Renova ons © David Lamb Photography Be prepared for the future. Contact Norris Inc today. 1-800-370-3473 www.norrisinc.com We help you keep them safe C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N

• Cover