Mainebiz

April 18, 2016

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V I E W P O I N T S W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 3 A P R I L 1 8 , 2 0 1 6 For a daily digest of Maine's top busi- ness news, sign up for the Mainebiz Daily Report at mainebiz.biz/enews Get Maine's business news daily at mainebiz.biz and on Twitter (@Mainebiz). Below is some of the best from our online-only offerings: Featured @ Mainebiz.biz Aroostook Medical Center CEO resigns Sylvia Getman, presi- dent and CEO of The Aroostook Medical Center and senior vice president of Eastern Maine Healthcare System, announced her resignation from the health care provider on April 11. Find out more about Getman's departure at mainebiz.biz/getman New Balance calls foul on Defense Department contract The footwear company with 900 employees working at three factories in Maine has renewed its opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal eliminating footwear tariffs imposed on Vietnam. It is accusing the Obama administration of breaking a promise to buy American-made footwear for the U.S. military. Find out more about the contract at mainebiz.biz/newblance Tiny-house food truck could be a big hit in Portland A 28-year-old chef who studied culinary arts at Southern Maine Community College and worked for a stint as a cook at the Portland-based Ri Ra Irish Pub and Restaurant is combining two unlikely trends for his latest business venture — food trucks and the back-to- basics tiny house movement. Find out what the Saltbox Café is cooking up at mainebiz.biz/saltbox From the Editor O ur cover story, by Senior Writer James McCarthy, delves into an issue that has vocal critics on both sides. New England, especially Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, needs new sources of power. Nuclear power plants and coal- and oil-fi red power plants, par- ticularly the giants that can single-handedly provide electricity to cities the size of Hartford or Worcester, are being shut down at a rapid pace. When we look at what's going to fi ll in the gap, wind energy is one of the com- monly discussed solutions. States are under mandates to fi nd renewable energy sources. Maine has an abundance of open space that can accom- modate the giant wind turbines that would be needed to fi ll the void. But there's the rub: wind turbines may provide clean energy, but critics argue that the turbines are obtru- sive, unreliable and ruin the view. Which sets up a great debate. What would you rather have: An oil-burning power plant like the one on Cousins Island or a wind farm on a mountainside in northern Maine? e question is fraught with confl ict of all kinds, from environmental to socio-economic. Add to that the economic factors that aff ect energy companies' decisions to invest and you have another layer of complicating factors. To untangle the issues, Jim spoke to people on opposing sides of the issues. It's a good read and comprehensive as well. Finance is only one lesson being offered by Colby Colby College might sound like an unlikely place to anchor a story for the fi nance section. But, as correspon- dent Laurie Schreiber illustrates, Colby has joined a legion of colleges and universities that have turned to bonds as a way to fi nance growth. Low-interest rates have allowed Colby to get $100 million in fi nanc- ing without hav- ing to decimate the endowment. Combined with a more aggressive annual fundraising campaign, the college plans more than a quarter billion dollars in upgrades, from a new athletics facilities to addi- tions to the arts campus to downtown redevelopment. Colby offi cials were candid about the need to stay competitive in an arena where Colby is trying to attract the same caliber students that are touring Bates, Bowdoin, Middlebury, Wellesley, Smith, Haverford, Swarthmore and so on. ey're all investing in their campuses. It's a bewildering world, but one I've gotten acquainted with in recent years. With one daughter graduating from college this spring and another in her sophomore year, we have taken many, many college tours in the past half dozen years. I've seen fi rst-hand how important it is to have new buildings, new programs, clean health centers, arts attractions, good sports programs and stable town- gown relations. It is a battle to attract students — and students can literally make up their minds in minutes fl at. I saw how my kids would take one look at a place and say, "Let's get outta here!" All of which makes what Colby is doing that much more compelling. President David Greene, who joined Colby in 2014, had a track record of raising money at the University of Chicago and he has hit the Waterville campus running. Peter Van Allen pvanallen@mainebiz.biz Energy to spare? bernsteinshur.com CELEBRATING 1OO YEARS Be smart. BE SHUR. When you want a law firm t hat puts your interests before [h]ours. What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: What would you rather have: An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one An oil-burning plant like the one on Cousins Island or a wind farm on a mountainside in northern Maine? The question is fraught with conflict of all kinds.

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