Our Town Damariscotta

Many people once said that a picture is worth a thousand words, that’s why many people take picture of their special moment and occasion. Even tough the picture they have is a unique picture; still people often edited the photograph to make it more unique and different from other people pictures. One of the methods used by them is using the photo mosaic technique. Photo Mosaics technique are actually a very new invention, it is believed to be created in the early 1990’s. Aside from that, photo mosaics have also become widely popular around the globe, though, for their unique and personal appeal.

A Photo Mosaic is a photo that is made and consists of many smaller photos. In another way: A picture mosaic is a photo that has been divided into small pieces of squares or rectangles. Each rectangle of the picture is then replaced by a separate photo that closely approximates the color that the rectangle was. If you want to know how to make picture mosaic, then maybe you can check this custom picture mosaics site at Designamosaic.com. There you can submit to start creating your picture mosaic or just to see the sample picture to convince yourself to use their services or not.

Big-Box Store vs. Local Business:

Where your dollars go in Midcoast Maine

Locally owned businesses spend 52% of their total sales revenues in the state of Maine.

Nationally-owned big box stores keep 14% of total revenues in the state of Maine, almost all of which is spent o payroll. The rest of their revenue is sent out of state and overseas.

As the world’s largest corporation, Wal-Mart behaves shamelessly in the way it forces itself on American communities. Its aggressive bullying of American communities occurs because Wal-Mart’s growth is central to its business model; it has to grow to sustain its profits, $10 billion in 2004 alone. Analysts have noted that Wal-Mart’s growth efforts are nothing short of a “massive undertaking.”

Read the Report (this pdf document is 2.7 mb, broadband connection is encouraged)

Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer.

Of the 100 most powerful economies in the world, Wal-Mart ranks #19.

Wal-Mart’s Success Comes at a Cost to Employees In the form of ; poverty wages

In 2003, sales associates, the most common job in Wal*Mart, earned on average $8.23 and hour for annual wages of $13,861. The 2003 poverty line for a family of three was $15,260.

50% of Wal-Mart employees qualify for food stamps.

The majority of Wal-Mart employees work part time and do not qualify for benefits.

Damariscotta: A 35,000 square foot size cap on retail development is now part of the town land use ordinance, thanks to a strong victory in the March 21 secret ballot election. For Information contact Our Town at admin@ourtowndamariscotta.com.

Newcastle: A 35,000 square foot size cap on retail development is now part of the town land use ordinance after a record turnout and nearly unanimous support at the March 27 Annual Town Meeting. For Information contact Our Town at admin@ourtowndamariscotta.com.

Nobleboro: With record turnout and a landslide YES vote, Nobleboro voters passed a 6-month moratorium to give the town time to complete its comprehensive plan and consider a 35,000 square foot size cap. These measures will be voted on in the fall. For more information about Nobleboro contact Marty Welt at: backlog@tidewater.net

Edgecomb: On May 20, the Town of Edgecomb will vote on a 35,000 sq. ft. size cap at the Annual Town Meeting, which begins at 10:00 am at the Edgecomb Eddy School on Route 27. The Planning Board, which is unanimous in its support for the size cap, has held two informational meetings and a formal public hearing. There has been no opposition to the size cap, and many people have spoken in support of it. For more information on the Edgecomb effort contact Kathleen Halm at kmc@lincoln.midcoast.com

Waldoboro: On June 13 the town of Waldoboro will vote on a 45,000 square foot size cap by secret ballot at the Waldoboro Town office. Our Town Waldoboro has been running a strong pro-size cap campaign, countered by Don’t Box our Future, the self-proclaimed opposition to the Size Cap. The vote promises to be a cliffhanger. For more information go to www.ourtownwaldoboro.com. To recieve updates on Waldoboro send an email to ourtown@midcoast.com.

Wiscasset:  Citizens in Wiscasset are currently circulating a petition for a moratorium on retail development to protect that town from out-of-scale retail development until their Comprehensive Plan can be finalized.  To be included in future Wiscasset emails please email Bill Phinney at: phinland2003@yahoo.com.

Warren: The newly formed Our Town Warren is currently circulating a petition for a 6-month moratorium on retail development to give town residents time to put into place a 35,000 square foot size cap. To sign the petition or for more information about the Warren effort contact Steve Burke at: stevbee@midcoast.com.

Thomaston: Thomaston will vote on competing size cap proposals at their May 16 town meeting. One proposed cap is 70,000 square feet, and the other is 150,000 square feet. Our Town Thomaston is campaigning to pass the smaller size cap, which members say is more in scale with Thomaston’s current size.

Hello Our Town!
We have not stopped working on issues of Big Box development and citizens’ rights to control their future. Here are some updates. We need your help.

Waldoboro Update: Waldoboro will have a size cap on their June Warrant. Details of language and size are still being worked out, but there will be a warrant item for sure. Our Town Waldoboro held their inaugural meeting on Wednesday April 5, and volunteers are working on various aspects of the campaign to pass the Waldoboro size cap. If you live in Waldoboro and would like to be involved in this effort, please email ourtown@midcoast.com. This is the official email address for Our Town Waldoboro, maintained by Bill Hinkley.

Wiscasset Update: Citizens in Wiscasset will circulate a petition for a moratorium on retail development to protect that town until their Comprehensive Plan can be finalized. They will have petitions available for signatures on Saturday, April 8 on the Wiscasset Town Common. Please pass this word around to your Wiscasset friends and neighbors. To be included in future Wiscasset emails please email
Bill Phinney at: phinland2003@yahoo.com

LD1481: Finally, LD 1481, the bill limiting the reach of citizen action to stop development, passed in the Maine Senate by a wide margin. We are extremely disappointed in this result, and feel it to be a real victory for the suits over the citizens.

If 1481 becomes law it will make it MUCH EASIER for Wal-Mart and other Big Box developers to force their way into small towns across Maine. We would like our recent local victories to be the first of many success stories, not the last.

We are happy to report that Dana Dow was a champion for the rights of citizens, and fought hard to defeat this bill. His impassioned speech on the Senate floor and his NO vote were not enough, however, and the bill passed 24-10.

Now we move on to the Maine House of Representatives, where our chances to defeat it may be better. The House will probably vote sometime next week, so please act TODAY (details and contact information below). Jonathan McKane and David Trahan have both committed to vote against the bill, in part because so many of their consitituents have already contacted them about Big Box development in the Midcoast. Both feel it is essential to keep local control in the hands of citizens. People who live in other districts should make every effort to contact their representatives. Everyone should contact the Governor’s office. Please forward the information below widely.

Signing off,
Jenny and Eleanor