There are 2 very distinct sides to Bangor. No, not
the infamous East and West sides, but the family-smooth vs the
shady-rough side. Each side lives its own life, for the most part. These worlds
run parallel to each other. Occasionally, these worlds collide.
Sure, I'll run into a pan-handler out in front of LL Bean, or see a few drunken
transients outside of Fairmount Market, but for the most part,
we don't travel in the same circles. I have noticed that Can Man
hasn't been walking thru our neighborhood on trash day lately. The islands on
the I-95 clover leaf are no longer party zones either. That's all good. But my
knowledge of the local underbelly is fairly limited. I'm no Bill Rae, that's
the truth. I'm no Dennis Marble. These guys are on the front lines every day.
They live in both worlds. I'm on the fringe, looking down the rabbit hole. An
observer if you will. That said, the expansion plans for Hope House got the
neighbor's panties in a bunch, and rightfully so. That's the reason we have the
Planning Board and zoning regulations isn't it?. Glad to see the City Council
do what's right and protect the citizens for once. It's time this facility was
relocated to a more suitable spot, that's properly
zoned. Councilor Gallant made a passionate closing statement prior to
the voting, speaking directly to the neighborhood folks in the chambers. Well
done indeed. But this thing doesn't end there. It's just the tip of a pretty
big iceberg. What HAS happened is an eye opening for the City. Let's be clear,
PCHS is providing a needed service. But the need to provide "care" to
those "clients" does not, and should not, out weigh the rights of the
abutting landowners and any taxpayers. And this time, the system worked.
Halloween is coming up and I received my costume in the mail this
week. A political flyer from Geoff Gratwick. I've cut out his face and
fashioned it into a nice mask. Voting this pretentious douche into
the State Senate is just about the scariest thing I can think of.
Looks like the cops have finally released the name of the triple
murder suspect. Sad thing is, it's been posted on the BDN message boards for a
month. And to think this fellow got away, cant imagine how....
Chief Gastia hung up the old shield this week. Thank the lord. The
angry midget is gone. I have noticed stepped up BPD patrols in my hood. I was
working in the yard last week and had on some pretty grubby gardening clothes.
A patrol car went by slow and the cop gave me the eyeball. My first thought of
course was "what the hell are you looking at flatfoot", but that gave
away quickly. Just doing his job. Interim Chief Arno seems to be doing a fine job,
and works well with the Council. Good luck Chief.
The Waterfront Concert Series is winding down today. It's been a
pretty good year financially for all involved. The shows have been
well attended that's for sure. Bringing in 12,000 folks to see Def Leopard on a
Wednesday night is huge for the promoters, and in the end, good for Bangor. As
I was getting into bed last night I could hear Journey belting out "Don't
Stop Believing", and I thought to myself....I wont. The music scene in
Bangor has a bright future ahead. A nice 2000 seat venue would pretty much ice
that cake.
Till next time, keep on keepin on
