
Covid-19 Memorial in West End
CUMBERLAND COUNTY COVID-19 MEMORIAL Fri. & Sat., Nov. 27-28, 7am–7pm, Longfellow Square The West End News...

Escape to the Great Smoky Mountains
Escape to the Great Smoky Mountains By Nancy Dorrans – Originally published in the July 2020 Edition Spe...

Jess Falero and Cullen Ryan talk about homelessness
Jess Falero and Cullen Ryan talk about homelessness Every Month Peloton Labs founder Liz Trice interviews a co...

Worldly Biological Phenomenon…
Worldly Biological Phenomenon… By Nancy Dorrans – Originally published April, 2020 in The West End News...

People Power And The Affordable Housing Crisis
Growing up working in my family’s property management business I have watched not just the homeless popu...

Your gift gives more when you buy local
By Mary-Alice Scott December is the peak of gift-giving season for many, and Portland Buy Local Holiday Gift G...

A Buy Local Thanksgiving…
Peak time for eating locally! By Mary Alice Scott November marks the beginning of the holiday shopping season...

Buildings and Energy Use – Bright Ideas No.4
BUILDINGS AND ENERGY USE Over the past months, we’ve considered two components of the two-city climate action...

Naomi Beal: Bringing Passive House building standards to Maine
Every Month PelotonLabs founder Liz Trice interviews a Peloton member for the West End News. This month Liz ca...

Tom Handel – Free speech keeps community strong
By Cameron Autry Few rights enjoyed in this country are as essential to maintaining democracy as our freedom o...

The Birds and the Bees (and Native Plants) Beyond Maine… (Part II)
By Nancy Dorrans Almost twenty years ago my friend Roxanne and I traveled to Tobago and Trinidad for a tropica...

Stop the Fast Driving!
La Vida Local Irregular Notes on West End Life Sign Up – Sign On By Rosanne Graef Signs are tricky thing...

Keeping a Spring in your Step
By Dr. Oren Gersten Maine is a great place to get outside. No matter what your activity inclination there is s...

Bogus “Russiagate” Story Finally Implodes
by Adam Marletta Robert Mueller’s long-awaited investigation is finally over and for Democrats it is like waki...

Adventure Marketplace heads to Vietnam and Cambodia
By Nancy Dorrans I had never been to Vietnam nor Cambodia, yet a handful of friends asked if I would consider...

ProsperityME Empowering New Mainers through Financial Education
WEN Featured Nonprofit March 2019 ProsperityME empowers, through education and counseling, members of refugee...

15 Ways to Stay Safe During Winter Storms
The American Red Cross provides readers with 15 steps you can take to stay safe with the cold, snow, and ice....

New Snow Removal Rules & Fines
Don’t let winter weather slow you down. To help you get around, the City has revamped its sidewalk snow remova...

Bramhall Square Gets New Lights
Pandora LaCasse’s light designs now stretch all the way to Bramhall Square. Thanks to a new public-private par...

Pop Ups & Fairs for Local Art Gifts
By Mary Alice Scott, PBL Executive Director It’s the most “local-ful” time of the year! It’s the time of year...

The House Sharing Trend – An Event by West End Aging in Place
The House Sharing Trend Please join us on Tuesday, November 13 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM Reiche Community Room, 166 Br...

Vote Local, Buy Local
By Mary Alice Scott, PBL Executive Director With Election Day on November 6th, Portland Buy Local (PBL) is wra...

Tips for Selling Your Home During the Holidays – by Benchmark’s Tom Landry
By Tom Landry Before the age of the internet, very few real estate agents advised clients to list or stay on t...

West End Halloween Parade Info – October 31, 2018
A big evening of great puppets, stilt walkers, music and drums, belly dancers, and wild creative costumes… On...

Why are Multi-Family Home Prices Up & Why Should You Still Buy One?
By Tom Landry Sale prices for multi-family buildings in Greater Portland are way up. I recently compared price...

Corporate Media: The Real Enemy of the People
By Adam Marletta On Aug. 16, 350 daily newspapers banded together to denounce Donald Trump’s ongoing wa...

Stories of Arts and Crafts ‘From Away’
By Nancy Dorrans Every work of art has a story: the story of the idea, the story of the artist, the story of t...

Peer-to-Peer Outdoor Adventure – PelotonPosts
PelotonPosts is a monthly interview with a member of PelotonLabs, a co-working space in Portland’s West End wi...

A Win for Labor in “Trump Country”
By Adam Marletta The successful teachers strike in West Virginia that resulted in a five percent pay in...

Solidarity with Parkland Student Activists
By Adam Marletta The activism of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students in the wake o...

Let’s Bury the Myth: Black Voters ARE Feeling the Bern
By Adam Marletta It is time to bury the pernicious myth that African Americans do not support Bernie Sanders,...

The Year in Resistance
By Adam Marletta The entry for Friday, December 29 in my Grumpy Cat 2017 office calendar reads, “This year is...

In God We Rust: Musings on the Alabama Senate Election
By Adam Marletta Republican U.S. Senate candidate and alleged pedophile, Roy Moore, literally rode out of town...

Resist the GOP’s Tax Heist!
By Adam Marletta Is the Republican Party actively trying to commit suicide? On the surface, this certainly see...

The Great American Stick-Up
By Adam Marletta Regular readers of this column do not need me to tell them the Republicans’ tax plan, which p...

November Spawned a Monster
One year after Trump’s stunning electoral victory, the left remains paralyzed in a state of shock. By Ad...

POSTPONED: District 2 Annual Meeting
Annual Meeting for West End, Parkside, St. John Valley & Oakdale postponed. Councilor Spencer Thibodeau re...

Evict the Landlord! Vote “Yes” on Rent Control
By Adam Marletta Portland is becoming as expensive to live in — and potentially as “bougie” — as my hom...

Electric Vehicles – West End Aging in Place Enrichment Series
WEST END AGING IN PLACE ENRICHMENT SERIES TOPIC: Electric Vehicles November 13 | Reiche Community Center | 6:...

West End Halloween Parade 2017 – All the Info You Need to Get Your Parade On!
Join your neighbors for this outrageously fun West End tradition. The 35th Annual West End Halloween Parade!!...

Capitalism IS the Crisis
By Adam Marletta After a summer-long hiatus, West End News readers can relax: I am back with more long-winded...

The Language Exchange – Open House
Open House Marks New Fall Session and 25 Years in Business for The Language Exchange September 12 | 80 Exchang...

Why Local? Portland Buy Local Hosts Forum on Keeping Portland Local
Why Local? September 28 | USM Hannaford Hall | 1 pm Portland Buy Local (PBL) will host its Why Local? forum on...

Portland Fine Craft Show 2017
West End Welcomes Portland Fine Craft Show 2017 by Tony Zeli The Maine Crafts Association presents the third a...

Portland Pesticide Ordinance Public Hearing Set for June
Portland Pesticide Ordinance Public Hearing by Bridget Chase UPDATE (6/19/2017): The location of the 5:30 pm...

Portland High School Student Assaulted
POLICE BEAT Portland High School Student Assaulted on Oxford Street An 18-year-old Portland High School studen...

Impeach The Entire System, Starting With Trump
By Adam Marletta One of the biggest challenges of activism in the Trump era is just keeping up with the consta...

Traveling Seniors – Get Tips for Your Next Adventure
West End Aging in Place 1st Monday Presentation Tips for Traveling Seniors June 5th from 6 – 7:30 p.m....

Multicultural Music Fest Benefits Furniture Friends
Multicultural Music Fest Come see Primo Cubano, Mbondo Africa, and more! For a good cause! Furniture Friends,...

Wayside Food Programs at Whole Foods
Wayside Food Programs holding food drive at Whole Foods Market To replenish its shelves, Wayside Food Programs...

Cheap Exercise & Fitness for Aging Adults
Aging in Place Presentation for May Free & Cheap Exercise & Fitness Options for Aging Adults (that’s a...

Aging in Place Meeting this Monday, 6pm, Reiche
Community Meeting Announcement West End Aging in Place Updates Monday, March 6th at Reiche Community Center, 6...

Cabin Fever and Turning the Corner
La Vida Local: Irregular Notes on West End Life Turning the Corner by Rosanne Graef After a February in which...

West End Musicians in St. Patrick’s Day Concert
West End musicians featured on St. Patrick’s Day at One Longfellow Square Fri. 3.17 | Fódhla and Matt & Sh...

Americold Planning Board Workshop
Americold Planning Board Workshop on Waterfront Rezoning A second workshop to consider the City’s proposal to...

Important vote on pesticide and fertilizer ordinance
Pesticide & Fertilizer Task Force Update Task Force Takes Important Vote at December 21st Meeting by Brid...

Reiche Improvements Ribbon Cutting
Councilor Thibodeau hosts Reiche improvements ribbon cutting TONIGHT at 5:30 PM City Councilor Spencer Thibode...

Solidarity with Standing Rock
By Adam Marletta The extreme state violence unleashed on the indigenous protesters at Standing Rock, North Dak...

Veterans Day in Portland
Veterans Day Ceremonies in Portland Tomorrow Parade Along Congress Street & Wreath Laying Ceremony at City...

Election Day Polling Places Open 7 AM – 8 PM
Election Day Polling Place Info Election Day is Tuesday, November 8th, and all polling places open at 7:00 AM...

Annual District Meetings and Comp Plan Forum
City to Host Annual District Meetings Mayor, City Councilors, and City staff will be available to discuss neig...

Guylain’s Story – Tree of Life
Tree of Life MY STORY: English language learners from Portland Adult Education share their story in their own...

34TH WEST END HALLOWEEN PARADE
West End Halloween Parade Halloween Eve, Monday, October 31st Begin gathering 5:30 at Reiche playground (166 B...

Why Lost Contract is Good News for Bath Iron Works–and the Planet
by Adam Marletta Years ago, back when the nation was still gripped in a post-9/11 atmosphere of “love-i...

WENA Picnic in the Park
UPDATE: WENA Picnic Annual Potluck WENA Picnic has been rescheduled due to rain. Here is a note from WENA Pres...

After Bernie Sanders, it’s Time to Ditch the Democrats
By Adam Marletta And just like that, Bernie Sanders’ “political revolution” has died, not with a bang, but wit...

VOTE TODAY: Primary Election
VOTE TODAY June 14 State Primary Election Information for Portland Voters Vote today, Tuesday, June 14th. Poll...

Neighborhood Plant Swap
Plant Swap, Today at 4 pm, Reiche School Calling all gardeners and would-be gardeners! Join your neighbors for...

When Austerity Attacks
By Adam Marletta The Portland City Council’s recent vote to close the majority of services at the city-run, In...

West End Community Action Meetings
Announcement West End Community Action Network Announces Aging in Place Community Meetings Mon. Jun 6, 6:30 p....

Portland Memorial Day Events
Portland Memorial Day Information and Traffic Advisory Portland Memorial Day events include a parade down Cong...

Announcement: Community Discussion on Housing
Community discussion on housing crisis will be held on May 25th from 5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at USM Over t...

ANNOUNCEMENT: West End Spring Clean-Up
WENA Spring Clean-Up Day When: Saturday, May 14, 9:00 – 11:00AM. Where: Harbor View Park on York Street....

Harlan Baker Hosts Fundraiser for Short Play “Gran Via”
A letter asking for support for “Gran Via” and other short plays about the Spanish Civil War. Harl...

Recycle Electronics FREE this Saturday
Recycle Electronics at USM’s 4th Annual Community Electronic Recycle Day The community is invited to recycle...

New Coalition Hosts Meeting on Housing Crisis
A new Coalition will host a public meeting on the housing crisis on Thurs. April 14 in Parkside Several organi...

City Budget: India Street Health Clinic Debate
Debate Begins on Potential Closing of India Street Health Clinic On Tuesday, April 12th, Mayor Ethan Strimling...

Housing Crisis Meeting
Housing Crisis: New Housing Committee to Meet with Neighborhood Associations The newly formed City Housing Com...

Fascism In a Cape
by Adam Marletta The release of the long-awaited superhero-crossover, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice — an...

How Liberals Created Donald Trump
By Adam Marletta With Donald Trump inching ever closer to securing the Republican nomination, Americans — libe...

Habana Sax at OLS
Havana to Maine: Things Are Heating Up At OLS With Habana Sax by Liz Pettengill, Community Outreach Director,...

Democrats Crack Down on Nonexistent Welfare Fraud
by Adam Marletta Leave it to the Democrats to profoundly misread voter sentiment in an election year. Less tha...

Let’s Start a War (Said Bernie One Day)
by Adam Marletta A curious contradiction has emerged between the rivaling supporters of presidential ca...

Saint Patrick Day Parade
Saint Patrick Day Parade will be Sunday, March 13 at Noon The Irish American Club’s Saint Patrick’s Parade tak...

Evict the Landlord!
On the Portland Housing Crisis By Adam Marletta “On the morning of the first eviction/They carried out t...

Michael and Me: The Frustrating Brilliance of Michael Moore
By Adam Marletta Few liberal figures are as simultaneously brilliant and frustrating as Michael Moore....

Bernie Sanders: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Truth
By Adam Marletta Famed consumer advocate and erstwhile presidential candidate, Ralph Nader, offered a scathing...

Celebrate Valentine’s at Circus Maine
This Valentine’s Day, Love Is In The Air, At Circus Maine by Amity Stoddard This February, love is in the air...

It’s (Still) the Economy, Stupid
By Adam Marletta Seven years after Wall Street’s debauched binge of speculator fraud wiped out 40 percen...

Forget Elections, Let’s Build a Revolutionary Movement
By Adam Marletta Historian, Howard Zinn once wrote, “If the gods had intended us to vote they would have given...

Obama’s Legacy: Saving Capitalism From Itself
by Adam Marletta Following President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union address last week, the courtiers...

Dickensian Days Are Here Again: An Homage to Charles Dickens
Adam Marletta Charles Dickens, whose classic holiday tale, A Christmas Carol is ubiquitous on televisio...

Death of the Fourth Estate
Adam Marletta A massive crowd of close to 1,000 people gathered in Monument Square to decry racism and Islamop...

A History of Violence
Adam Marletta There is a darkly humorous scene in David Cronenberg’s excellent 2005 film, A Histo...

Confronting the War Machine at Bath Iron Works
Adam Marletta BATH- As trick-or-treaters and Halloween celebrants scrambled for last minute cost...

The Big Problem With Small Business
Adam Marletta Something unthinkable happened during the recent Democratic debate in Las Vegas: Hillary...

Calling All Spooks!
The Annual West End Halloween Parade is set to take place Saturday, October 31st. City Councilor Dave Marshal...

The West End Halloween Parade Is On!
West End resident Wynne Wirth and City Councilor Dave Marshall will be co-organizing the Annual Halloween Para...

HARVEST IN THE HOOD
Rosemont Market will hold their first of two Harvest in the Hood events this autumn at their new West End loca...

Family, Health and Religion: Kamani’s Story
MY STORY: English-language learners from Portland Adult Education sharing their stories in their words. We wel...

The Rent is Always Due
Adam Marletta “It takes a scary kind of illness/To design a place like this for pay,” Jello Biafra...

Placemaking Celebration at Congress Square Park
The Friends of Congress Square Park and Southwest Airlines gathered to celebrate the transformation of Congres...

Announcement: Community Conversation on Heroin
The Overdose Prevention Project, comprised of law enforcement officials, medical and social service providers...

Police Beat: Bank Robbery & 2 Armed Robberies in Parkside
BANK ROBBERY Around noon on Tuesday, May 26th, a slim black male wearing a dark suit, white hat, oversized gla...

Memorial Day Parade: All You Need to Know
On Monday, the City and the Harold T. Andrews Post 17 American Legion will sponsor the Memorial Day Parade. Th...

Body Found in Water Along Eastern Waterfront
On Friday, May 22nd at about 6 a.m. a passer-by on the East End walking path discovered the body of a deceased...

School Board to Vote on Revised Elementary, Middle School Bell Schedules
The Portland Board of Public Education will vote on Tuesday, May 5th, on a revised schedule of elementary and...

Perspectives from the Sky – Astrological Forecast for March 2015
by Leo Knighton Tallarico March opens up a major portal of change. As this portal opens, intensified winds of...

Parking Ban
A citywide parking ban will begin at 10 p.m. Wednesday, February 18th, and will run through 6 a.m. on Thursday...

Additional Parking Restrictions for Snow Removal
The City is posting a number of Parkside & West End streets with temporary no parking signs for tonight a...

Yellow Zone Parking Ban
There will be a Yellow Zone Parking Ban this evening, Tuesday, February 3rd beginning at 10 p.m. and ending at...

City Prepares for Blizzard of 2015
Parking Ban Begins Tonight, No Trash Collection Tuesday or Wednesday The City is urging residents to take this...

Register for January Rape Aggression Defense Training
Register now for the January 2015 Rape Aggression Defense Training classes. The upcoming Basic RAD class is be...

What To Do With Christmas Day Garbage
There will be no trash nor recycling collection on either Christmas or New Year’s Day. Residents that usually...

METRO Toy Bus Making Rounds
On Thursday, December 11th, the METRO Toy Bus will stop at St. Brigid Catholic School, located on 695 Stevens...

Congress Street Partially Closed for Tree Lighting
Today, Friday, November 28th, the Portland Downtown District is hosting the annual Tree Lighting Ceremony in M...

Veterans Day Parade to Begin at Longfellow Square
The City of Portland and the Harold T. Andrews Post 17, American Legion, will celebrate Veteran’s Day with a p...

POLLS OPEN 7 AM – 8 PM
Polls open Tuesday, November 4th, at 7 a.m., and remain open until 8 p.m. The West End polls are at Reiche Com...

From the Editor: Paul LePage Will Win Tomorrow
Believe me, it doesn’t make me happy to write this: Governor Paul LePage will win re-election tomorrow. No, Th...

Annual District Meetings Announced
The City has announced dates for the Annual District Meetings. These meetings are a chance for neighborhood re...

5 FATALITIES IN FIRE, ONE STILL IN CRITICAL CONDITION
Update Five residents were killed by a fire at 20-24 Noyes Street on the morning of Saturday, November 1st. An...

PARK AVE CLOSED FOR PRESIDENTIAL VISIT
Park Avenue in Parkside will be closed from 3 p.m to 8 p.m., on Thursday, October 30th, for President Barack O...

Absentee Voting Ends Today
Voters can vote absentee in person at City Hall through October 30th PORTLAND, Maine – The City Clerk...

Bayside Neighbors Ask Needle Exchange Tough Questions
The event was a response to recent controversy. Bayside residents were alarmed when they found resealable plas...

NO MORE HALLOWEEN PARADE
In a letter to neighbors the Shoestring Theater announced that it can no longer present the Annual West End Ha...

Vote for Your Favorite Local Business
Portland Buy Local has launched voting for its 7th annual Indie Biz Awards. Voting will continue until Friday,...

Road to Recovery Needs Volunteer Coordinator
The American Cancer Society’s Cumberland County unit is looking for a volunteer coordinator to oversee the S...

DEP to Train Salt Spreaders
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection is offering a number of courses across the state for a wide r...

Wednesday, September 17 – CTN Filmmakers Night
Come to the Community Television Network, 516 Congress Street, on Wednesday, September 17th, at 6:00 pm, to pa...

Sunday, September 14 – Martin’s Point Bridge BASH
Volunteers on both sides of the new Martin’s Point Bridge, Route 1, are planning a celebratory BridgeBASH on S...

Saturday, September 13 – Portland First Annual Greenfest
The Natural Resources Council of Maine and the City of Portland – working to become one of the greenest...

Friday, September 12 – Crit Mass / Rock Show
A critical mass bike ride is planned for Portland. Critical mass is a social phenomenon that began in cities l...

Thursday, September 11 – People’s Climate March Pub Social
The Sierra Club Maine Chapter is hosting a pub social for anyone planning to attend the People’s Climate March...

Thursday, September 18 – Public Art Committee Commemorates Acquisition of Bernard Langlais Works
The Portland Public Art Committee will commemorate the acquisition of several works by Maine artist Bernard La...

Police to Hold Self Defense Program for Women
The Portland Police Department is currently taking applications for the September 2014 session of the Basic R....

Two-Way Traffic on State and High Streets: Public Workshop Planned
A workshop to provide the public with information on a recently launched study to evaluate the effects of re-i...

Superintendent Will Bike to School on Opening Day
Emmanuel Caulk Also Will Participate in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Portland School Superintendent Emmanuel C...

Bill Clinton to Come to Portland for Michaud Rally
Former President Bill Clinton will appear in Portland on Tuesday, September 2nd at a rally to benefit Congress...

Cooperative Fermentation Farm Dinner
With music by Sean Mencher and Jenny Van West At Neverdun Farm & Seashore Trolley Museum 195 Log Cabin Rd....

Portland to Hold First Annual Greenfest
The Natural Resources Council of Maine and the City of Portland – working to become one of the greenest...

Downeast Magazine to Mark 60th Anniversary With Gala in Portland’s East End
Downeast Magazine plans to celebrate its 60th anniversary with a gala party and fundraiser at the Portland Com...















































































































































CUMBERLAND COUNTY COVID-19 MEMORIAL Fri. & Sat., Nov. 27-28, 7am–7pm, Longfellow Square The West End News is teaming up with neighbors to create a temporary memorial for Cumberland Count... Read more
Escape to the Great Smoky Mountains By Nancy Dorrans – Originally published in the July 2020 Edition Spending three months in E. Tennessee with my family (while unexpected) has been lo... Read more
Jess Falero and Cullen Ryan talk about homelessness Every Month Peloton Labs founder Liz Trice interviews a community member for The West End News. This month Liz caught up with Jess Falero... Read more
Editorial by Publisher-Editor Tony Zeli In 2015, I asked a newly elected Mayor Ethan Strimling how he was going to effectively work with city council. “My job is to turn that body of nine in... Read more
Worldly Biological Phenomenon… By Nancy Dorrans – Originally published April, 2020 in The West End News edition I learned so much recently, listening to Court Whelan, Ph.D., Natural Ha... Read more
Growing up working in my family’s property management business I have watched not just the homeless population grow exponentially in recent years, but also the unaffordability of housi... Read more
By Mary-Alice Scott December is the peak of gift-giving season for many, and Portland Buy Local Holiday Gift Guide is here to help make it easier! For the first time ever, we have made a pri... Read more
Peak time for eating locally! By Mary Alice Scott November marks the beginning of the holiday shopping season — but not just for gifting! Thanksgiving is, of course, a holiday for feasting.... Read more
BUILDINGS AND ENERGY USE Over the past months, we’ve considered two components of the two-city climate action planning process. This month it’s Buildings and Energy Use. Some still doubt tha... Read more
Every Month PelotonLabs founder Liz Trice interviews a Peloton member for the West End News. This month Liz caught up with Naomi Beal, the Executive Director of passivhausMAINE. What is pass... Read more
Charter Commission: Time to Fix the Mayor
Editorial by Publisher-Editor Tony Zeli In 2015, I asked a newly elected Mayor Ethan Strimling how he was goin...