The challenge of getting a new fire station and a reorganized Whitefield fire department has “paid off.”

Maybe Whitefield needs a town manager, not an expanded board of selectmen.

The suggestion came from resident Jim Fitz-Patrick at a public hearing Monday on the question of whether to enlarge the present board from three to five members.

The 2010 Damariscotta Pumpkinfest and Regatta brought “more people than ever” to Lincoln County to enjoy the event’s growing array of attractions, Pumpkinfest co-founder Buzz Pinkham said.

The Library Journal has named Skidompha Public Library in Damariscotta a Star Library based on community use of the services it offers. This is the second time in two years that the library has received national recognition.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced today that Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences has received a $9.1 million construction grant to build the Laboratory’s Center for Ocean Health (COH) on its new Ocean Science and Education Campus in East Boothbay. COH scientists will conduct advanced research on marine microbial ecosystems and their role in maintaining the health of the oceans.

A Waldoboro man is missing and believed to be somewhere between Waldoboro and New Bedford, Mass., according to a press release issued by the Waldoboro Police Department.

RSU 12 school board member Ralph Hilton, of Alna, has petitioned the board to amend its funding formula to one based on per-student cost only.

On Oct. 17, Central Maine Power spokesperson Gail Rice said that during the height of the Oct. 15 Nor’easter, “just under 3800 customers were without power around noontime in Lincoln County.”

Five candidates for the Maine House and Senate discussed a number of issues facing the state during the first night of a two-part candidates’ debate in front of a crowd of approximately 40 people at the Mobius Center in Damariscotta on Oct. 11.

A man and his dog were rescued by a passing lobsterman after their boat caught fire around noon on Oct. 11. No injuries were reported from the incident, Coast Guard officials said.

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a burglary on Back Meadow Road in Nobleboro Sept. 30.

The programs department at Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset is pleased to have made a second donation of afghans, small quilts and teddy bears to the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital in Portland. The sewing class and crochet class have been hard at work creating items to donate.

Whitefield firefighters pounced on an early Saturday morning fire that professional artist Joan Tibbetts said could have been “so much worse.”

The Damariscotta Planning and Advisory Committee (DPAC) hosted a community conversation at the Mobius community center Oct. 18.