Peaks Island News wins nine awards from Maine Press Association
Peaks Island News
Oct. 17, 2026
SOUTH PORTLAND – Peaks Island News won nine awards from the Maine Press Association, which were presented during the organization’s annual conference Saturday in South Portland.
The newspaper's editor-in-chief, Ben McCanna, won four first-place awards in the feature, news, outdoors, and religion/spirituality categories for his stories about Blain Alves, TEIA’s climate-resiliency plan, the Peaks Island Swim Team, and Rev. Will Green’s arrest during a protest.
PIN reporter Michael R. DiLorenzo shared a second-place award with McCanna in the news category for their co-written story about the Peaks Island Lions Club.
McCanna also received two second-place awards for photography in the news and people categories.
PIN won a third-place award for its editorial page submission, which included writing by Will Green, McCanna, Mira Ptacin, Ross Sneyd and Bill Zimmerman.
Margaret Grace Myers won a third-place award for writing in the religion/spirituality category for her story about New Brackett Church.
Rhonda Berg, Peaks Island News’ board president, said the awards, like the newspaper, reflect the community.
“Peaks Island is an exceptional place with exceptional people,” she said. “We strive to tell Peaks Island’s stories in an equally exceptional manner.”
The Peaks Island News, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, was formed by a group of island residents in 2023 and began publishing every other month in early 2024. Since March 2025, PIN has been published monthly.
This year marks the first time PIN has entered MPA’s annual Better Newspaper Contest. Although a monthly newspaper, PIN competed in the weekly division, as directed by the MPA, because there is no monthly division. The contest judged material published between April 1, 2025 and March 31, 2026. PIN’s entries included works from 13 writers and photographers.
MPA was founded in 1864 and is one of the oldest professional news organizations in the United States, according to its website. It has 34 member publications, including daily newspapers that compete in their own division.
PUC approves Casco Bay Lines vehicle rates
By Ross Sneyd Peaks Island News Sept. 16, 2026 Casco Bay Lines won final approval from the Public Utilities Commission for the increased vehicle rates it adopted last year. In a Sept. 15 order, the PUC rejected opponents' calls for a full investigation into what the commission at one point referred to as "rate shock." The only additional requirement that the PUC placed on Bay Lines was a demand for a written agreement outlining a program that helps low-income islanders pay for passenger and car fares. Bay lines partnered with the Peaks Island Tax and Energy Assistance program to develop a plan for discounted or free passes for islanders who can't afford them. The PUC deemed the partnership, and Bay Lines' $4,000 in seed money, to be "reasonable," but it did require a written memorandum of understanding outlining how the program will work. CBL must also let the commission know if the $4,000 proves inadequate. Opponents argued that the new rates made it difficult for people who could not afford 90-day or annual passes to qualify for discounted vehicle rates. The PUC last year ordered Bay Lines to determine how many people would be affected, which led to an online survey. The opponents dismissed the survey as unscientific and unreliable. But the commission also found that the survey was "reasonable." Finally, the commission rejected suggestions of new rate restructures, as some of the opponents sought. "It would be inappropriate for the commission to impose an additional layer of investigation onto this vehicle rate structure that has already been vetted at the local level, and reviewed and approved through an informal, but thorough, Commission investigation," PUC stated in its ruling. Opponents could appeal the decision in court within the next several weeks. In the meantime, the commission is conducting a full investigation of Bay Lines' passenger rate increase from earlier this year.
Police shoot, kill suspect at Casco Bay Lines terminal after chase
Peaks Island News Aug. 28, 2026 Portland police shot and killed a man at the Casco Bay Lines terminal after a series of incidents, including gunfire, stolen vehicles and a chase, occurred on Thursday night. Jacob Hastings, 37, was shot at the CBL’s “outdoor terminal” after he “failed to follow commands, reached into his waistband, and presented his hands as though he had a firearm in the direction of officers,” according to a press release from police. The incidents began at about 9:30 p.m. Thursday when police received several reports of shots fired in the area of Spring and Oak streets in Portland’s Arts District. Police responded to the area, but initially didn’t find a suspect. Soon after, police received another call about a “shirtless male, armed with a firearm threatening staff at Nova Seafood at 555 Commercial Street,” according to the release. Before police arrived, Hastings allegedly fled in a stolen pickup truck. “We received several more reports of crashes and vehicles stolen at gunpoint,” the release states. Police later found the suspect on Congress Street in a car and pursued him down Franklin Street. He drove onto Maine State Pier, where he crashed, disabling the vehicle. Hastings fled on foot as officers chased him to the outdoor terminal where the fatal shooting took place. “Officers administered emergency medical aid and Portland MEDCU pronounced him deceased at the scene,” according to police. A gun was later found in one of the stolen vehicles. Portland police officers Anthony George, Jordin Jackson and Greg Ishihara have been placed on administrative leave, which is standard practice whenever police are involved in a deadly force incident. The Office of the Attorney General will investigate. Witnesses are encouraged to contact investigators at 207-874-8575.
Police investigating two break-ins on Peaks
By Ben McCanna Peaks Island News Aug. 6, 2026 A family with long ties to Peaks Island is feeling rattled, but lucky, after being awakened by three intruders at the Island Avenue home where they are staying. “We’re lucky that no one was hurt and nothing was taken,” said Jean C. Gulliver, 38, of Brookline, Massachusetts. Police are investigating two back-to-back burglaries on Peaks Island early Wednesday morning that they believe are connected. At about 2 a.m. on Aug. 5, Portland Police responded to a report of a burglary at Gulliver’s house. A second burglary, which occurred around the same time Wednesday, was reported nearby. Gulliver said she and her husband, Matthew Weiss, were sound asleep when they were awakened by noises outside their first-floor bedroom door. The couple assumed it was one of their children. “My husband opened the door thinking it was going to be our 5-year-old daughter, but instead he saw an intruder,” Gulliver said. “It was really scary, especially when you’re expecting to see your kid.” Weiss, 38, yelled at the intruder, who immediately fled, said Gulliver. As Weiss chased the man, who was taller than 6 feet, he realized there were three burglars on the property, two inside and one on the porch. The three ran away into the darkness. Meanwhile, Gulliver shouted that she was calling 911 and ran to her daughters’ room to make sure they were safe. “The police arrived within moments,” Gulliver said. In the darkness, Weiss couldn’t see the intruders well enough to generate detailed descriptions, but he could see that all three were white men, Gulliver said. The investigation is ongoing, according to police spokesperson Brad Nadeau. Nadeau suggested homeowners take precautions such as locking doors and windows and leaving exterior lights on around entrances. He also asked residents to report any suspicious activity such as “someone who appears to be checking homes, looking into windows, or walking onto private property without permission.” Before Wednesday, the most recent reported burglary on Peaks was in June 2020, Nadeau said. Gulliver said the community has been supportive. “The response from everyone has been thoughtful and caring.” Still, the event has shaken their perspective, she said. “We love Peaks Island. I’ve always felt incredibly safe here. When something like this happens, and your feeling of safety is rocked, it’s difficult and scary. It was a very violating experience.”
Battery Steele christened in Rhode Island
CBL Board President Jennifer Lavanture smiles after breaking a bottle of champagne on the newly christened Battery Steele on Wednesday, April 8, during a ceremony at Senesco Marine in Rhode Island. Gary Lima, Battery Steele's project manager for Senesco is at right. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
By Ross Sneyd
Peaks Island News
April 8, 2026
NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. – Casco Bay Lines’ Battery Steele car ferry was officially commissioned with the crack of a champagne bottle across her bow early Wednesday, inching the new vessel closer to service on the Peaks Island–Portland run.
Bay Lines board President Jen Lavanture led a small delegation from Portland to do the honors of christening the new boat as it sat aboard a drydock barge.
“Today marks an important milestone for the district with the christening of the Battery Steele,” Lavanture said moments before boarding the vessel and formally inaugurating her.
The Battery Steele was cocooned inside a floating drydock, hiding most of the new boat. A cold wind whipped off of Narragansett Bay as the small group gathered on the drydock while Lavanture and Senesco Marine project manager Gary Lima climbed aboard to crack champagne across Battery Steele’s bow.
The brief ceremony was staged at Senesco Marine, where construction resumed after the 164-foot diesel-electric hybrid boat was tied up at the pier. Almost immediately after the christening, seawater was pumped into the barge, allowing the Battery Steele to float on its own before it was towed alongside the pier.
About two months of construction, final commissioning and sea trials are ahead.
If all of that goes according to plan, the $21 million Battery Steele will be sailed up the New England coast to Portland sometime in June, where another six to eight weeks of commissioning and sea trials are expected before the ship goes into service.
And the construction history of this boat suggests that it could be longer before she carries passengers. Bay Lines first began discussing a replacement for the Machigonne II in 2015 and sought a request for design proposals in 2018. Through a series of often contentious meetings, the design for a boat, with a capacity of up to 16 cars and 599 passengers, was developed and the board gave final approval in February 2021.
Lavanture acknowledged the challenging path the Battery Steele has followed in her commissioning remarks.
“It's important to acknowledge that projects of this scale are complex. The vessel arrives after a longer and more challenging path than originally anticipated, and its introduction will require thoughtful integration into our operations,” she said. “Our focus must now be on ensuring the Battery Steele is deployed in a way that strengthens the system, is operationally sound, financially responsible, and aligned with the needs of the community we serve.”
In another sign of the delays that could ensue, the Almer Dinsmore was tied at the opposite side of the pier awaiting delivery to the Maine State Ferry service. That boat, also built by Senesco, was completed months ago but required modifications after it went into the water. It is expected to sail to Maine soon, though.
Senesco, which won the contract to build the boat, initially committed to deliver it to Portland by June 2024, but a series of delays, driven in part by the pandemic and the labor and supply chain disruptions that followed, repeatedly pushed that date back.
Casco Bay Lines has withheld some payments from Senesco because of those delays, as provided in its contract.
The new boat is quite a departure for the five-vessel Casco Bay Lines fleet. Battery Steele designed to be powered primarily by electricity from a charging port at the Portland terminal.
The boat will plug into the power grid to top off its batteries before most runs to Peaks Island. The boat will not be charged during certain hours of the day when electricity costs are highest. Diesel engines aboard the boat can be used to generate electricity when necessary.
And the car ferry will not have to turn around when docking in Portland or leaving Peaks Island, because the Battery Steele has a double-ended hull.
The vehicle deck of the boat is slightly wider and much longer than the Machigonne. Bay Lines says that will enable deckhands to direct trucks onto the boat in a single lane instead of taking up double the space that is often required on the Machigonne. Dedicated space for freight and bicycles is also included on the Battery Steele.
Most of the benches are installed in the cabins and the pilot house’s equipment in place. But a lot of finish work remains and that began immediately after the boat was tied up at the pier, with a “stabilization” test.
The boat’s name was chosen by the board as a nod both to the landmark World War II defensive battery on the Back Shore of Peaks and to the vessel’s electric batteries.
A larger, more formal commissioning ceremony is expected in Portland once the boat is delivered this summer.
The Battery Steele looms in the background as CBL Board President Jennifer Lavanture and General Manager Ben Dinsmore attend a christening ceremony in Rhode Island. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
The Battery Steele sits in a drydock barge Wednesday morning before the dry dock was deliberately sunk and the new car ferry began to float. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
The Battery Steele begins to float free from a drydock barge Wednesday morning in Rhode Island. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
A Senesco Marine worker departs the Battery Steele after the car ferry was lowered into the water in Rhode Island. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
The Battery Steele floats alongside the dock as Senesco Marine workers mill about. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
A delegation from Casco Bay Lines tours the newly christened Battery Steele cary ferry. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
Pat Donovan, a CBL captain, walks on the car deck of the Battery Steele. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)
The view from the Battery Steele's pilothouse. (Photo by Ross Sneyd)