News Notes

Notre Dame Church in Springvale would be demolished in about a year if voters approve construction of a new fire substation at the site. 

Fire Station News: The site of the former Notre Dame Church on Payne Street in Springvale could be the new home of the Springvale Fire Station following the city’s signing of a lease-purchase agreement with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Maine. Voters would have to approve a bond to build the replacement for the antique station on Oak Street. The city is also buying the former Springvale Nurseries site in Sanford for a new central fire station.  

It’s Raining Cats and Kittens: Another Chance Animal Rescue, a Sanford no-kill shelter, is picking up kittens and younger cats from an area of Indiana with a feline over-population problem. To apply to adopt one of these newcomers or other animals at the shelter, click here. 

Heart and Soul: Sanford is the 15th community in Maine to receive a grant to revitalize its downtown and its image through the Community Heart & Soul program. The idea of the local initiative, spearheaded by Friends of Downtown Sanford, is to get people to think about what their community means to them and how they would like to see it evolve. Volunteers with the group are collecting residents’ and visitors’ ideas in listening sessions around town, including at the Sanford Farmers Market on Saturday mornings.  

Music on the Patio: Outdoor concerts have resumed at Springvale Public Library. A lineup of some new artists and some old favorites will perform Fridays from noon to 1:00 p.m. through Sept. 8.  On July 7, the featured act will be Irish balladeer Marty Quirk. Music on the Patio is a co-production of the library and the Sanford/Springvale Chamber of Commerce, with corporate sponsors helping. Come on over and bring a lawn chair.  

Summer Meals: Anyone 18 or younger is eligible for free meals this summer at the city’s schools and parks as well as at the YMCA and Curtis Lake Church. A full schedule can be found here.

You Can Get There From Here: York County Community Action’s orange line bus, which takes riders to many points between downtown Sanford and Wells Beach, has started its expanded summer schedule. Rides are free. For a schedule and other information, see YCCAC’s transportation website here.

More Transit News: Sanford workers will benefit from a state grant recently awarded to the Kennebunk-Kennebunkport-Arundel Chamber of Commerce for an expanded bus program. Employees of several businesses in the Kennebunk area will be able to catch a bus to and from work. Employers have helped fund the program, which will operate in conjunction with the Zoom buses that connect the Biddeford-Saco area with Portland. “We know that many potential employees face transportation challenges.  We are very grateful to the towns of Kennebunk, Sanford and Kennebunkport and our diverse group of business partners for supporting this effort,” Laura Dolce, director of the Chamber of Commerce, told Seacoastonline. The new service is expected to start July 9.

 Frances Moulton 

Cold Case Gets Attention: Seventeen years after Frances Moulton went missing from the Sanford area, Maine State Police are asking the public for any information on her subsequent death. Moulton, 25, was last seen getting on the back of a motorcycle in July 2006. Her family, who said she was often out of contact for months at a time, reported her missing in September of that year. In June 2009, her body was found in a well in Lebanon. A man who confessed to the killing was later released in 2011 after telling police he had lied to protect the real guilty party or parties. No further arrests were made. Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact the State Police Major Crimes Unit-South at 1 Game Farm Road in Gray, 04039, or to call 207 657-5710. There is also an online leave-a-tip form at this link.