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FRIDAY, JULY 8, 2011
VOL. 3 NO. 111
PORTLAND, ME
La Familia Restaurant 906 Brighton Ave, Portland ME 04103
PORTLAND’S DAILY NEWSPAPER
699-5801
FREE
Christopher Vail (right), candidate for mayor, gets a briefing on how to gather signatures from elections official Bud Philbrick while picking up nomination papers at the City Clerks’ office Thursday. (CURTIS ROBINSON PHOTO)
In reversal, city worker cleared for mayoral run BY CURTIS ROBINSON THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
A city employee blocked from running for mayor by municipal employment policies will be allowed to run after all, based in part on a legal argument that Portland’s newly elected mayor will not actually supervise anyone. Chris Vail, a city firefighter since 1999, picked up his formal nomination papers yesterday at the City Clerk’s office after a week-long legal argument caused Portland Corporate Counsel Gary Wood to reverse an opinion that city workers could not seek the mayor’s office. Vail became the 17th person to take out petition papers necessary to become a formal mayoral candidate. Vail said trouble surfaced about two weeks ago when Wood called the fire chief and noted that city policy forbids employees from seeking office. That notice prompted Vail to engage an attorney. Based on legal advice, he explained, he went through the motions of seeking candidate forms knowing they would likely be withheld. see MAYOR page 6
Alive at Five hits the stage
Will Mallett (left) and Luke Mallett perform as part of The Mallett Brothers Band Thursday in Monument Square at the launch of the Alive at Five free concert series. The series is sponsored by Sebago Brewing Co., the Portland Downtown District, WCYY and several other businesses, and kicks off every Thursday at 5 p.m. in the square. The Mallett Brothers Band, a Portland-based alternative country group, released a self-titled debut album that hit No. 1 for local albums at Bull Moose Music. They were followed on stage by Paranoid Social Club. (DAVID CARKHUFF PHOTO)
Play aims to support labor mural fight BY DAVID CARKHUFF THE PORTLAND DAILY SUN
Efforts to restore the famous mural depicting Maine's labor history to state office walls will receive a financial boost on Saturday in Portland. Sparking an outcry in late March, Gov. Paul LePage ordered the removal of the 36-foot-long labor mural from the lobby of the Department of Labor headquarters in Augusta. On Saturday at 8 p.m., Harlan Baker, a former legislator and longtime activist and actor, will appear as the title character in "Jimmy Higgins: A Life in the Labor Movement," at Lucid Stage, 29 Baxter Boulevard in Portland. Although event organizers said that specifics of where the money would be used would be decided in the future, they added that all Harlan Baker practices lines at Lucid Stage, a recently opened performance and arts venue on Baxter Boulevard. On Saturday, he returns there to per- proceeds will support the return of the mural, form a benefit for the Maine labor mural. (DAVID CARKHUFF FILE PHOTO)
see MURAL page 3
Push begins to restore Election Day registration
Forest Ave. needs a ‘Main Street’ treatment
76ers join Red Claws
See News Briefs on page 3
See Jeffrey S. Spofford’s column on page 4
See Sports on page 7