Jan. 10, like a bud of spring – we can dream, can’t we – came confirmation the next chapter for the Le Garage property may be near. How encouraging for the downtown, and the town, this spot that developed a following over decades could reawaken, whatever it becomes?

Under contract is just that, not a done deal, and we've seen some prospective buys and projects in town languish after one thing or another didn't come together.

So, not to cheer too early on this one, and maybe it's the latest Patriots win talking or the enthused reactions on Wiscasset Newspaper's Facebook page to Gina Hamilton's report on Le Garage, but this feels like more reason to believe a new dawn is coming for Wiscasset, strengthening it as people invest in it.

A town can't have too many great restaurants, so if that is the property's future, a lot of people will welcome it. But that could be said, too, of other uses, retail or otherwise. How about a Le Bowling Center or a Le Gelato?

Possibilities create hope. A property going under contract anywhere in Wiscasset is hopeful, for all the possibilities, and maybe it even inspires hope for renewal of those sites on the market far longer than Le Garage has been.

This week's positive thought: Go, New England!