Terms of the sale were not disclosed, but it is assumed to be a fraction of the more than $230 million that the Times borrowed to purchase the chain, which includes the Portland Press-Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, the Kennebec Journal and the Morning Sentinel in Waterville, as well as a web site, MaineToday.com.

Regarding the sale price, Tom Bell, the Newspaper Guild president in Maine, told Maine Public Broadcasting this morning that "we know it's a fraction of what the Blethen's paid for it when they bought it some eleven years ago." Several months ago sources in Maine had told Bill Richards of Crosscut that the chain's value may have slipped to only $28 million—essentially the value of the paper's real estate real estate. Richards has also previously reported that the Times owes

Despite severe layoffs, the Maine properties have been hemorraging money that the financially-strapped Times Company could ill afford to pay. The sale, expected to be completed in January, was delayed for months by a lack of financing.

I contacted Times Company spokesperson Jill Mackie to ask what the sale meant for the short and longer-term financial outlokk for the Seattle Times. Mackie replied that the sale is "definitely a positive development and a necessary step to get The Seattle Times and our affiliate newspapers on sound financial footing. That said, it does not solve the financial challenges we face." She added, "We must continue to drive both revenue generation and cost containment as we navigate through this tough recession," before reiterating the Times' commitment to continue publishing "for many years to come."

The Times release is after the jump.