Albion residents approve $1.99 M budget at town meeting

Albion selectmen lead the town meeting on Saturday, June 27, 2020. (contributed photo)

by Roland D. Hallee

The Albion town meeting was held on Saturday, June 27, 2020. This year, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the meeting was held at the Albion Fire Station, where social distancing was more easily attainable, as opposed to the normal location at the Besse Building.

The town election was held on March 20. Following 21 years of service, Town Clerk, Treasurer and Tax Collector Amanda Dow resigned in November 2019. Jeanie Doore then resigned as selectman and was appointed town clerk, on an interim basis, until the March election.

The results from that election are as follows, with all candidates running unopposed:

Selectman, overseer of the poor and assessor, all three-year terms, Peter Fortin; Selectman, overseer of the poor and assessor, all for two-year terms, Waldon Linnell; Town Clerk treasurer and tax collector, two-year term, Jeanie Doore; SAD #49 School Board director, Katrina Dumont.

At that time, a motion was made to postpone the remainder of the town meeting, scheduled for March 21, to a future date due to the Covid-19 restrictions on public gatherings.

32 residents of Albion attended the town meeting. (contributed photo)

That meeting was reconvened on June 27.

At that meeting, 32 Albion residents were in attendance. According to Doore, that number is usually 50-75 attendees. The meeting was moderated by Richard Thompson.

All 58 articles on the warrant passed.

The 2020 budget for the town is $1,199,816. Of that, $559,168 is raised from taxation and that is $51,783 above last year, a 10% percent increase. The increase comes from administration, FICA, cemeteries, highways, trash service, 911 dispatch, fire department and the addition to the Albion Public Library.

Three members of the planning board were elected: Matt Ward, five-year term; associate members, Matthew Dow Sr., Ben McPhearson, for one-year terms. Budget committee members elected were Jeffrey Lindsay, Dan Sinclair and Brad Giguere Sr., three-year terms, and William Mckenzie III, two-year term. Alternates are Sonia Nelson and Matthew Dow Sr.