CHINA: Planners again postpone action on marijuana facility application

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by Mary Grow

At their Sept. 10 meeting, China Planning Board members again postponed action on Clifford Glinko’s application to open a medical marijuana facility in the former Mainely Trains building on Route 3, in South China. Again, the main focus of an inconclusive discussion was the meaning and application of state law and who decides on meaning and application.

The board’s Aug. 27 discussion included references to legal opinions from town attorney Amanda Meader and Glinko’s attorney, Christopher McCabe. Board members thought Meader intended to write a revised opinion (see The Town Line, Sept. 12, 2019).

They proposed asking Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey, through China Representative Timothy Theriault, to advise on whether the requirements for a setback between schools and recreational marijuana businesses also applied to medical marijuana. As Glinko pointed out, the two types of business are covered under two different sections of state law: Title 28-B, Adult Use Marijuana; and Title 22, Health and Welfare, Chapter 558-C, Maine Medical Use of Marijuana Act.

As of Sept. 10, planning board members had nothing new from Meader and did not know whether anyone had approached the attorney general. Codes Officer William Butler had third-hand information that Meader thought she need not update her earlier opinion; Glinko believed she had been asked not to act until the attorney general replied.

Later in the week, Town Manager Dennis Heath reported that Theriault told him Frey had declined to give an opinion, recommending instead the town attorney or the Maine Municipal Association’s legal services.

The planning board discussion showed that since Aug. 27, emails had been exchanged among the two attorneys and Heath. Board members had not seen most of them.

Glinko, increasingly frustrated by the delays, reminded board members they are obliged to act within 35 days, but that statement sparked another brief debate: Glinko said within 35 days of submission of an application (his was received Aug. 13), Butler and board Chairman Tom Miragliuolo said within 35 days of the board voting the application complete, an action taken on Aug. 27. Butler’s and Miragliuolo’s position conforms to the China Land Use Ordinance.

Long-time board member Jim Wilkens insisted the board could not decide on the application without complete information and still be fair to both the applicant and the townspeople. After almost an hour’s discussion, board members unanimously tabled the application to their Sept. 24 meeting, expecting more clarity by then.

In other business, Miragliuolo shared with the rest of the board a summary of progress on drafting China’s revised comprehensive plan. Joel Greenwood, the consultant from Kennebec Valley Council of Governments assisting China’s Comprehensive Plan Committee, expects a first draft by December, ready for town voters’ action in the spring of 2020.

The next Comprehensive Planning Committee meeting is scheduled for Wednesday evening, Sept. 25. All meetings are open to the public, and new committee members are welcome.

Miragliuolo also shared copies of the five articles on the Nov. 5 local ballot that make up the “opt in” provisions required by state law if China is to allow medical marijuana establishments in town (see The Town Line, Sept. 12, p. 3, China Selectboard story).

Related story: Planners to hear medical marijuana application

China selectmen unanimously approve another portable classroom

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by Mary Grow

China selectmen unanimously approved buying another second-hand portable classroom, adding a comparatively small sum to the money they’d already spent at their Sept. 16 meeting.

Town Manager Dennis Heath said Regional School Unit (RSU) #18 Superintendent Carl Gartley offered to sell the 50-by-14-foot building to the town for $1, with the town to pay moving costs from Oakland. The manager recommended buying it and siting it on the town office lot to use as a police office; he intends to discuss the exact placement with Codes Enforcement Officer Bill Butler.

The building has a new roof and a heating system, he said. If it were near the portable classroom behind the town office, officers could use the just-installed toilet facilities there.

From the audience, Budget Committee member Wayne Chadwick reminded selectmen they would need to pay for a concrete pad, electricity and probably other costs.

Robert MacFarland, chairman of the Board of Selectmen, said he had seen the building and believes, “with a little bit of cleaning up,” it would be useful for an office and storage. MacFarland estimated the total cost of moving and adapting the building at less than $10,000.

In the past, China bought two extra portable classrooms, the one behind the town office used mainly for voting and committee meetings and one selectmen passed on to the South China Library. That one is now on a slab on Jones Road.

The unusually high expenditure warrant selectmen approved at the beginning of the Sept. 16 meeting totaled more than $1 million. Heath said it included the Kennebec County tax and the monthly school budget.

Also on the warrant was a $52,440.54 payment to Central Maine Power Company to install three-phase power at the transfer station, a long-awaited improvement that will allow installation of the new pre-crusher. Money is to come from the transfer station capital expense fund and the selectmen’s contingency fund. Selectman Ronald Breton congratulated Heath on negotiating CMP’s original price down by more than $16,000.

Selectmen did not accept a revised schedule for town office fees Heath said office staff recommended. After a 15-minute discussion, they voted unanimously to leave fees as they are with two exceptions: changes in fees for notary services and use of the office FAX.

After the meeting, Heath recommended that he delay posting the fee schedule until selectmen review it again at their Sept. 30 meeting.

Neil Farrington, one of China’s representatives on the RSU #18 board of directors, came to the selectmen’s meeting with a proposal to use the South China Legion Hall for community events sponsored by the China for a Lifetime Committee, and stayed to answer school-related questions.

There are two main reasons for school budget increases, he said. One is employee salaries and benefits that go up annually by contract. The other is social, the growing need for special education services. This year RSU #18 has hired an additional social worker and a drug counselor, he said.

In other business:

  • Board members unanimously appointed Nancy Beadling a member of the China for a Lifetime Committee.
  • They again tabled action on Mike Rackcliffe’s application for a Tax Increment Finance (TIF) revolving loan because they had not received requested information from the Kennebec Valley Council of Governments, which assists with China’s loan program (see The Town Line, Sept. 12, p. 3).
  • China Lake Association spokesman Tom Michaud said the association had contracted with Chadwick’s firm, W. D. Chadwick Construction, of South China, for erosion control work on Fire Roads 13, 27 and 35, with Fire Road 35 to be done this fall if possible.
  • Michaud reported that lakefront property owners who had LakeSmart erosion control barriers installed this summer had contributed $2,500 to the program (see The Town Line, Aug. 8, p. 2 and Aug. 29, p. 2, for examples of LakeSmart award recipients).

The next regular China selectmen’s meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 30.

Work continues at China school

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Construction at China Middle School as of September 2019. (photo by Roland Hallee)

Construction continues on the addition to the China Middle School. The work is being performed by Blane Casey, of Augusta, and although they have come across some structural issues it is expected the work will still come in within the budget that was planned, according to Carl Gartley, Superintendent of Schools for RSU #18, of which the China schools are a member. The total cost of the expansion project will be between $1.5 and $1.6 million.

The project includes adding locker rooms, redoing the stage and music class area, adding practice rooms for music classes, adding storage for cafeteria tables, redoing the gym floor and upgrading the HVAC system, repairing the roof and other fire code improvements to meet compliance of new laws.

Winslow receives $36,572 to assist fire department

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photo from Winslow Fire Facebook page

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced recently $33.6 million in direct assistance grants to 166 fire departments nationwide through the agency’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program. Additional phases will soon be announced.

The Winslow Fire Department will receive $36,572 from FEMA for an Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG). This grant will be used for Advanced Emergency Medical Technician training.

The announcement includes Assistance to Firefighters Grants to the following fire departments in Maine:

Winslow, ME – Federal share of $36,572 for Emergency Medical Technician – Advanced – training. Brewer and Gorham also received grants.

The primary goal of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) is to meet the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations. Since 2001, AFG has helped firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources necessary for protecting the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards.

This grant is funded through FEMA’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program. Eligible applicants include local fire departments, fire districts, nonaffiliated EMS organizations, tribal fire departments and State Fire Training Academies. The grant applications are submitted from each agency directly to FEMA, where the applications are reviewed and scored by fire service personnel from throughout the nation.

FEMA obligates funding for this project directly to the recipient agencies. It is the recipient agency’s responsibility to manage their grant award within federal guidelines with technical assistance and monitoring provided by FEMA Fire Program Specialists.

Additional information about FEMA’s Assistance to Firefighters grant program(s) may be found at https://www.fema.gov/firegrants.

Windsor selectmen sell two no longer used vehicles

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Windsor Town Manager Theresa Haskell received a Certificate of Service from the Maine Town, City and County Management Association for her 10 years of service to the town of Windsor. (photo by Sandra Isaac)

by Sandra Isaac

Windsor Selectmen sold two no-longer-needed public works vehicles to the highest bidder at their meeting on September 3.

Sealed bids for the 2003 International and the 2010 Ford F550, were opened and reviewed. Nine bids were received for the 2003 International, with the winning bid $9,150; 15 bids came in for the F550, with a winning bid of $23,300. Winning bidders have until the end of the month to pay in full or the vehicle will be offered to the next highest bidder. Proceeds from the sales will go into the Public Works Truck Reserve Account, as approved at the town meeting.

In other business, Town Manager Theresa Haskell received a Certificate of Service from the Maine Town, City and County Management Association for her 10 years of service. She has been with the Town of Windsor since 2005 and became town manager on October 28, 2008.  In addition to being the town manager, Haskell has served as the tax collector, treasurer, road commissioner, General Assistance administrator and health officer.

Selectmen noted in their report that many town residents approached them while at the Windsor Fair with concerns or questions about town roads. Selectmen explained that the town road maintenance is on a six- to seven- year cycle, a timeline approved by voters. Other residents suggested improvements to certain roads, such as widening shoulders or increasing a turn flare out. Flashing lights were also suggested at the Route 17 and Griffin Road intersection, or placing a “stop ahead” warning on the tarmac or as a posted sign. All suggestions were noted and discussed in detail.

Further discussion about the fair included Cemetery Sexton Joyce Perry’s report on the sale of flowers at the Windsor Fair, which brought in just over $400. These funds, along with the proceeds from continuing sales of concrete or granite pavers will go towards the veterans’ memorial fundraising efforts.

The next regularly scheduled meeting will be on Tuesday, September 17 at 6:00 p.m.

Vassalboro selectmen hear Growth Council representatives

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro selectmen hosted representatives of the Central Maine Growth Council (CMGC) at their Sept. 5 meeting to hear about potential advantages of CMGC help with town projects.

Senior Economic Development Specialist Garvan Donegan, accompanied by Development Coordinator Elaine Theriault-Currier, explained that CMGC is a Waterville-based public-private regional economic development organization funded by area municipalities – it serves as the economic development department for Waterville, Winslow, Fairfield and Oakland – and more than 90 colleges, hospitals and businesses.

The organization helps members attract and site new businesses, expand existing businesses, develop a workforce, implement solar power, do land use planning (including recreational trails), and apply for grants – all items of interest to Vassalboro selectmen.

Board Chairman Lauchlin Titus commented that the town is so much a bedroom community that, “You can’t buy a drop of gasoline in Vassalboro,” to fill your lawnmower.

Membership in CMGC would cost Vassalboro about $14,000, Donegan estimated. Membership fees are based on a formula that combines population and state property valuation. Vassalboro officials could also use CMGC services on an hourly-fee basis.

Donegan gave selectmen figures on grants received by CMGC members that substantially exceeded membership fees. New businesses would increase tax revenue, Titus added.

Board members postponed decisions to a future meeting. Residents’ comments and suggestions are welcome before and at the next discussion.

The other major topic Sept. 5 was whether, and if so, how to redesign the Vassalboro transfer station to make it safer. Board members decided they want to continue to use the present compacter-plus-roll-off-containers disposal system, instead of changing to, for example, large open-top tractor-trailers; and they probably want to move the entrance off Lombard Dam Road farther east, to gain more sight distance.

Town Manager Mary Sabins is in touch with the companies that made and sold the town’s compacter in 1988 and plans to schedule an inspection, with an eye to replacing the aged machinery. Selectmen asked her to ask Road Commissioner Eugene Field to develop a plan and a cost estimate for a new entrance.

Rather than redesign the interior traffic pattern, they proposed using cones and other barriers to create temporary patterns for station Manager George Hamar to experiment with.

In other business, selectmen unanimously approved Recreation Director Danielle Sullivan’s request to add a cheerleading program for third- through sixth-graders to the Vassalboro recreation program. Sullivan said she has a coach lined up and permission to practice in the school gym; registration fees will cover the cost of uniforms.

By another unanimous vote, selectmen added school board member Jessica Clark to the Solar Energy Project Committee.

Sabins reported two former town officials have returned. Paul Mitnik is the codes officer after Richard Dolby resigned and Peter A. Nerber is animal control officer after Christina LeBlanc resigned. Mitnik’s town office hours are scheduled to end at 3:30 p.m., half an hour earlier than closing time, Sabins said.

Titus commented, a propos of residents’ complaints about lack of law enforcement, that he saw state police blue-lighting speeders in two different parts of town on two consecutive days.

The next regular Vassalboro selectmen’s meeting is scheduled for Thursday evening, Sept. 19. Board members voted unanimously to cancel an Oct. 3 meeting, due to conflicts for Sabins and Selectman Robert Browne. Should early-October decisions be needed, they can schedule a special meeting.

New playground opens at Vassalboro Community School

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by Mary Grow

The pre-kindergarten (preK) students at Vassalboro Community School (VCS) now have their own playground sized for four-year-olds, thanks to the Southern Kennebec Regional Development Corporation’s Head Start program.

The new playground, funded entirely by Head Start and designed with input from Vassalboro’s preK staff, is close enough to the older students’ area so siblings can wave to each other, but each group has its own facilities. For the preK group, there are a climbing castle and a swing set on a circle of wood-chip-covered ground.

The youngsters have a 40-minute daily recess to use the new playground. “They love it,” VCS Principal Megan Allen said.

The Head Start grant that provided the playground has been extended to December, Allen said. Additional funds will buy four tricycles, plus safety helmets, for preK students.

Vassalboro’s preK program is in its fifth year, runs five full days a week and has 18 students, its highest enrollment so far. There are three full-time staff: veteran VCS preK teachers Jessica Field and Sarah Page and educational technician Danielle Plossay. Page is a Head Start employee and spends part of her time providing the in-home services that are part of Head Start programs; Field and Plossay are VCS employees.

Allen said the playground project involved working with two “fantastic” women from the Regional Development Corporation, Agency Director Cristina Salois and Program Manager Melissa Savage.

The larger playground is limited during school hours to students five years old and older, probably, Allen surmised, to meet insurance regulations. Both areas are used by families after school and on weekends, she said.

The PreK program began almost entirely separate from the rest of the VCS community, Allen said, but preK students are getting involved in more and more school experiences. The plan is to have the youngest students “integrated into the school environment as much as possible.”

They’re sharing the cafeteria; a few minutes after the preK children sit down to eat the kindergartners join them and after a few more minutes the first-graders. Classes are small enough so the space is neither too noisy nor too crowded, Allen commented.

Beginning in October, the preK students will have a turn at music, gym time, library visits, computer work and other additions to classroom teaching, just as the older students do.

China selectmen, serving as assessors, set tax rate at 16.30 mils

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by Mary Grow

China selectmen in their capacity as the town’s Board of Assessors agreed unanimously on the 2019-2020 tax rate, which is $16.30 for each $1,000 of valuation, 50 cents per $1,000 higher than the previous year’s ($15.80 per $1,000).

The new rate was recommended by assessor William Van Tuinen and Town Manager Dennis Heath at the Aug. 28 assessors’ meeting. It is a compromise between the lowest rate needed to meet town obligations and the highest allowed under state law, by Van Tuinen’s calculation.

Balancing costs and revenues, China needs to raise almost $6.9 million from taxation. An absolute minimum tax rate would be $16.17 per $1,000; state law allows up to $16.98 per $1,000.

By town meeting vote, China taxes are due in two installments, the first by Friday, Sept. 27, 2019, and the second by Friday, March 27, 2020. The interest charged on late payments is nine percent annually, beginning immediately after each due date.

Heath said the increase for 2019-2020 is due to a higher school budget. He calculated the school budget at almost three-quarters of total spending from taxation.

China Comprehensive Planning Committee continues work on revised plan

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by Mary Grow

Three members of China’s Comprehensive Plan Committee continued work on a revised plan for 2020 at an Aug. 28 meeting, focusing on housing and historic resources.

Kennebec Valley Council of Governments staffer Joel Greenwood presented a map showing the proposed development district along Route 3 recommended at the group’s July meeting before turning to the new topics.

Discussion considered goals, policies to achieve them and ways to carry out the policies. For example, under the housing topic members suggested continuing the emphasis on providing affordable housing that is in the 2008 China Comprehensive Plan and recommending ways to do it.

The historic resources section requires cooperation with at least two other entities, the state historic preservation program and the town’s now-inactive Historic Preservation Committee (since the nonprofit China Historical Society is also inactive). Greenwood had a list of areas and buildings already designated as historically significant and a map of areas that might be significant archaeological sites (defined, he said, as containing relics from the 1600s and earlier).

Topics for the next committee meeting, scheduled for Wednesday evening, Sept. 25, are economy and transportation.

Interested residents are welcome to attend committee meetings. The text of the 2008 Comprehensive Plan (126 pages) is on the town of China website under “Ordinances, Policies and Orders.”

China local ballot shows one contest, four vacancies

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by Mary Grow

China’s Nov. 5 local election ballot will show one contest and four vacancies.

Incumbent Irene Belanger, Wayne Chadwick and Todd N. Tolhurst are candidates for two seats on the Board of Selectmen. Incumbent Robert MacFarland is not seeking another term.

There are no candidates on the ballot for any of three planning board positions: District 1 (the northwestern part of town; Kevin Michaud is the incumbent); District 3 (the southeastern part of town; Ralph Howe is the incumbent); and the alternate-at-large position, whose representative can come from anywhere in town and which is currently vacant.

For the budget committee, Chairman Robert Batteese and District 1 representative Kevin Maroon are unopposed for re-election and there is no name on the ballot for the District 3 position Chadwick currently holds.

Dawn Marie Castner is unopposed for re-election as a Regional School Unit (RSU) #18 director from China.

China selectmen and planning board and budget committee members are elected for two-year terms. RSU #18 directors serve for three years.