China planning board holds workshop on land use ordinance

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by Mary Grow

After the China select board held a Feb. 13 public hearing on proposed amendments to the Board of Appeals Ordinance (Chapter 9 of China’s Land Use Ordinance) and invited members of the planning and appeals boards to participate, planning board members devoted their Feb. 14 meeting to a workshop on the ordinance. They were joined by select board and appeals board members and others interested.

Initial discussion on Feb. 13 was a rehash of arguments over which board should have started the amendment process, plus criticism of the late availability of the draft being discussed and the difficulty in telling which comments came from whom.

Participants in the Feb. 14 workshop debated at length the content of the ordinance. In the week after the workshop, planning board co-chairman Toni Wall changed the two-color draft available Feb. 13 to a three-color draft.

The new version shows the original document, the changes proposed by select board member Brent Chesley and the changes proposed by town attorney Amanda Meader. Wall intends this version to be the basis for a Feb. 28 planning board discussion.

The three-color draft was to be on the China website, china.govoffice.com, as soon as possible (the Presidents’ Day holiday caused a delay).

The appeals board has two functions under the ordinance:

  • “to hear appeals from any decision or failure to act by the Codes Enforcement Officer, Plumbing Inspector, or Planning Board with regard to this Land Development Code and
  • “to review and act on variances.”

A variance is an exception to an ordinance provision.

Chesley’s proposed amendments, which select board members forwarded to the planning board after the Jan. 3 select board meeting, are in two categories, administrative changes and substantive changes. The latter deal with variances.

Planning board members generally agree with most of the administrative recommendations. They disagree with most of the proposed substantive changes.

Examples of administrative changes, according to the latest draft, include appointing appeals board members for staggered three-year terms instead of the current five-year terms, and setting time limits for filing a variance request and for board review.

Substantive changes Chesley suggested deal mostly with loosening restrictions on expanding use of a substandard, grandfathered lot, which discussants defined as a lot of less than 20,000 square feet with an existing dwelling (built before land use ordinances defined 20,000 square feet as too small to build on).

For example, Chesley recommends allowing larger variances from some limits, like letting an owner extend a structure closer to a lot line with written consent from the affected abutting landowner.

Chesley thinks China’s ordinances are too strict. Planning board members, and in earlier discussions other residents, disagreed, some citing the need to protect water quality in China Lake. Planning board co-chairman James Wilkens said repeatedly the present ordinance works, so there is no need to change it.

Chesley said his waterfront lot has 25,700 square feet; he will not be affected, whether his proposals are accepted or rejected, but other shorefront property-owners could be.

The ordinance is to be considered again by the select board at its Feb. 27 meeting, as well as by planning board members on Feb. 28.

The Feb. 27 select board meeting is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m., to allow time to discuss the 2023-24 town budget. Planning board meetings usually begin at 6:30 p.m. Both boards meet in the town office meeting room.

Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood said there will be another public hearing before a final version of the ordinance goes to voters at the annual town business meeting in June.

China select board holds two public hearings on two draft ordinances

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by Mary Grow

Note: this report does not cover the Feb. 13 select board public hearing on the draft Board of Appeals ordinance (Chapter 9 of China’s Land Use Ordinance), to which select board members invited members of the board of appeals and the planning board. The same topic is the main agenda item for the Feb. 14 planning board meeting, to which the planning board has invited select board and board of appeals members. A report is planned for the Feb. 23 issue of The Town Line.

China select board members started their Feb. 13 meeting with more than an hour of consecutive public hearings on two draft ordinances.

The first hearing, on the amended board of appeals ordinance that has been previously discussed at select board and planning board meetings (see the Jan. 12, Jan. 19 and Feb. 2 issues of The Town Line) lasted a full hour. No action was planned or taken; the topic was to be re-discussed at the Feb. 14 planning board meeting.

The second, shorter hearing was on a draft solid waste ordinance that Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood explained was a melding of two existing ordinances, the Solid Waste Disposal Ordinance and the Solid Waste Flow Control Ordinance. Revisions included updates and elimination of duplicate language.

Residents Toni Wall and James Wilkens suggested minor changes. If select board members approve a final draft, the ordinance will be submitted to voters at the annual town business meeting in June.

The major decision at the select board meeting that followed the hearings was to deny a request to seek to increase the 25-mile-an-hour speed limit on Cross Road, which runs from Lakeview Drive to Hanson Road.

Hapgood said to her knowledge, the limit had been in place since the road was a narrow, curvy, hilly dirt road; it is now paved, and curves and hills have been modified, she said.

Maine’s Department of Transportation (MDOT) sets speed limits, the manager said. Select board members could ask the department to study the road and recommend an appropriate limit. She did not know whether local officials had any say on what change, if any, to make.

Audience members agreed that few drivers obey the speed limit on Cross Road, or anywhere else. Speakers disagreed over whether the average driver would continue at his or her usual pace if the limit were raised, or if a higher limit would increase speeding.

Select board member Blane Casey called 25 “a little slow.” Brent Chesley admitted he finds 35 or 40 a “comfortable” speed when he drives Cross Road; but, he said, residents’ opinions were his main concern.

A Cross Road resident in the audience said she likes the road slow; it is safer for children, wildlife and pedestrians.

A Hanson Road resident was willing to support a 35-mile-an-hour limit like the one on Hanson Road. The two roads are similar, she said; and she researched MDOT records and found no reports of accidents on Cross Road.

Hapgood shared two emailed comments from Cross Road residents opposing an increase. One said her family moved to the road seeking a safe place for children, pets and pedestrians; she called it “a freaking drag strip,” to the delight of those at the meeting.

The writer of a more detailed email pointed out that Cross Road has no shoulders, no lines and no lights; that it serves a residential area with many pedestrians; that some of the driveways have very short sight distances; and that slow-moving tractors and other farm equipment use Cross Road.

Both emails mentioned the lack of policing to enforce the speed limit.

Casey commented as testimony ended that he had heard “a lot of opposition to doing anything with” the speed limit. The decision to reject the requested increase was unanimous.

Other Feb. 13 business included:

  • A reminder that the China town office will be closed Monday, Feb. 20, for the Presidents’ Day holiday.
  • A reminder that the second half payment of 2022-23 local taxes is due at the town office by the close of business Friday, March 31.
  • Notice that China will host a regional household hazardous waste collection day at the transfer station on Saturday, April 15.
  • Approval of quitclaim deeds to return foreclosed properties to two people who paid back taxes, and acceptance of a third payment that was two days past deadline. Hapgood said a quitclaim deed for that property would be prepared for the next meeting.

As the time reached 8:15 p.m., board chairman Wayne Chadwick proposed postponing the initial review of the 2023-24 budget that was next on the agenda. After discussion of board members’ schedules, there was agreement to begin the Feb. 27 select board meeting at 5 p.m., rather than the usual 6:30, with the budget again a topic.

China Four Seasons Club, Thurston Park to split TIF money 60/40

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by Mary Grow

Five members of China’s Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Committee met Feb. 8 and reviewed most of the requests for TIF funds for the 2023-24 fiscal year that begins July 1.

China’s TIF money comes from taxes Central Maine Power Company pays on its north-south transmission line through the town. By state law, TIF expenditures are to focus on promoting economic development. On the town website, china.govoffice.com, under the TIF Committee, the Second Amended TIF Program approved in 2021 lays out details of permissible expenditures.

Committee chairman Brent Chesley, who is also a member of the China select board, said he intended to participate in discussions, but would not vote, because the TIF Committee reports to the select board and he votes there. “One man, one vote,” he summarized.

A major topic at the Feb. 8 meeting was requested expenditures from Project C.7, titled Trails. The Thurston Park Committee asked for $44,000 from that category for trail work in the park in northeastern China; the Four Seasons Club asked for $60,000 from the same category for work on the snowmobile and four-wheeler trails its members maintain throughout the town.

The total annual expenditure for Project C.7 is capped at $65,000.

Four Seasons Club President Thomas Rumpf and Thurston Park Committee Chairman Jeanette Smith each said they could spend a great deal more than the requested amounts. Smith talked about repairing damage from the Dec. 23 storm, fallen trees and washouts, as well as normal trail maintenance and mowing some trails and the picnic area. Rumpf said meeting new state requirements requires major trail improvements; miles have been done, but more work is needed, especially south of Route 3.

Smith also requested funds to buy a side-by-side off-road vehicle to tow the bush-hog. Committee members talked about whether TIF money can be used for equipment, whether using volunteers’ equipment and labor for park work is appropriate and what alternatives there might be.

Smith said she is waiting for a reply to an application for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds to repair the entrance road to Thurston Park, which was badly damaged in the December storm. Only after the road is reopened, she explained, can she hope to get cement poured for the planned storage building in the park. Money for the cement pad was included in the current year’s budget and appears as an unspent balance.

Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood said FEMA’s response to town requests might come in days, weeks or months.

TIF Committee members suggested Rumpf and Smith move to the far end of the room and talk out their differences. They did, and reported an agreement to split the $65,000, $32,500 apiece.

After further discussion, committee members overruled them and voted 3-1 (Danny Boivin, James “JJ” Wentworth and Michael “Mickey” Wing in the majority, Jamie Pitney opposed and Chesley abstaining) to give $25,000 to the Thurston Park Committee and the remaining $40,000 to the Four Seasons Club.

The majority’s rationale was that people bringing in snowmobiles and four-wheelers from out of town spend more at local stores and thus contribute more to the town’s economy than do Thurston Park visitors.

The Four Seasons Club’s request for a separate $5,000 from Project C.2 (Economic Development Events) for next year’s annual Ice Days celebration was tabled, as was the China Lake Association’s request for $1,000 from the same account.

Committee members unanimously endorsed the China Lake Association’s request for $10,000 and the China Region Lakes Alliance’s request for $20,000 for environmental improvements.

They also approved a total of $40,000 for the China Broadband Committee, with Pitney abstaining because he is a member of that committee.

Votes on requests from the Town of China were postponed to the next TIF Committee meeting, scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 8.

TIF Committee recommendations go to the select board. The select board will ask voters to approve total TIF expenditures at the annual town business meeting in June. At the June 14, 2022, meeting, voters approved spending a total of $265,000 in TIF funds (Art. 15 of the meeting warrant).

CHINA: Wings denied variance by board of appeals to build garage

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by Mary Grow

Four of the six members of China’s Board of Appeals met Feb. 8 to hear a variance request from Charles and Julie Wing for their property on Fire Road 12, off Neck Road.

Stephen Greene, Lisa Kane and Alan Pelletier promptly re-elected Spencer Aitel board chairman. Aitel explained the variance procedure, which is mandated by state law as well as by China’s Land Use Ordinance.

A variance is an exception to a land use rule, in this case a rule about setbacks from protected areas. The Board of Appeals can grant a variance only if strict application of the ordinance would “result in undue hardship to the applicant.”

To make the case for “undue hardship,” Aitel said, the applicant must prove four things:

  • “That the land in question cannot yield a reasonable return unless a variance is granted;
  • “That the need for a variance is due to the unique circumstances of the property and not to the general conditions in the neighborhood;
  • “That the granting of a variance will not alter the essential character of the locality; and
  • “That the hardship is not the result of action taken by the applicant or a prior owner.”

The Wings said they bought a vacant four-acre lot near the lot on which their new house stands, intending to acquire space to build a garage. The lot has a flat area where they would like to put the garage, and a bank they estimate to be at least 20 feet high.

If the garage were built on the flat area, it would be 112 feet from a protected area that they said is a forested wetland. A state Department of Environmental Protection staffer, relying on state maps, told them a 75-foot setback would be adequate. But China’s town maps zone the wetland at a higher value, requiring a 250-foot setback.

The garage could be moved to be 250 feet from the wetland, the Wings said. But relocating would require digging out about 14 feet of the bank and building a retaining wall, costing an estimated $50,000 or more and increasing the risk of run-off that environmental ordinances are intended to control.

Board members’ discussion defined the main issue as whether the lot could “yield a reasonable return” without a variance.

Two of the four members, Greene and Kane, voted that it could, because it could still be used as the Wings intended; therefore the variance request should be denied. Pelletier dissented, and Aitel abstained, as he habitually does unless his vote is needed to break a tie.

Aitel then led board members through shorter reviews of the other three criteria. In a series of 2-1-1 votes, Greene and Kane found that the Wings met all three, Pelletier dissented and Aitel abstained.

In conclusion, the Wings’ variance was denied, again on a 2-1-1 vote, because they had not met all four criteria.

When they asked what to do next, Aitel advised trying to reconcile the different ratings on the town and state maps. He recommended asking the China select board how to seek an amendment to the town map.

Vassalboro select board takes first look at 2023-24 budget

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro select board members held their annual preliminary budget review the afternoon of Feb. 7, proposing several new expenditures and letting new town manager Aaron Miller show how quickly he is mastering the finances of a town he’s served only since Jan. 2.

No decisions were made on 2023-24 budget recommendations. Discussions continued at a Feb. 9 meeting and will continue at future meetings, with the budget committee scheduled to begin its deliberations in mid-March.

Voters make spending decisions at the annual open town meeting, set for 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 5. Annual elections and referendum voting will be Tuesday, June 13.

Select board chairman Barbara Redmond, who currently does not intend to run for another three-year term, proposed a minor and so far undefined cost increase: raising select board members’ pay from the current $1,100 a year. They put in “a lot of hours,” she said.

Chris French, who will be senior board member and presumably chairman in 2023-24, agreed. More generous compensation might encourage more younger people to run for the board, he suggested.

Town employees’ salaries were discussed in connection with the administration, transfer station and public works budgets, as talk bounced back and forth among those departments. Feb. 7 proposals were for a raise of either eight or 10 percent, varying from one department to another, each figure including a two percent step increase for continuing employees.

French and Miller believe the town needs two more employees, one full-time and one part-time.

French wants a new person who would work for public works and the transfer station, as needed – for example, driving a plow truck during storms and making sure the transfer station always has two attendants, as a safety measure.

Miller would like another town office employee who would regularly take over counter duties during lunch hour, would be available when an employee was on vacation or out sick and would be trained to fill in if an employee left.

Budget committee member Douglas Phillips asked from the audience if this employee could be shared with the school department.

There was agreement that both ideas need additional discussion, including with other department heads involved. Meanwhile, Miller will get cost estimates.

Other topics raised included:

  • For the town office, the remodeled entry previously discussed (see the Feb. 9 issue of The Town Line, p. 3); Miller’s proposal to redo the lobby floors, at an estimated costs of $1,600, and add water-absorbent mats at the entrance; a new copier, with Miller and board member Rick Denico, Jr., recommending buying over leasing; and French’s proposal that the select board “go electronic,” working from laptops instead of paper.
  • For public works, French’s proposal to start a reserve fund for the next new truck (Miller reported that the newest one arrived Feb. 8); and, briefly mentioned under the heading of longer-term capital improvements, a new trailer, a new truck and an addition to the public works garage.
  • For the transfer station, the increase in tipping (disposal at a landfill) fees that took effect Jan. 1 (more than $4 a ton); and the hauling contract that expires in the coming budget year, leaving the future price uncertain.

Redmond said police chief Mark Brown has asked for 20 hours a week instead of 15, with a commensurate pay increase; and animal control officer Peter Nerber has asked for $300 a month instead of $250.

Vassalboro fire chief Walker Thompson talked about the volunteer fire department’s needs and about funding sources other than local taxes, like grant possibilities.

Thompson said he sees no need for a new firetruck for at least another five years, with luck. The most recent purchase will be paid off in three years, select board members figured; the annual payment is almost $72,000.

Miller commented that Vassalboro has only that one debt payment; not all Maine towns are in such good financial shape.

The chief would like a new boat. The current one, a 14-foot aluminum fishing boat, was a gift from Winslow in the 1990s; Thompson recommended a new boat designed for its proposed use. The old one, which has a new motor and a good trailer, could be sold; he expected it would appeal to a fisherman.

Thompson told select board members he hopes to earn a SHAPE (Safety and Health Award for Public Employers) award from the Department of Labor, which would require “a ton of work” but would make firefighters safer and reduce insurance costs. Vassalboro’s department is already very good and well organized, he said, but the goal is still worthwhile.

He also recommended doubling the fire chief’s $1,600 stipend (whether or not he is re-elected chief next month), citing his many duties and responsibilities besides fighting fires. French asked for an estimate of time spent on fire department business.

* * * * * *

Vassalboro select board members held their second budget discussion the evening of Feb. 9, adding almost three hours after Tuesday’s two-plus hours and still leaving major issues undecided.

A lack of information delayed some decisions. For example, town manager Aaron Miller is waiting to hear from the school department about a joint bid for diesel fuel, and he needed to ask First Responders’ chief Daniel Mayotte some budget questions.

Board members also need to reconcile differing opinions. How large an increase to recommend for town employees’ salaries is a major one.

Looking at a national cost of living increase (COLA) of about 6.5 percent, board chairman Barbara Redmond recommended a two percent step increase plus a four percent COLA for all employees, a 6 percent total. Board member Chris French thought the personnel policy and salary scale the board approved meant a six percent COLA plus a two percent step increase, for a total of eight percent.

Redmond said French’s interpretation would mean if inflation goes back to a negligible level, future annual pay increases would be only two percent. French fears Redmond’s interpretation would make it harder for Vassalboro to compete for employees.

Until salary recommendations are firm, amounts for the town’s share of Social Security and Medicare cannot be determined, as they are percentages of salaries.

Miller tentatively added $9,000 to the administration budget for temporary staff, as an alternative to the part-time position board members discussed two days earlier.

Discussion of the public works department continued after Road Foreman Eugene Field left the meeting to join his crew in dealing with Thursday evening’s snowstorm.

Before he left, Field reported that the new roadside mower ordered last year and due in February might not arrive until November, unless Field will settle for a rotary mower instead of the flail he prefers. Board members will need to discuss whether to budget for contracting out mowing for 2023, if a contractor with free time can still be found.

Field urged appropriating funds to pave Vassalboro’s dead-end gravel roads, as a way to save on future maintenance. Redmond is hesitant to approve the work for 2023-24, hoping paving costs will come down.

The Feb. 9 meeting included a re-review of transfer station issues (the proposed advisory committee, tipping fee increase and hauling contracts) and the police and fire departments (including the request for a new water rescue boat, which Redmond said will be on the Feb. 16 select board agenda).

From the audience, budget committee member Michael Poulin asked about a new item in the draft 2023-24 budget, the request from Delta Ambulance for $65,445, or $15 per resident (according to census data), to continue transporting Vassalboro patients.

The service has made comparable requests to all municipalities it serves. Board members do not know whether if some towns decide not to pay, the remaining towns’ requests will be increased. Miller said he has not heard that any other town has made a decision.

French said Vassalboro has few alternatives. Augusta’s ambulance service would charge more; Winslow’s service is not interested in adding Vassalboro; Waterville has not replied to the inquiry he sent just before their city manager resigned; and it would be extremely expensive for Vassalboro to start its own transport service.

Karen Hatch, Vassalboro’s new community programs director, explained her request for $63,123, an increase of over $9,000 from the current year. She is asking for more hours, and presented a list of proposed program and events.

In addition to the youth sports Vassalboro’s recreation program has sponsored for years, Hatch is adding activities for residents of all ages. Wednesday senior cribbage has started and Thursday evening cribbage is scheduled to be added March 2; Zumba classes at Vassalboro Community School are also to begin in March.

Planned summer events include a music series and a movie series. Hatch is looking for a location for a community garden and is seeking grant funds for an ice rink next winter.

Vassalboro Public Library Director Brian Stanley has asked for additional funds so the library can be open another six hours on Thursday afternoons. Board members want to see a more complete picture of the library’s finances before they discuss the increase.

Vassalboro select board members hold a regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16.

Vassalboro select board discusses improvements to town office, other on-going issues

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by Mary Grow

At their Feb. 2 meeting, Vassalboro select board members continued discussion of better outside lighting and handicapped accessible front doors at the town office; improvements at the transfer station; and other, mostly on-going, issues.

They made a decision on the town office lighting, and expressed approval of Ben Gidney’s suggestion regarding parking at the East Vassalboro four corners.

Town Manager Aaron Miller reported, and board members unanimously accepted, a price quote from AMP Electric, LLC, of Augusta: $2,100 for new outside lighting on the town office building, plus $500 to install electrical connections so the new door controls can be plugged in.

Mindful of neighbors, Miller said the lights will be shielded, downward-directed and on timers.

The manager had two bids for handicapped buttons at the front door, for $5,300 and $5,800. Board and audience members discussed maneuvering a wheelchair into the space between the two outward-opening doors and then into the building and decided it would be difficult, perhaps impossible.

Alternative suggestions included putting the handicapped access at the building’s back door or remodeling the entranceway to lengthen the distance between the doors. Board members postponed action while Miller explores options and costs for the latter proposal.

Gidney raised the East Vassalboro parking issue because Tim and Heather Dutton seek planning board approval to re-open the former East Vassalboro Country Store. The store is in the northwest corner of the intersection of Bog Road (coming from the west), Main Street (Route 32, running north-south) and South Stanley Hill Road (coming from the east).

Gidney, who lives across Bog Road from the store, recommended parking be banned on the south side of the road as far west as Vassalboro Public Library.

If the store re-opens and customers park across Bog Road, he sees two potential safety issues: pedestrians crossing the road, and parked vehicles blocking the view of the stop sign at Main Street.

Dutton had no objection; he has maximized parking on the north side of Bog Road behind the store, he said.

Following the board’s Jan. 19 discussion of the transfer station on Lombard Dam Road (see The Town Line, Jan. 26, p. 3), transfer station manager George Hamar and select board member Chris French developed three proposals for changes. Board members again considered appointing a working group or committee to consider improvements.

They also discussed Vassalboro’s solid waste disposal contract with the waste to energy facility in Hampden that hasn’t operated for almost three years, while waste is landfilled in Norridgewock. They asked Miller to review it to see if the town can exit.

After almost another hour’s discussion of the town personnel policy, board chairman Barbara Redmond said she will review the new draft, looking especially at changes that will have budgetary consequences.

In other business, board members canceled their March 2 meeting, because two of the three will be out of town. They might schedule a special meeting the prior week, depending on how fast 2023-24 budget discussions progress.

Vassalboro Public Library Director Brian Stanley asked if the library could be added to the list of potential recipients of federal ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds developed at the Jan. 19 select board meeting. Redmond said she and Miller will review available funds and requirements for using them.

French praised Vassalboro’s plow drivers for their hard work in recent storms.

Vassalboro select board members had preliminary budget reviews scheduled for Feb. 7 and for 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9. Their next regular meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16.

Select board “not interested” in opting-in on medical marijuana retail store

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by The Town Line staff

At the January 17 meeting of the Windsor Select Board, Devin Noonan appeared before the board to see if he could be the first applicant to sign up to be a Medical Marijuana Retail Store. He was informed that the select board refused to honor the petition that was presented because it does not contain the “precise article” that would need to be put on the next warrant issued for the voters to decide. When Noonan asked what happens next, the board said they have no interest to “opt in” at this time. Much discussion followed.

Town Manager Theresa Haskell informed the board that the town had received an invitation for two officials from Windsor to attend a meeting with the County EMA and administration in Augusta. The purpose of the meeting would be to discuss current endeavors and issues that are facing the towns and cities in Kennebec County, and to find ways they could assist or augment what the communities are doing. They unanimously decided to send no one at this time.

In other business, Haskell reported the last storm was mostly ice, and took many hours and product to manage. Select board member William Appel Jr. asked if the roads are plowed between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m., when there isn’t much traffic. He suggested it would be a good time to hold off on plowing so the public works employees could get rest. Both Haskell and Public Works Driver/Laborer Timothy Corson said it all depended on the type of storm. The equipment fared well during the recent clean up effort.

Haskell reported receiving a call from Regional Rubbish, of Damariscotta, asking if they could bring MSW they pick up weekly on Wednesday from individual households and dump this at the Windsor Transfer Station. They currently take the trash to West Bath. Many quesions followed:

  • From how many Windsor residents do they pick up?
  • At the 10-cents per pound charge, that would not cover the actual cost of the transfer station expenses.
  • The town of Windsor taxpayers pay half the incurred expenses through the lcoal taxes and the other half is collected at the transfer station.
  • More would have to be charged to businesses like that to cover cost of disposal.
  • It also needs to be determined if they can actually dump the MSW into the hopper with no issues.

The select board instructed Haskell and Sean Teekema, transfer station supervisor, to investigate further to determine if such a move would be beneficial to Windsor.

The next meeting was scheduled for January 31.

Palermo voters to consider mooring ordinance

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by Pamela McKenney

The subject of mooring and houseboating has become controversial in Maine. A minimal online search will reveal the conflicts between town and summer residents throughout Maine who recreate and live on Maine lakes, ponds, and streams versus those who moor or “colonize” a body of water without land ownership nor permits or permission. Some believe the lack of accountability leads to abuse and violations while others see it as a right since “you can’t own the water.”  In an attempt to deal with the issue, many municipalities in Maine have developed ordinances in the interest of safe navigation, the rights of shorefront property owners, and the health of inland water ecosystems. The Town of Palermo is considering adopting such an ordinance to limit and control the placement of moorings and houseboats on waters bordering and within the town. Voters and stakeholders have an opportunity to learn more prior at:

  • A Public Informational Meeting on February 16 at 5:00pm at the Palermo Library,
  • Town Meeting: Saturday March 11th at 9AM at the Palermo Consolidated School (discussion prior to vote at Town Meeting)

With few exceptions, the State of Maine does not regulate the placement of moorings nor the anchoring of houseboats within the Water Safety Zone of Maine lakes, great ponds and streams. This supports established Water Safety Zone regulations, defined as the first 200 feet from the high-water mark of any shore or ⅓ distance to the opposite shore, whichever is less. The Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Boating Facilities does regulate moorings beyond the Water Safety Zone and any marked channel or public boat launch that might impede free navigation. This means that placement of moorings and anchoring of houseboats inside the Water Safety Zone is left up to the discretion of individuals.

In regards to Palermo, without regulation, a person from any town or state; Augusta, Waterville, or Revere, Massachusetts, for example, could decide to moor a boat or a houseboat for the summer on Branch Pond, Sheepscot, or any other inland water. An individual could anchor a houseboat on Sheepscot for the summer or set up a mooring anywhere within the Water Safety Zone, and, currently, there is no method or means to restrict or limit the choice of location. Additionally, shorefront property owners might decide to moor their boat or swim float in front of a neighbor’s dock without permission. Or a boat leasing company with no shorefront ownership could set up a mooring platform for customer use. With access from a public boat launch, this is possible and without regulation – legal.

Municipalities have little to gain and much to lose if moorings and houseboats are abandoned or seep sewage or sink. Houseboating has become a particularly contentious issue. Perhaps due to the rising costs of shorefront ownership or maybe the tiny house trend, the popularity of staking claim to a mooring patch within the Water Safety Zone has increased. Many residents complain these property tax-exempt burdens are noisy, polluting, and a hindrance to fishing, navigation, and recreation.

Although the state does not regulate the placement of moorings and anchoring of houseboats, local municipalities in which a body of water lies can take action to develop standards to avoid leaving the health of public waters to the mercy of individuals who may have no stake in it. The Town of Palermo has taken the initiative to do so. As promoted by the Palermo Selectboard and as notified on the town website, a committee of stakeholders gathered last fall to examine other ordinances from other Maine towns (such as Belgrade, Harrison, Wayne, Casco, Rangeley…), to discuss the potential need for an ordinance, and to develop standards for mooring and anchoring on Palermo waters. These standards are designed to ensure that mooring installation, use, and maintenance as well as overnight anchoring does not:

  • impair the public’s health, safety and welfare;
  • result in degraded water quality, loss of aquatic habitat, or interference with navigation;
  • infringe on the rights of shore land property owners.

See the Town of Palermo website for the full article or read it in the Town Warrant, available at the town office.
Maine’s inland waters exist for all to access and enjoy. Beyond human use and enjoyment, these waters sustain ecosystems vital to the health and identity of our state. In consideration of the standards outlined, Palermo voters have an opportunity and responsibility to decide the importance of regulation in protecting Maine waters by exerting control over mooring and anchoring houseboats.

China transfer committee approves two documents for select board consideration

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by Mary Grow

At their Jan. 24 meeting, members of China’s Transfer Station Committee unanimously approved two documents for forwarding to the select board.

One is a revised Solid Waste Ordinance, prepared with help from Jessica Cobb, of the Kennebec Valley Council of Governments. It combines two existing ordinances, titled Solid Waste Disposal Ordinance and Solid Waste Flow Control (on the website china.govoffice.com, under Ordinances, Policies and Orders).

If select board members approve, they will forward the combined ordinance to voters for approval or rejection at the annual town business meeting in June.

The other document is named the transfer station’s five-year plan, though the objectives it lists are scheduled to be accomplished more quickly.

Requested equipment purchases include, for the current year, a propane storage rack that transfer station employees intend to put up themselves in the recycling building; a new Gator utility vehicle as a more versatile replacement for the station’s golf cart (estimated cost $10,699); a cover for the pre-crusher, for which station manager Thomas Maraggio is waiting for additional price quotes; and a closed container for mattresses, at an estimated cost of $16,000.

In the 2023-24 fiscal year that begins July 1, the plan calls for replacing the skid steer, trading in the current one in part payment. A new main hopper is planned for the 2024-25 fiscal year.

Facility upgrades, in the order listed, are:

  • A water filter system to provide potable water; the water available is safe, but because of the adjacent closed landfill, it is reportedly not pleasant. A system is to be installed soon; the plan says if it does not work, other options will be explored.
  • A cement pad, perhaps eligible for a state grant, for the compost pile.
  • Upgrading and paving the perimeter road behind the recycling building, a project waiting for price quotes.
  • Adding electricity and lighting at the Free for the Taking building. Committee members discussed options for the proposed installation of solar panels.
  • Removing the damaged canopy at the recycling center, a project for transfer station employees this spring.
  • Improving drainage outside the door of the cardboard bay.

Requested expenditures depend on the select board’s recommending them as part of the annual budget; preferably, a favorable recommendation from the budget committee; and voter approval at the annual town business meeting in June.

Transfer station staffer Cheyenne Houle had prepared a draft schedule for 2023 that calls for a hazardous waste collection day in China (for residents of China and other area towns that choose to contribute funds so their residents can participate) either April 8 or April 15. China’s annual shredding day (for confidential documents) is to be Oct. 21; the state-wide drug take back day, in which the China transfer station participates, will be Oct. 28.

Karen Hatch, in charge of the Free for the Taking building, issued a reminder that items left there should be in such good condition that someone else will happily take them home. Shoes are particularly a problem, she said; for every usable pair dropped off, she gets 10 that aren’t fit to wear.

The longest discussion at the Jan. 24 meeting was over whether to continue, change or eliminate the two-cents-a-pound fee charged to commercial haulers. The original purpose of the fee was to pay for the scales on which their trucks – and other vehicles as needed – are weighed.

The main argument in favor of leaving the fee in place was the revenue it generates.

The main argument in favor of discontinuing it was that rising fuel prices are already stressing haulers’ budgets; if they go out of business and people who have been using them start bringing their own trash, the additional work will cost the town.

Houle had done an analysis of trash brought in by the four haulers who use China’s transfer station and estimated the annual income at a little over $7,000 a year. Without the haulers, she estimated that on average, 56 more people would come in daily when the station is open.

Another argument in favor of eliminating the fee was that the scales were paid for long ago. Deputy Clerk Julie Finley says they were installed in November 2005; a The Town Line report on the June 27, 2016, select board meeting records a 3-2 vote “to accept the Transfer Station Committee’s recommendation to leave the fee charged to local haulers who go over the scales at two cents a pound.”

Transfer station reports in China town reports for fiscal years 2006 and 2007 say the scales are in use. The reports include photos of Ruby, then-manager Elwin Higgins’ dog.

On another topic, Palermo committee member Robert Kurek said some of the blue plastic trash bags China sells to Palermo residents have been splitting at the seams. He wanted to return them to China so Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood can argue with the supplier.

Maraggio said Palermo trash will be accepted if it’s in a similar-sized bag with a useless blue bag tied to the top.

During the Tuesday morning meeting, Director of Public Services Shawn Reed was raking fresh snow from the town office roof, which Hapgood said was leaking over the hallway leading from the meeting room to the main office. The manager had high praise for Reed; “You ask him and he finds a way to get it done,” she said. Others agreed.

The next China Transfer Station Committee meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28.

China town manager presents initial town budget

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by Mary Grow

China select board members began their Jan. 29 meeting by hearing Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood’s initial presentation on the 2023-24 town budget, with four budget committee members joining them (three others were unable to attend).

Members of both boards will review the thick budget books Hapgood prepared, with, she said, much help from the “phenomenal people” on the town office staff.

Select board members will make their recommendations on 2023-24 expenditures and submit them to the budget committee. Budget committee chairman Thomas Rumpf said his group will probably need two meetings to make recommendations.

Voters at the June town business meeting will make the final decisions. The new fiscal year begins July 1.

Select board members’ other long discussion Jan. 29 was over, again, the proposed revisions to China’s Board of Appeals Ordinance (Section 9 of the Land Use Ordinance). Select board member Brent Chesley drafted the revisions for the Jan. 3 select board meeting; they were forwarded to the China Planning Board with a request for review in time for discussion Jan. 29.

Planning board members, meeting Jan. 10 and Jan. 24, accepted the draft as one input into a revised ordinance they considered their responsibility to write. They scheduled a Feb. 14 workshop meeting to discuss the ordinance with members of the board of appeals, the select board and others interested.

At the Jan. 29 meeting, Hapgood protested that time is running out if a revised ordinance is to go to voters at the June meeting. Board members talked for three-quarters of an hour before agreeing to hold a public hearing on Chesley’s draft at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 13, before their next meeting.

Much of the discussion consisted of Chesley re-explaining his suggested changes.

Fellow board member Janet Preston thinks Chesley’s recommended procedural changes are fine. She fears his proposal concerning variances from ordinance requirements will make it easier to take actions that could harm China Lake water quality.

Chesley said the change will not make much substantive difference. Then why propose it? asked Preston.

If the ordinance revision makes it easier to replace failing septic systems on small lakefront lots, water quality will benefit, board member Blane Casey suggested.

Select board members scheduled a second public hearing for the 6 p.m. time slot on February 13, this one on the draft transfer station ordinance. Town Clerk Angela Nelson has posted copies of both draft ordinances on the town website, china.govoffice.com, under the select board, which is under the heading Officials, Boards & Committees.

A guest at the Jan. 29 meeting was Art True, Director of the Kennebec County Emergency Management Agency. He joined discussion of the notice from Somerset County officials that they will no longer dispatch emergency services after July 1. China has used the Somerset County PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point), for a fee, for years.

Hapgood had been surprised by the recent notice, and True referred to Somerset County officials as having dropped a bomb. He does not yet know what the successor plan will be; because five months is not a long time for a complex project, he suggested there might be “a Band-Aid” beginning July 1.

However, he promised, “There will not be a time that the phones will not be answered.”

Also present Jan. 29 was Kennebec County Deputy Sheriff Ivano Stefanizzi, who again issued a warning to beware of telephone scammers. Please, he asked, do not give out personal information, and do not send money in any form.

In other business Jan. 29:

  • Board members unanimously accepted the lowest of three bids, $20,432.90 from Knowles Mechanical, of Vassalboro, for two heat pumps in the town office and two at the transfer station. Hapgood said voters authorized spending up to $22,000 in ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds for the work.
  • Board members unanimously accepted the lowest of three bids for a new roll-off container at the transfer station, $15,950 from East Coast Containers of Waterbury, Connecticut.
  • They unanimously authorized taking up to $10,000 from the 2022-23 contingency fund for future legal expenses, if needed.

Hapgood issued a reminder that the two-cents-a-pound fee for brush brought to the transfer station is effective Feb. 1. She said the town office will be closed Feb. 20 for the Presidents’ Day holiday.

The manager expressed appreciation to China’s plow drivers, and to two transfer station employees who assisted them, for long hours of hard work during recent storms. “We have good people; we’re lucky,” she said.

Annual ice fishing derby slated for Feb. 17-19

Switching from his budget committee chairman’s hat to his Four Seasons Club president’s hat, Thomas Rumpf told attendees at the Jan. 29 China select board meeting that China’s 2023 Ice Days celebration will be from Friday evening, Feb. 17, through Sunday evening, Feb. 19. Planned highlights include a Feb. 17 supper at the Masonic Hall in China Village followed by snowmobiling if the weather cooperates; a cornhole tournament and skating on Feb. 18; and the annual ice-fishing derby, followed by fireworks, on Feb. 19. Details and tickets will be available very soon. (See The Town Line’s cover story in this issue.)