Vassalboro school officials explain budget proposal to school board

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Vassalboro Community School (contributed photo)

by Mary Grow

Vassalboro school officials – primarily Superintendent Alan Pfeiffer, Principal Ira Michaud, and Special Education Director Tanya Thibeau – led school board members through the proposed 2023-24 budget at a March 29 workshop meeting.

Board members raised some questions during the workshop and were encouraged to send more as they reviewed the figures and explanations. The board is scheduled to meet again at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 6, at Vassalboro Community School (VCS), before a joint meeting with budget committee and select board members at 7 p.m.

As of March 29, the proposed 2023-24 school budget was a little over $9 million, with state and school revenues providing more than $5 million and the remaining almost $4 million requested from local taxes.

Pfeiffer shared two pieces of good news. Vassalboro’s state allocation went up by about $115,000 when state education officials recalculated, he said; and the increase in insurance, budgeted at 10 percent, will be no more than six percent (a saving of at least $44,000 from the March 29 total; final figures are due April 7).

The superintendent said the school budget has not increased substantially in four years, despite increasing costs, and warned that the situation can’t last forever. Unlike many others, Vassalboro school department has no debt, he added.

Pfeiffer expressed appreciation to Finance Director Paula Pooler and her staff for many hours of work on the budgets for Vassalboro and its former partners, Waterville and Winslow. Vassalboro continues to save money by sharing staff with the other two towns.

Plans for 2023-24 include adding two VCS staff members. Pfeiffer and Michaud propose a second school counselor, and Thibeau recommends hiring an educational technician to work in the resource room with students who need extra help.

Pfeiffer made two points about staffing. First, he said, students are still dealing with effects of covid, and more than usual need individual attention. Second, special funds, like the 2020 federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, are contributing; when CARES funding ends, board members will need to decide whether to add money to the budget or reduce services.

CARES-funded personnel are aware that their employment may end when the CARES program ends in 2025, he said.

Board members are already looking ahead to future needs. Director of Maintenance and Grounds Shelley Phillips summarized building work discussed at the March 2 board meeting: repointing and cleaning the exterior brickwork, replacing the roof over the gymnasium and the cafeteria, replacing curbing along driveways and parking lots and air-conditioning the third floor.

Board member Jessica Clark asked Michaud about his long-term plans. The principal promptly replied that he would like VCS to offer an alternative education program, for students who don’t do well in regular programs, especially older students (grades six through eight).

Alternative education programs are aimed at integrating formal education and job skills, and often include an outdoor or environmental component. The example Michaud gave was a course led by an arborist, who would teach students about trees and also show them why they need reading, writing and math skills to succeed in the profession.

After the April 6 budget discussion, the next regular Vassalboro school board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, at the school. It will be on the second Tuesday of the month, a week earlier than usual, because the week of April 17 is school vacation week.

China and Vassalboro planning boards subcommittee continues work (April Fool’s story 2023)

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by Mary Grow

China and Vassalboro planning board members have created a joint two-town subcommittee to draft a new ordinance that, with voters’ approval, would be identical in each town.

Its working title is “An Ordinance Prohibiting Any More Town Ordinances or Ordinance Amendments Until the Year 2050.”

China’s planning board has five members – there are supposed to be six, but one position has been vacant since last fall. Vassalboro’s has five, plus one alternate member.

After a friendly discussion, each board chose two members for the subcommittee, with the agreement that tie votes will be decided by a coin toss.

They further agreed that subcommittee members will not be named and, at risk of violating several state statutes, subcommittee meetings will not be publicized, even to the other board members.

The drastic plan was adopted because both boards’ members have spent months writing, debating and rewriting new or amended town ordinances.

China planners have worked on a commercial solar ordinance off and on for more than two years and still do not have a satisfactory draft. Their recent project has been a review of amendments to the section of the Land Development Code dealing with the Board of Appeals.

After months of long and lively meetings, Vassalboro board members recently forwarded a commercial solar ordinance to the select board, whose members will decide whether to present it to voters at the June town meeting. In addition, planners have repeatedly considered amendments to the town’s Marijuana Business Ordinance.

As a step toward providing background and direction for the subcommittee, all members of both boards replied, anonymously, to a questionnaire prepared by board chairmen:

  • Without exception, board members welcome input from officials and residents as they work on ordinances. “We’re here because we volunteered, not because we think we know everything,” one member commented.
  • However, all but two board members questioned the accuracy of some of the information they get. “You shouldn’t believe it just because you found it on the web” was another comment.
  • All 11 board members consider a public hearing the proper forum to receive suggestions, and all 11 wish more residents would attend public hearings.
  • All 11 welcome evidence submitted in letters and emails; comments were both positive and negative. One board member said the person submitting a written comment had more time to think about it; another said written comments cannot be debated as readily as those presented in an open forum.
  • Board members unanimously think having the town’s attorney review a draft ordinance is essential. “Better a bill for services today than a lawsuit tomorrow,” one wrote.
    — Seven of the 11 board members said voters’ rejection of an ordinance would discourage them from trying to write or amend any other ordinances, however desirable. None would resign his or her board seat if an ordinance were rejected.
    — Despite voting to establish the new subcommittee, nine of the 11 disagreed with the statement that “[My town] has too many ordinances.” Two added comments to the effect that not everyone will avoid harmful actions without ordinances and laws; a third said, “No such thing as too much paperwork, even in the computer age.”

The new subcommittee is scheduled to begin meeting early in April, with the goal of presenting a draft ordinance to the respective planning boards by June. The anti-ordinance ordinance could appear on China’s and Vassalboro’s Nov. 7 local ballots.

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If you think this proposed ordinance is an excellent idea, The Town Line is sorry to disappoint you: you just read our annual April Fools Day story.

IF YOU BELIEVED THIS STORY, YOU ARE AN APRIL FOOL!

Vassalboro school board discusses buildings & grounds

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Vassalboro Community School (contributed photo)

by Mary Grow

Vassalboro School Super­intendent Alan Pfeiffer doesn’t know yet how much larger next year’s school budget will be compared to this year’s, but he expects an increase.

One item on the school board’s March 21 agenda was continued review of sections of the draft 2023-24 budget (see The Town Line, March 16, pp. 8-9). Board members discussed the school health program and building and grounds maintenance.

They scheduled a budget workshop Wednesday, March 29, at Vassalboro Community School (VCS). If they have enough information from the state education department and other sources, they hope to review the entire budget.

Pfeiffer reported March 21 that fuel prices had been determined, and he and Director of Maintenance and Grounds Shelley Phillips are pleased. The school department has locked in Dead River Company’s low bids: heating oil at $3.07 a gallon (10 cents over the current year, and they had feared at least a dollar increase); diesel fuel at $3.11 a gallon; and the small amount of propane needed at $1.74 a gallon (slightly less than this year, Pfeiffer said).

The total building and grounds budget Pfeiffer and Phillips shared with school board members is over $577,000, an increase of more than $31,000 (5.8 percent) over the current year. Higher wages and associated benefits account for much of the increase.

Phillips presented details on building maintenance plans. Two ongoing projects are replacing worn-out plumbing fixtures and replacing fluorescent lights with LED (the acronym stands for light-emitting diode) lights.

She told board members three major projects are pending in the next two or three years. The 31-year-old school (still referred to as “the new building,” she commented) needs its exterior brickwork cleaned and repointed and the gymnasium roof replaced; and curbing along driveways and parking lots needs replacing.

During discussion of the much smaller health budget, Pfeiffer commended new school nurse Megan Sutherburg and former nurse Mary Ann Fortin. Fortin, he said, subs when necessary and came in for several days to help during an outbreak of influenza.

An early highlight of the March 21 meeting was Principal Ira Michaud’s report on the VCS Pi Day celebration. Students competed to recite from memory the most digits of the number pi (which begins 3.14159 and goes on indefinitely).

Michaud reported, using adjectives “amazing” and “astounding,” that the runner-up in the contest was fifth-grader Serena Lacroix, who recited 130 digits and was disappointed: she’d done 150 in practice. The winner was sixth-grader Adrian Souza, who recited 187 digits correctly.

Winners were allowed to throw a pie at either the principal or the math teacher. His report included a photo of fifth-grade math teacher Lorraine Kingsbury and himself garnished with whipped cream.

The principal looks forward to scheduling other student competitions, like a spelling bee and a geography bee.

He also praised school counselor Gina David for holding Bubble Day to celebrate the first day of spring. Students blew bubbles on the playground; Michaud reported some called it “the greatest day at school they had ever had.”

Michaud summarized recent professional development programs, including one shared with Regional School Unit (RSU) #18 staff at the invitation of RSU #18 Superintendent Carl Gartley. The majority of teachers who attended said they would welcome more such cooperative programs; Michaud hopes some can be scheduled.

In other business, school board members unanimously approved the revised board handbook they have worked on for some weeks, subject to a replacement for the outdated cover photo. Pfeiffer plans to have the handbook on the VCS website, vcsvikings.org, and to distribute paper copies to public places in town.

After the March 29 budget meeting, the next regular Vassalboro school board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m., Tuesday, April 11, in the VCS library. If another budget meeting is needed, it will be held as soon as possible after March 29.

Vassalboro budget committee asks broad question about needs and costs

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by Mary Grow

The Vassalboro budget committee’s March 21 meeting with select board members began with – and sometimes reverted to – a broad question about what townspeople want for their town and how much they are willing to pay.

Budget committee member Dallas Smedberg raised the question, in terms of whether the budget committee should endorse proposed spending recommended by the select board, or should emphasize fiscal responsibility and suggest a smaller budget.

Specifically, Smedberg said, he had reservations about the 6.5 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) recommended for town employees (and did not like the wage scale with automatic two percent annual increases, if job performance was satisfactory, that select board members adopted last year).

He wondered if the town’s new program director (the job title was changed from recreation director) was moving too fast; if the library really needed more town support to expand its activities and hours; if the police chief needed more hours, or if Vassalboro even needed its own police department.

Committee members Douglas Phillips and Donald Breton shared Smedberg’s concerns. As discussion proceeded, select board and budget committee members expressed varied opinions.

Town Manager Aaron Miller proposed including a questionnaire with 2023-24 tax bills seeking residents’ input on these and perhaps other town questions. Information would be too late to influence 2023-24 budget recommendations, but could help guide next year’s discussions.

For town salaries, Smedberg suggested a two or three percent COLA. Phillips feared employees would expect six percent annually, forever.

Miller had collected figures from other Maine towns; some were giving employees more than 6.5 percent, some less. His concern is retaining employees; select board chairman Barbara Redmond and member Frederick “Rick” Denico, Jr., remembered the difficulty of finding them in the first place.

Budget committee member Frank Richards cited another organization that adopted a pay scale similar to Vassalboro’s. It’s too recent for a complete evaluation, he said, but there is a full staff for the first time in three years, and morale and productivity are good.

Denico and budget committee member Philip Landry pointed out that Vassalboro’s location between Augusta and Waterville means local residents have many job choices.

Program Director Karen Hatch asked to have her hours increased from 20 to 30 a week. Phillips said he was “impressed” by her planned programs, but would like more specifics; and he wondered how much oversight she gets.

Landry commented that the recreation budget request, $65,898, is smaller than the library’s, and the program has more oversight and town control. (Hatch is a town employee.)

Redmond added that Hatch is working her full hours now, and warm-weather outdoor sports programs haven’t started. The recreation program used to be almost entirely youth sports; Hatch is developing activities for all ages.

What next, Smedberg asked, a recreation center with a full staff? Budget committee chairman Peggy Shaffer and Redmond said they had seen comments about a community center.

When discussion reached the proposed library budget, budget committee member Michael Poulin pointed out that this year’s requested increase was the second in two years – after no increase for at least a decade. At a previous meeting, library officials said they planned no more major changes.

According to figures Miller compiled, the library budget was $35,000 for fiscal year 2021-22 and $60,500 for the current — 2022-23 — fiscal year. The request for 2023-24 is $71,000.

Richards said director Brian Stanley’s innovations were attracting families with young children, and new working families were a benefit to the town.

Phillips recommended library officials do more fund-raising. Redmond said they intend to, now that the decline in Covid allows fund-raising events. Stanley said at an earlier meeting he plans to add a part-time staff member responsible for grant-writing.

Phillips also suggested a select board member be added to the library’s board of trustees. Miller and Redmond said town officials get library financial and program reports.

Regarding police chief Mark Brown’s request for additional hours, Denico and Redmond said Brown already works more hours than he is paid for.

Breton suggested contracting for policing with the Kennebec County sheriff’s office (KSO) and the state police for coverage, and dispensing with a local department. Redmond said the state police are “backing off on rural coverage.”

China and one other town contract with KSO, she said. The cost is $85 an hour; and at present KSO does not have enough staff to accommodate Vassalboro.

The current public safety budget, which covers the police department and the animal control officer, is $86,426. The select board recommendation for 2023-24 is $102,188. More than $10,000 of the requested increase is Brown’s salary and benefits, and another $6,000-plus is for dispatching fees. There is a decrease in the animal control officer’s line.

Miller presented preliminary estimates for non-tax revenues for 2023-24. They include vehicle excise taxes, state revenue sharing, federal funds, fees paid at the town office for licenses and other services and other items.

Budget committee members decided that if the school budget is ready in time, they will meet Tuesday, April 4, with school officials at the school. In any case, they are scheduled to meet at 7 p.m., Thursday, April 6, at the town office to make final recommendations.

China select board “spends a lot of money” on new equipment

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by Mary Grow

“We’re spending a lot of money tonight,” China select board member Blane Casey commented as the board’s March 27 meeting wound down.

They spent much of it on two pieces of equipment, a side-by-side for the transfer station and a plow truck for the public works department. Decisions were unanimous as board members recognized needs, reluctant as they groaned about prices.

They also approved the warrant for the June 13 annual town business meeting, when China voters will have a chance to spend a lot more money; and decided other issues.

Transfer station staff member Cheyenne Houle presented four updated bids for the small utility vehicle, and the transfer station committee’s recommendation.

The transfer station committee recommended, and select board members approved, a Polaris Ranger 570 from Cove-Side Wheel & Ski, in Newport, for $11,598. (The Polaris 500 the committee endorsed on March 7 is no longer available; see the March 9 and March 16 issues of The Town Line).

Paul Lucas, chairman of the transfer station committee, said there is a little more than $38,000 in the transfer station reserve fund.

At a March 22 transfer station committee meeting, Houle said the newer model, which costs $900 more, has the roll cage members liked on the older one. It has upgraded lighting, a better dumping body, higher ground clearance and more time recommended between servicing.

Transfer station manager Thomas Maraggio said the Polaris will “make work easier and more efficient” by reducing time staff spend “running back and forth” to put things in their proper places.

Select board chairman Wayne Chadwick asked whether the previously-discussed guard shack at the transfer station entrance wouldn’t serve the same purpose. No, Maraggio said, because someone planning to smuggle a discarded air conditioner into the brush pile (for example) would need only to hide it under incoming brush, and a staffer would need to move it.

Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood said with the present efficient transfer station crew, and the monitoring cameras, she has lost enthusiasm for a guarded entrance. Chadwick commended the staff for “doing an excellent job.”

Director of Public Services Shawn Reed requested the new truck. For the last two winters, he said, the town has plowed four routes with four trucks, and sometimes two of them break down at the same time. Getting parts is slow, getting time in a repair garage is slow; he needs a fifth truck for back-up.

Getting a new truck is also slow. Reed explained the new system: people who want a truck don’t just order one, they ask a dealer for a slot, present specifications and buy the truck when it gets made.

After investigating options, Reed recommended buying from O’Connor Motors, in Augusta; O’Connor currently has slots, unlike two other dealers he called. He further recommended buying the plow equipment from Viking Cives, in Auburn, and paying $6,325 extra for a seven-year warranty.

Chadwick, board member Brent Chesley and Maraggio, all familiar with equipment, endorsed the extended warranty. A single parts failure could make it worthwhile, they said.

The total price Reed put at $274,497. Hapgood said the public works reserve fund stood at $297,195 as of late December 2022, and the 2023-24 budget will add to it, if voters approve.

Reed was told the truck might be built in September and outfitted and delivered by December. Neither he nor Chesley will be surprised if it’s delayed.

The town meeting warrant select board members endorsed has 31 articles, beginning with election of a moderator. Voting will be by written ballot. The moderator will be chosen by voters at the polls in the portable building behind the town office at 6:55 a.m. Tuesday, June 13; polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Article 14 asks voters to approve expenditures of Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Select board members reviewed expenditures recommended by the TIF Committee at its Feb. 8 and March 8 meetings (see the Feb. 16 and March 16 issues of The Town Line).

One request is for funds for Thurston Park. Jeanette Smith, chairman of the Thurston Park Committee, made a presentation on the future of the town-owned recreational property as she tried to plan for a post-TIF future. China’s current TIF ends June 30, 2045.

China’s TIF plan calls for an annual $65,000 appropriation for recreational trails, to be shared by Thurston Park and the China Four Seasons Club. The majority of the TIF committee recommended $25,000 for Thurston Park and $40,000 for Four Seasons.

Select board members voted unanimously to amend the recommendation and to split the $65,000 evenly between the two groups. Casey favors funding town-owned trails. Janet Preston said her decision was based on the February 8 agreement between Smith and Four Seasons president Thomas Rumpf for a 50:50 split (overruled by the TIF committee majority).

The problem is “there isn’t enough money to go around,” Chesley, who chairs the TIF committee, commented.

Otherwise, select board members endorsed the TIF committee recommendations, all but one by unanimous votes.

The exception was the recommendation to appropriate $20,000 for the China Region Lakes Alliance. Chadwick, Casey and Chesley all had reservations about the group’s gravel road rehabilitation program, which involves using town funds to help landowners improve private roads to control run-off.

Casey and Chesley voted against recommending the appropriation; Chadwick reluctantly joined Jeanne Marquis and Preston in recommending approval.

In other business March 27, select board members appointed Amber French a new member of the Thurston Park committee. They also appointed:

  • to the comprehensive plan implementation committee, French, Randall Downer and Barbara Crosier; and
  • to the Community Forest at China Schools committee, Elizabeth Swahn, of Waterville, and Nancy Lemieux, Larry Lemieux, Jessica Parlin, Susan Cottle, Peter Moulton and Elaine Philbrook, all of China.

Committee would like to expand park offerings

Jeanette Smith’s slideshow on China’s Thurston Park says it started with land given in 1958 by Everett Thurston. Town officials added tax-acquired property and bought one small piece to create the present 400-acre rectangle in northeastern China.

She quoted from a 2019 state survey on the value of recreational space, in terms of personal health, making a town more inviting and increasing nearby property values.

The committee would like to continue expanding park offerings, Smith said. Goals include handicapped access, two new trails, kayak and canoe racks by the pond, a camping area and outdoor programs.

Smith has learned that many grants require handicapped access; but providing handicapped access requires money.

Preston reported on plans to participate in the Kennebec Valley Council of Governments (KVCOG) community resilience program. The public meeting that is an early step is scheduled for 5:30 p.m., Monday, April 24, before that evening’s select board meeting, Preston said.

She hopes many residents will attend to learn more about the program and submit suggestions for making China a more resilient community. Much of the focus is on adaptation to climate change.

Select board members unanimously sold a tax-acquired mobile home on Chadwick Way to the only bidder, Ed Oliver, for $2,001. Hapgood said Oliver will remove the mobile home from the property.

The next regular China select board meeting is scheduled for Monday evening, April 10.

WINDSOR: Cemetery sexton seeks to upgrade computer software

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by The Town Line staff

Cemetery Sexton Joyce Perry informed the Windsor Select Board, at their February 14 meeting, that she has been researching information regarding software for the cemeteries. The costs have ranged up to $6,000. There are several different companies and she recently talked with Julie Finley, from China, regarding a Crypt Keeper program which is what they use. To use this program, there is a one-time fee of $250 to download the program to a laptop. If the town wanted to pay $60 per month, they can access it from anywhere. Perry recommended if they were to do this, they could put it on a desktop computer. Perry gave a presentation of the Crypt Keeper through the town of China’s website. This software can give a lot of information, like where someone is buried, which lot number, which cemetery, photos of the stone and much more. The town of China has hired someone to do their cemeteries and it took them over three months working 40 hours a week.

Perry was asking the select board to approve the $250 program purchase for now, and add in $500 a year in her budget for 2023-24 and continue until the work is done. The board approved the purchase and added they will add the additional $500 a year in her budget until the work is completed.

In other business, Town Manager Theresa Haskell said the town of Windsor has been invited to participate in a one-day household hazardous waste collection which is being coordinated with KVCOG and the town of China, to be hosted by China on Saturday, April 15, from 8 a.m. – noon. The cost to Windsor is $500 and this would allow the town residents to dispose of hazardous chemicals, in a proper manner, that are commonly used around the house.

Resident Patricia Springer asked the town to reimburse the excise tax she paid on a vehicle she purchased in December that was later declared totaled in an accident. The board approved to credit Springer the $124.30 transfer rate.

Public Works Supervisor Keith Hall, and Public Works driver/laborer Timothy Coston brought up the compensation time and are asking the select board to warrant them to be able to comp over 40 hours of overtime, which will equal 60 hours of time off. The board approved the agreement with the conditions that need to be done.

A discussion followed about CDL drivers and a possible position added in next year’s budget. Hall said he needs someone with a CDL license. Springer indicated she conducts CDL classes and would provide information in helping to hire someone.

Resident Colleen Doucette asked what the status was with people in town living in campers. The board indicated the codes enforcement officer, Arthur Strout, is working on this matter and that it takes time. Allison Whynot said there are people living in campers on the Jones Road as well. Selectman Ronald Brann said it is a long process and the town is dealing with human beings, and that an attorney may become involved, which could be costly to the town.

Haskell said the cemetery perpetual certificate of deposit is coming up for renewal and suggested they take the money received for the sale of lots throughout the year, which is a total of $5,625, and add it to the CD. The move from the general ledger account to the CD was approved.

All votes were by unanimous (3-0) votes since selectmen Richard Gray Jr. and Andrew Ballantyne were absent.

FEBRUARY 28 MEETING

At the February 28 meeting of the Windsor Select Board, resident David Shaw asked to discuss fines that were billed to him. Arthur Strout, Codes Enforcement Officer, said he was working on it. Shaw explained he was doing a favor for the occupants of the campers and it was his understanding it would only be for a short period. Shaw did what he could to get the occupants off his property, including getting the law involved. The fines have now reached $4,000. Shaw is asking the town to reduce or forgive the fines for the reasons he had given and the explanation. Strout recommended no less than $1,000 as the fine. The select board approved that $1,000 be paid within 30 days and the property to be cleaned up in the spring.

In other business, Town Manager Theresa Haskell wanted to be sure everyone on the board has received and looked over the new Delta Ambulance contract. She would feel comfortable having an attorney look it over to address some of the questions that have been brought up and suggested by the Windsor Volunteer Fire Department and select board members. The townspeople should be aware of what they will be getting into if they choose to go with Delata Ambulance service as opposed to not having an ambulance service. Selectman Richard Gray said he’d like to see it go to the town as a separate warrant article and for the voters to see if they want an ambulance service or not.

Selectmen Andrew Ballantyne and William Appel Jr. were absent from the meeting.

Vassalboro select board advised investments lost money

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro select board members covered varied topics at their March 16 meeting.

Matthew Weaver, chief investment officer at The First Bancorp, in Damariscotta, updated board members and Town Manager Aaron Miller on Vassalboro’s investment funds. Last year was “a very difficult year,” he said, and Vassalboro lost money, primarily because bonds had “their worst year ever” – and he emphasized “ever,” not just in the last few years.

Since Vassalboro officials contracted with The First in 2011 to improve their 0.25 percent return on invested funds, the annual average return has been around three percent, Weaver said. The investment portfolio has been “very conservative, based on town policy.”

Weaver’s advice was “sit tight.”

He also recommended that when officials intend to use a reserve fund promptly, they transfer money to a no-risk bank savings account, however low the interest, to ensure the full amount needed will be available.

On another topic, Miller reported two experts looked at the Vassalboro town office doorway and said it meets handicapped access requirements. Select board member Chris French repeated his concern about cold air in the lobby when both doors open simultaneously; Miller said staff members are not worried.

Board members therefore unanimously accepted the low bid of $5,215 from American Glass, of Waterville, to install two door openers and four buttons to operate them. They reaffirmed spending $500 for an electrical outlet (see the Feb. 9 issue of The Town Line, p. 3).

Turning to an earlier request to extend no-parking regulations on Bog Road near the East Vassalboro four corners, board chairman Barbara Redmond said a state Department of Transportation (MDOT) staffer told her there is no safety issue there. She and Frederick “Rick” Denico, Jr., therefore opposed amending the town parking ordinance.

Audience member Douglas Phillips suggested lowering the speed limit on that end of Bog Road from 35 to 25 miles an hour, to match Main Street (Route 32). Miller will ask MDOT, which sets speed limits, for a review.

Board members unanimously approved a liquor license for the Parsonage House, on Dunham Road.

Miller and board members briefly reviewed updates to the draft 2023-24 budget prior to talking with budget committee members.

The next regular Vassalboro select board meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., Thursday, March 30.

Vassalboro budget committee begins draft review for 2023-24

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro budget committee members held their first 2023 meeting March 16, unanimously electing Peggy Shaffer chairman and reviewing the draft 2023-24 municipal budget with select board members and Town Manager Aaron Miller.

The draft is subject to change, because some costs are not yet firm.

Budget committee members have not seen the proposed 2023-24 school budget, which is usually more than twice the municipal budget (over $8 million for schools, less than $4 million for the town).

On the municipal side, the administration budget has several proposed changes from the current year, including a decrease in the town manager’s salary, and for select board members increased stipends and three laptops. Board member Chris French would like to see the board working on line, with meetings broadcast and recorded.

Board member Frederick “Rick” Denico, Jr., has a potential source of donated broadcasting/recording equipment. There were questions about other costs and about the adequacy of the town office’s internet connection.

Road Foreman Eugene Field wants to pave several short dead-end gravel roads this year. He said the roads might need some ditching beforehand, but no extensive rebuilding; he estimated paving would last up to 15 years before it needed redoing and said it would save on maintenance costs, including wear on Vassalboro’s elderly grader.

Miller said he has taken Delta Ambulance’s request for $66,285 out of the public safety budget and made it a separate line item. He plans a separate warrant article that will ask town meeting voters to approve both the expenditure and a contract with the ambulance service.

The current expectation is that if Vassalboro does not approve the funding, Delta will stop serving the town on July 1. French said there are no alternative services willing to take over.

Budget committee member Donald Breton reminded the rest of the officials that the budget does not include money for work on the North Vassalboro fire station’s roof, a project that he said has been mentioned regularly in recent discussions.

Field’s request for up to $75,000 for a new storage building on the public works lot on Bog Road is included in the draft budget. He said he envisions an enclosed pole barn, and has an estimated $35,000 cost for materials, but no estimate yet for labor.

Budget committee member Douglas Phillips wondered whether the Bog Road lot is large enough to add the currently-planned building, and how soon public works would need even more storage space. He suggested the $75,000 should go into a reserve fund, to allow time for more planning.

Program director Karen Hatch and library director Brian Stanley each explained the expanded services they will offer if voters approve their requests for bigger budgets.

A new article asking voters to donate $5,000 to the Webber Pond Association for work on the outlet dam generated a request from Tom Richards, speaking for fire chief Walker Thompson, for installation of a dry hydrant at the dam. Budget committee member Nate Gray said involved parties plan to meet to discuss the dam soon and he will see that the fire department request is on the agenda.

A previously-scheduled Thursday, March 23, meeting of the select board and budget committee was canceled. Budget committee members planned to meet Tuesday evening, March 21, to make as many recommendations as they can with available information.

Vassalboro select board recommendations ready for budget committee

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by Mary Grow

After a March 9 budget workshop, Vassalboro select board members had their recommendations for 2023-24 municipal expenditures ready to go to the budget committee for its members’ review and recommendations.

The budget committee’s 2023 organizational meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m., Thursday, March 16, following a 6 p.m. select board meeting.

The proposed budget includes a 6.5 percent cost of living increase for town employees, plus a two percent step increase for all except those who have already reached the maximum number of years the step-increase scale covers.

Other proposed changes in the administration budget, besides salaries, include Town Manager Aaron Miller’s proposal to buy a new copier to replace a 12-year-old one, at an estimated cost of $10,000, and select board members’ recommendation to raise their annual stipends from $1,100 apiece to $2,500 apiece.

The recommended amount for select board members is based on compensation in comparable Maine towns and is intended to recognize the amount of time the job takes and to encourage more people to run for the board.

Board members approved additional time for police chief Mark Brown; Miller said the request is a response to residents’ desire for more coverage.

The total proposed public safety budget is up more than $80,000, mostly because Delta Ambulance has asked for $66,285 to continue serving Vassalboro residents.

Select board members also approved increasing program director Karen Hatch’s time from 20 to 30 hours a week, and her pay commensurately. Board chairman Barbara Redmond was hesitant, because the position is less than a year old; select board member Frederick “Rick” Denico, Jr., and budget committee member Michael Poulin said Hatch is doing a lot and getting good participation.

Hatch’s summary of some of her initial activities appeared in the Jan. 19 issue of The Town Line, on page 2.

Miller suggested a survey asking resident how they like the program and what additional activities they recommend.

Board members supported increasing funding for the China Region Lakes Alliance and, at Redmond’s suggestion, adding up to $5,000 for the Webber Pond Association. Both proposed appropriations have the goal of helping protect water quality. Miller is to draft an article specifying that the $5,000 town donation is to improve water level management at the outlet dam; he suggested the money be appropriated from proceeds from the annual alewife harvest, rather than from taxes.

Proposals for reserve funds, for example for future equipment purchases, were reviewed and amended.

The budget still contains unknowns, including major items like the cost of road-paving materials; and Miller has not yet estimated 2023-24 revenues. The school board has barely started review of its 2023-24 budget (See related story here).

Nomination papers available

Nomination papers for Vassalboro local elective offices are available at the town office. Positions to be filled this year are one seat on the select board (Barbara Redmond, whose term ends, has repeatedly said she does not plan to run again) and two seats on the school board (Erin Libby Loiko’s and Zachary Smith’s terms end this year).

Signed nomination papers must be returned to the town office by noon, Friday, April 14, for candidates’ names to be on the June 13 ballot.

Vassalboro school board begins budget review

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Vassalboro Community School (contributed photo)

by Mary Grow

Vassalboro School Board members began review of the 2023-24 school budget at a special meeting March 7, with information on four cost centers.

The easiest category was ELL – English Language Learners. Superintendent Alan Pfeiffer said there are no ELL students this school year and none expected next year; he and finance director Paula Pooler agreed it should be safe to budget no money for 2023-24.

Certification – the budget lines that provide assistance to novice teachers – will have almost as little impact on the budget. Pfeiffer proposes budgeting less than $5,000 for that account.

For the 2023-24 technology budget, technology coordinator Will Backman requests almost $71,000, an increase of over $27,000 from the current year. Backman told school board members more than half the increase is intended for a rearrangement of the technology center.

He and Vassalboro Community School teacher and technology systems administrator David Trask explained that the central equipment is currently divided between two closets, one shared with the janitors. The plan is to consolidate everything in one server room. Backman does not yet know how much rewiring will be needed.

Backman also recommends $5,000 to replace a server, plus the usual technology costs and fees. The two experts and Principal Ira Michaud commented on technology added during the pandemic to facilitate remote learning that will be kept because teachers are finding it useful in classroom learning.

The largest budget item presented March 7 was the transportation account. Transportation Director Ashley Pooler is asking for a little over $647,000, an increase of more than $50,000.

The request does not include new school buses, although Peiffer said by next year board members might see a recommendation for at least one. An attached chart shows two of Vassalboro’s 12 buses have more than 100,000 miles on their odometers.

Pooler does recommend buying a third van; her chart lists two in service this year, each with a capacity of seven students. She further recommends another secretary in the transportation department, partly because of the increasing number of vans to support students’ educational programming.

Pooler and her staff serve all three formerly-united towns, Vassalboro, Waterville and Winslow, so the secretarial costs would be shared.

Pooler also recommends an increase in the vehicle maintenance budget.

Pfeiffer commented that Vassalboro’s fleet is “in good shape right now,” and as of March 7 the school department had enough drivers, many of them Vassalboro residents.

School budget discussions will continue at future meetings, to be announced as they are scheduled. The next topics Pfeiffer intends to present include buildings and grounds and special education (“a big one,” he warned).

The superintendent reported that high-school tuition went up 6.5 percent in December 2022, “one of the biggest jumps ever.” The 2022-23 Vassalboro budget was calculated to cover a three percent increase.

Because budgets are done in the spring every year and the new tuition rate comes out in December, school board and budget committee members and town meeting voters can only guess how much to appropriate.

The next regular Vassalboro school board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 21, at Vassalboro Community School.