How local officials are making our schools safe again

“Both times I visited the school, I was asked my business within seconds of stepping through the front doors.” –Eric Austin (photo source: jmg.org)

by Eric W. Austin

“Nothing’s foolproof,” Augusta Deputy Chief Jared Mills told me at the beginning of our meeting on the issue of school safety. “The best laid plans are not going to prevent this from happening.”

What is ‘this’? Take your pick. Terrorists and school shooters. Bomb threats and bullying. Our students and teachers have a lot to deal with these days.

The fact that nothing is completely foolproof hasn’t stopped our local law enforcement and school administrators from laying down the best possible plans. In researching this article, not only did I speak with Deputy Chief Mills, I also sat down with high school principals Chad Bell, of Winslow, and Paula Callan, of Messalonskee; Headmaster Michael McQuarrie, of Erskine Academy; and Detective Sergeant Tracey Frost, of the Oakland Police Department and one of two school resource officers for RSU #18.

Fifty years ago, schools were primarily designed around the fear of fire. Plenty of exits. Regular fire drills. Today, those concerns have shifted to include “access-point control” and lockdown practice. Fire is still a concern, but now each additional exit or entrance is also a point of vulnerability that needs to be considered. Those changes are obvious by looking at the design of our schools over time. Messalonskee High School, built in 1969, has 37 exits, while the middle school, constructed nearly 50 years later, has only ten.

These warring priorities of access and security are a constant theme for administrators looking to update their facilities for the 21st century.

The front entrance at Messalonskee High is now equipped with a buzz-in system (photo source: jmg.org)

Schools have responded to the new safety concerns in various ways. Messalonskee High School, like many area schools, has implemented a buzz-in system for the front entrance, and keycard-only access for outlying classrooms. Anyone coming to the front door is required to press a button which signals the front office. After verifying your identity, the door is unlocked and you can enter. Winslow High School does not have this system yet, but Principal Chad Bell told me its implementation is at the top of the school’s list of priorities. New policies have been implemented in both schools restricting which exits can be used during school hours in order to more carefully monitor who is entering the building.

Erskine Academy has its own set of challenges. It’s the only school without a full-time school resource officer and, located on the outskirts of China, it faces the longest response time from law enforcement in case of emergency. Though Erskine’s main building does not have a buzz-in system, external classrooms now require keycards to enter, and all classrooms have been fitted with deadbolts that lock from the inside.

Security upgrades have not only encompassed entrance and exit points. Classrooms have also received attention. In older buildings, classrooms were primarily designed to prevent students from being accidentally locked inside. As such, classrooms could always be opened from within, but often could only be locked from the outside, with a key. Now, schools are preparing for situations where being locked inside a classroom might be the safest place for a student to be.

Winslow High School Principal Chad Bell

Winslow has come up with a simple and low-cost solution to the problem. Instead of replacing the outdated locks at significant cost, they have installed a thin, magnetic strip that covers the strike plate of the door jamb. Doors are always locked, but with the magnetic strip in place, they can be closed without latching. In the event of a lockdown, anyone can pull the magnetic strip away from the door jamb and close the door, latching and locking it securely. It’s a simple and elegant solution to a problem that can pose a substantial cost to schools faced with regularly insufficient budgets.

Classroom doors at Messalonskee High School are kept locked but left open so they can be pulled closed at a moment’s notice.

Security cameras have also become a fixture at our schools. Winslow High School has 30 security cameras installed, and although there’s no buzz-in system yet, safety and security are a top priority for the staff. Both times I visited the school, I was asked my business within seconds of stepping through the front doors.

Messalonskee High School has only ten cameras, and the system desperately needs replacing. Installed seven years ago, camera resolution is far below current standards and, after operating 24/7 for nearly a decade, quality has degraded even further. The school intends to replace the system and add more cameras soon, but, as always, cost is the driving factor: new books or new cameras?

Each of these improvements can be taxing on schools scrambling for every cent. Take for example what seems at first a simple problem. Most classroom doors have windows installed in them. Administrators can easily walk the halls and see what is going on in each classroom. But when faced with the worst possible situation, an active shooter in the school, that visibility quickly becomes a dangerous liability. To fix the issue, the windows in classroom doors are now fitted with curtains that can be pulled down from the inside. A fairly easy fix, and cheap. And yet: “At $20 a curtain, roughly,” RSU #18 resource officer Tracey Frost explained, “for hundreds and hundreds of doors across the district? The bill came, but we got it done.”

For Tracey Frost, preparation is key. He aims to make lockdown drills as automatic for students as fire drills, and he thinks he’s almost there. “I can have 800 kids out of a line of sight in under a minute,” he told me proudly. “When we first started doing it, it was maybe two to three minutes.”

The lockdown drills students practice today remind me of the old Nuclear Strike Drills from the 1970s that ended only a few years before I entered school. They start with “LOCKDOWN DRILL! LOCKDOWN DRILL!” blared over the intercom speakers. Students lock classroom doors, pull curtains, and shut off lights. Then they gather in a designated “safety spot” in the classroom, keeping as low as possible, and quietly wait for the all-clear. Or as Tracey Frost puts it: “Locks, lights, and out of sight.”

All of the school administrators I spoke to were in the process of investigating additional training programs to help them prepare for the unthinkable. Three specific such programs seem to be most popular here in central Maine.

“Run, Hide, Fight” is a program endorsed by the Maine Department of Education, and offers a low-cost option with support from the state, but it has its detractors. “I’m not too comfortable with the concept of teaching kids to fight a gunman,” SRO Frost confided, “but I can teach them to stack desks in front of the door. If a bad guy spends 30-seconds trying to get into a classroom and can’t, we’ve saved lives and gained half-a-minute, and that’s a long time in such a situation.”

A.L.I.C.E. (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) is another popular program many schools are evaluating. It focuses on preparation and planning to, per their website, “proactively handle the threat of an aggressive intruder or active shooter event.”

The final program, which Officer Frost has adapted in large part for schools in RSU #18, is called the Standard Response Protocol. It was developed by the “I Love U Guys” Foundation (iloveuguys.org), an organization started by the parents of a girl killed in the school shooting at Platte Canyon High School in 2006. Frost particularly likes the program’s way of presenting its concepts with colorful, kid-friendly materials, and its method of using what Frost terms “teacher speak:” a common lexicon of terms that make communication between students and teachers simple and unambiguous. The foundation was named after the last text message sent from the girl to her parents before she was shot and killed.

Erskine Headmaster Michael McQuarrie

Beyond lockdown drills and hardening schools and classrooms, everyone agrees the best way to prevent school violence is to develop a culture that makes each student feel understood and respected. “[Students] all have to feel valued,” Erskine’s Headmaster Michael McQuarrie told me at the conclusion of our discussion. “If you’re alienated, if you’re disenfranchised and bullied on top of that — that is an incredible variable that we cannot dismiss or underestimate.”

For law enforcement and school officials both, the introduction of the internet has complicated things, especially in the area of identifying possible threats. In the old days, threats came by way of graffiti on bathroom walls, an anonymous phone call or an overheard conversation.

Today, none of those avenues have disappeared, but now there is also Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, email, and internet discussion boards to worry about. Add to this the tendency for children to post their thoughts on the internet without fully considering the implications of their words, and it’s common for casual threats to be bandied about on social media platforms with little thought of serious evil intent. In our current safety-conscious climate, however, each of those casual threats must be run down by law enforcement, which takes time away from other, equally important, tasks.

Thankfully, central Maine is still small enough that this hasn’t become the insurmountable effort that it has in bigger urban areas. “We still have the ability to follow up on every tip,” Augusta Deputy Chief Mills assured me. Local law enforcement works closely with the Maine State Police Computer Crimes Unit and the FBI to track down the source of any online threats.

Kids are also figuring out that behavior which might have been viewed as merely mischievous in the past is now considered a serious crime. It starts with parents having a conversation with their kids at home. It continues with teachers and administrators creating a school atmosphere where students feel comfortable bringing their concerns to adults. It ends with law enforcement and the courts, which are dealing out tough sentences for online threats of violence. It’s not unusual for students to be expelled, fined or even jailed for such behavior, as happened in Skowhegan where two boys were recently charged with terrorizing, a class C felony; or in Ellsworth where, this past February, police arrested a 19-year-old student for making threats against the high school in a chat for the online game Clash of Clans.

Messalonskee High’s Principal Paula Callan

New challenges face our schools like never before, with budget shortfalls, teacher shortages, and now safety concerns that would have seemed unthinkable 50 years ago. Still, the brave public servants in our schools are not shrinking from the challenge, and resource officer Tracey Frost is also quick to point out, “[Statistically,] your child is much more likely to get hurt on the drive into school than they are once they enter this building.”

Despite the challenges, school officials are determined to make student safety a priority, whatever the cost. “You can’t put a price on a student’s life,” Messalonskee principal Paula Callan told me firmly, as we shook hands at the end of our talk. In the face of this scary new world, these heroic public servants are taking no chances with the safety of our kids.

Eric W. Austin is a writer and consultant living in China, Maine. He writes about technology and community issues, and can be reached by email at ericwaustin@gmail.com.

Erskine Academy releases 2018 second trimester honor roll

Grade 12

High Honors: Maggie Anderson, Courtney Austin, Lauren Boatright, Harald Christiansen, Noelle Cote, Grace Crouse, Cody Daigneault, Bryanna Emery, Shaylee Fisher, Hunter Gagnon, Brock Glidden, Angel Hall-Stuart, Nicholas Howes, Kayla Hubbard, Samantha Jackson, Megan Lemieux, Jordan Lewis, Rita McCausland, Hunter Merrill, Kassandra Nadeau, Jakob Peavey, Gabriella Pizzo, Leanna Prime, Mercedes Richard, Chantelle Roddy, Adam Silvia, Emma Solorzano, Emma Sullivan, Caleb Tyler, Lauren Wood. Honors: Annemarie Allen, Cody Azevedo, Cassidy Baldwin, Jamin Blais, Mariah Blanchard, Noah Bonsant, Hannah Bragg, Victoria Chabot, Madison Choate, Alexander Cleaves, Bailey Cloutier, Ashlyn Cook, Kaitlyn Coston, Austin Cowing, Corvus Crump, Stephen Csengery, Joshua Davis, Chelsea Duplessis, Madeline Durant, Derrick Dyer, Morgan Emond, Hannah Farrington, Brooke Fongemie, Kyle Frederick, Madyson Geboskie, Jadelynn Giroux, Samuel Grady, Elizabeth Green, Hunter Hoague, Luke Hodgkins, Billy Howell III, Carleigh Ireland, Damien Jackson, Isabella Johnson, Bjorn Jorgensen, Liam Keefe, Jacob Lamoreau, Alexis Lee, Tucker Leonard, Alex Logan, Devin Mason, Ryan Michaud, Chandler Moore, Harrison Mosher, Noah Osborne, Cassidy Penney, Kali Porter, Kaylee Porter, Molly Pullen, Jedidiah Regalado, Justin Rollins, Michaela Roy, Kaili Shorey, Michael Sprague Jr, Emma Stone, Hunter Swift, Makayla Tobey, Tyler Walker, Christopher Wight, Olivia Wyman, Martie Young, Morgan Young.

Grade 11

High Honors: Molly Babson, Madison Boynton, Jenna Butler, Caitlyn Denico, Tiffany Doyle, Dominic Durant, Cameron Falla, Ethan Furlong, Madeline Geidel, Sage Hapgood-Belanger, Samantha Heath, Eleanor Hodgkin, Kayla Hodgkins, Amber Rose Holmes, Peyton Houghton, Andrew Jackson, Christopher Jamison, Kyli Julia, Brenna Kitchen, Morgaine Kmen, Olivia Kunesh, Caitlin Labbe, Noah Labbe, Haeden Landry, Milo Lani-Caputo, Alexander Mahon, Rivers Malcolm, Desiree Mayo, James Mayo, Conner Paine, Jacob Praul, Seth Reed, Christina Roy, Hunter Rushing, Caleb Sacks, Seth Savage, Conor Skehan, Braden Soule, Briana Strout, Elizabeth Sugg, Willow Throckmorton-Hansford, Jack Tobey, Kassidy Wade, Hagen Wallace, Asiah Wilmot, Ashlyn Wing, Alana York, Peilin Yu. Honors: Alex Barney, Mark Barney, Gavin Blanchard, Lydia Boucher, Nina Boudreau, Justin Browne, Arthur Carey, Joseph Clark, Shannon Cornett, Leah Couture, ArizonaLee Crooker, Megan Crouse, Mireya Dos Santos, Keara Doughty, Travis Dow, Marshall Dugal, Austin Dunn, Dawn Elliott, Samuel Falla, Courtney Gallagher, Aaron Gilbert, Phillip Gilbert, Ashley Gillis, Dylan Grotton, Alexis Haskell, Tristan Hawk, Kaleb Hopper, Alicia Hotham, William Jones, Jack Jowett, Garrett Keezer, Dylan Keller, Tiffany Kiefer, Robert King, Tara Maltese, Noah Miller, Rebekah Morrill, Joshua Peaslee, Zachary Plourde, Nicholas Rancourt, Hannah Reid, Jessie Sepulvado, Krystina Shorey, Brianna Soucy, Shayleigh Springer, Shaine Staples, Mercedes Tibbetts, Megan To, Caden Turcotte, Jacob Wright, Jiwei Jeff Ye.

Grade 10

High Honors: Lucy Allen, Julia Basham, Derek Beaulieu, Haley Breton, Cassidy Clement, Norah Davidson, Nathan Evans, Alyssha Gil, Annika Gil, Boe Glidden, Keimi Henry, Summer Hotham, Sarah Jarosz, Parker King, Tristan Klemanski, Cole Leclerc, Stephanie Libby, Jordan Linscott, Adalaide Morris, Lyndsie Pelotte, Hunter Praul, Morgan Presby, Miina Raag-Schmidt, Mitchel Reynolds, Dominic Rodrigue, Alyssa Savage, Dominic Smith, Courtney Tibbetts, Brandon Tibbs, Katelyn Tibbs, Ashleigh Treannie, Hailee Turner, Cameron Tyler, Richard Winn. Honors: Lucas Anderson, Jay Austin II, Alec Baker, Adam Bonenfant, Faith Bonnell, Bridget Connolly, Devin Davis, Michael Dusoe Jr, Dominick Dyer, Vincent Emery, Jada Fredette, Mitchell Gamage, Lydia Gilman, Bryce Goff, Joshua Gower, Clara Grady, Tori Grasse, Alyssa Hale, Emma Harvey, Nicholas Hayden, Nicholas Howard, Ashley Huntley, Emily Jacques, Cameron Johnson, Colby Johnson, Marisa Klemanski, Brandon LaChance, Eleena Lee, William Leeman, Brandon Loveland, Reece McGlew, Kaytie Millay, Jakob Mills, Jamara Moore, Krysta Morris, Nathaniel Mosher, Matthew Picher, Benjamin Reed, Jennifer Reny, Andrew Robinson, Shawn Seigars, Serena Sepulvado, Santasia Sevigny, Nicholas Shelton, Ryan Sidelinger, Alissa Sleeper, Kayla Sleeper, Lily Solorzano, Jacob Sutter, Nicole Taylor, Matthew Veilleux, Tanner Watson.

Grade 9

High Honors: Mara Adams, Philip Allen, Nicholas Barber, Abbygail Blair, Everett Blair, Jane Blanchard, Christopher Bourdon, Samantha Box, Trevor Brockway, Eleanor Brown, Emma Burtt, Ashley Clavette, Cody Devaney, Jacob Devaney, Amelia Evans, Nathaniel Farrar, Addison Gamage, Margaret Gamage, Cameron Gifford, Hailey Haskell, Avery Henningsen, Nathan Howell, Emma Hutchinson, Muzzammil Iqbal, Delaney Ireland, Bryan Joslyn Jr, Madyx Kennedy, Sierra LaCroix, Isabela Libby, Joanna Linscott, Colby Lloyd, Chiara Mahoney, Hailey Mayo, Jessica Mayo, Riley Mayo, Isaiah Michaud, Michael Nicholas III, Ian Oliphant, Courtney Paine, Aiden Pettengill, Sydni Plummer, Harry Rabideau, Kristin Ray, Acadia Senkbeil, Hanna Spitzer, Logan Tenney, Mollie Wilson, Samuel York. Honors: Brooke Allen, Paris Bedsaul, Vanessa Berry, Isabella Bishop, Hailey Brooks, Zoe Butler, Anthony Chessa, Saydi Cote, Nolan Cowing, Joleigh Crockett, McKayla Doyon, Abigail Dumas, Jake Emond, Avril Goodman, Braydon Hinds, Paeshance-Rae Horan, Kaylah Kronillis, Haley Laird, Gabriel Laweryson, Drew Lowell, Hunter Luczko, Eva Malcolm, Jonathan Martinez, Gavin Mills, Alicia Nelson, Tyler Ormonde, Brian Ouellette, Olive Padgett, Daniel Page, Isabella Parlin, Annaliese Patterson, Elek Pelletier, Lexis Perry, Jacob Pomelow, Allison Roddy, Kyle Rowe, Noah Soto, Hunter St. Jarre, Ariel Stillman, Riley Sullivan, Joshua Tobey, Sarena Walker, Dylan Wing, Kelby Young.

China Democratic Committee observes Earth Day Sunday, April 22, 2018

Looking for a meaningful way to celebrate Earth Day locally? Join the China Democratic Committee on Sunday, April 22, at 1 p.m., in the public parking lot next to the Causeway on the north end of China Lake. Bring work gloves and wear sturdy shoes. They’ll tidy up the shore and boat launch area just in time to greet the beginning of the lake season and commemorate Earth Day 2018.

Earth Day was the brainchild of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson, who felt it was time for a national day of awareness for the importance of environmental protection. The first Earth Day took place on April 22, 1970. More than 20 Americans took part in the events scheduled from coast-to-coast to demonstrate their support for a healthier, sustainable environment. Earth Day 1970 received rare political collaboration from groups who weren’t always in alignment: Republicans and Democrats, urbanites and farmers, business leaders and labor leaders. At the time, these groups suddenly realized we do share some common values because we share the same planet. Earth Day is now observed in 184 countries by hundreds of millions of people.

China Police Log for February 2018

The China Police Log is provided to The Town Line by Detective Sergeant Tracey Frost of the Oakland Police Department

Due to the heightened concerns following the Parkland, Florida, incident, the China Police attempted to concentrate on school areas in February.

Officers responded to the following:

11 traffic stops.
1 assistance to motorist.
14 business checks.
1 fireworks detail.
1 school safety presentation.
2 school zone traffic details.
1 traffic complaint.
1 welfare check.

Erskine to hold benefit concert

Erskine Academy’s music department will host its annual benefit concert on Friday, April 27, starting at 6:30 p.m. in the James V. Nelson gymnasium. The concert will feature most of the ensembles with a special Erskine alumnus guest artist. Students will be showcasing their original compositions and performing solos and traditional ensemble pieces. Donations will be accepted.

CHINA: Hortons’ teen camp gets go ahead; Dollar General application judged incomplete

by Mary Grow

China Planning Board members had a long meeting April 10, starting with a public hearing on Susan and Wesley Horton’s proposed leadership development camp on Three Mile Pond and going on to approve the camp and hear preliminary plans for a new Dollar General Store just outside South China Village.

After testimony from a dozen of the close to 20 neighbors and other interested parties who attended the Hortons’ hearing or sent written comments, board members voted unanimously that the project met all criteria in China’s land use ordinance.

At their next meeting they need to review written findings of fact that justify their decision and sign formal approval. (ep)

Neighbors had three main concerns: the appearance that the Hortons had started their camp before getting a town permit, traffic on Pond Hill Road and the degree of supervision that would be exercised over the young clients.

The Hortons bought the almost-45-acre property last fall planning to use it as a transition from their Ironwood Maine facility, in Morrill, where troubled teens are treated for up to a year, to the youngsters’ homes, colleges or other settings. Since then, they said, they have had young adults staying there – a use they consider similar to the property’s prior use by Maersk as a corporate retreat, and not the same as their proposed future use.

The incoming clients will come voluntarily and will normally stay three months, Susan Horton said. The Hortons plan to have no more than 10 clients on site at a time, with two and frequently during the day three staff members. The clientele does not include criminals or recovering drug addicts.

Several nearby residents mentioned increased traffic, sometimes well into the evening. The evening vehicles might be night staffers coming to work, the Hortons suggested. One of the current residents does have a car; none of the future 16- and 17-year-old residents will, they said.

Asked by planning board member Ronald Breton if they followed up on a neighbor’s complaint about an offensive snow sculpture, Wesley Horton said that evening he brought a letter from the offender, who has apologized, to the neighbor.

Three members of the French family, who helped take care of the property when it was a corporate retreat, believe the new use will be good for the neighborhood. Gary French said current “very respectful” residents had invited them for a meal. Marsha French commented that Maersk used to have up to 20 guests at a time, “very heavy partiers, [making] a lot of noise that echoed across that lake.

The Dollar General store is proposed for a one-acre lot on the southwest corner of the intersection of Route 3 and Windsor Road. Todd Hamula, Senior Development Manager for the Zaremba Group leading the project, and engineer Chris Nadeau of Nobis Engineering brought an array of maps and plans.

The planned entrance to the store parking lot will be off Windsor Road, on the south side of the property. The sight distance does not quite meet the state Department of Transportation’s required 125 feet, but DOT has granted a waiver allowing the driveway, Nadeau said.

Board members were unhappy with traffic issues, phosphorus control on such a small lot and the septic system. Audience members questioned the need for another dollar store in South China.

The board asked for more information to support the DOT waiver. Members are especially concerned about drivers turning south from Route 3 onto Windsor Road colliding with vehicles entering or exiting the store parking area.

Codes Officer Paul Mitnik said with a small lot more than half covered by a building and pavement, meeting China’s Phosphorus Control Ordinance requirements is probably impossible. He said state rules, which he thinks the planning board could use but is not required to use, allow a developer to compensate with a payment that would be used to control phosphorus run-off somewhere else.

No one present could remember China’s using the payment provision. Planning Board Chairman Tom Miragliuolo said his initial reaction is that payment would be “morally wrong,” though he is willing to hear more about the idea.

Mitnik said the proposed septic system is inadequate. Nadeau agreed, saying the design is wrong and has been sent back to the designer.

Hamula said he talked with the neighbor to the south about the type of boundary she would like between the parking lot and her property; they agreed on evergreens, probably arborvitae, instead of a fence.

The result of the planning board discussion was a unanimous vote that Dollar General’s application is not complete and needs changes before the board can begin review. Miragliuolo said the decision is not a rejection of the application, and board members will continue informal discussions as necessary.

When a complete application is submitted the planning board is likely to schedule a public hearing. At the April 10 meeting, no date was set for further discussion.

See previous stories about teen camp: 

China public hearing planned on proposed teen camp
China planners set to hear proposal on camp for teens
China planners hear application on camp for teens

Erskine Academy presents Renaissance awards

Above, Seniors of the trimester were, front row, left to right: Jake Peavey, Luke Hodgkins; back row, Corvus Crump, Gabriella Pizzo, and Noelle Cote. (Contributed photos)

On Friday, March 30th, Erskine Academy students and staff attended a Renaissance Assembly to honor their peers with Renaissance Awards.

Recognition Awards were presented to the following students: Dale Peaslee, Nick Barber, Kassidy Wade, Victoria Chabot, McKayla Doyon, Nolan Cowing, Peilin Yu, Jonathan Martinez, Kristin Ray, Maverick Lowery, and Billy Howell.

Faculty of the trimester were, from left to right, Randy Pottle and Lynn Wood.

In addition to Recognition Awards, Senior of the Trimester Awards were also presented to five members of the senior class: Corvus Crump, son of Debra Crump, of Vassalboro; Noelle Cote, daughter of Tami and John Cote, of China; Luke Hodgkins, son of Lisa and Craig Hodgkins, of Jefferson; Gabriella Pizzo, daughter of Deanne and Greg Pizzo, of China; and Jake Peavey, son of Sheryl Peavey and Matt Emmons, of China. Seniors of the Trimester are recognized as individuals who have gone above and beyond in all aspects of their high school careers.

In appreciation of their dedication and service to Erskine Academy, Faculty of the Trimester awards were also presented to Marilyn Wood, special educator; and Randy Pottle, maintenance.

Erskine alumni Red Sox trip planned

CHINA – Erskine Academy Alumni has planned a trip to a Boston Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles game on Sunday, May 20, at Fenway Park, Boston. The cost will be $110 and covers the bus and game ticket. Tickets are limited; reserve your tickets now! Coach bus will leave the Erskine Academy parking lot at a.m. For more information and to reserve your tickets, please email Halda hstout@erskine247.com or call the Alumni Office (207) 445-4026.

 

China selectmen to hold executive session

The China Board of Selectmen will hold an executive session on Thursday, April 12, at 5:30 p.m., at the town office. This meeting is not open to the public.

China Transfer Station coordinator: Volunteers needed for Earth Day cleanup on April 21

by Irene Belanger
China selectman

Thank you for your continued support of all the transfer station initiatives to “hold the line” on expenses! Once again April brings all of Palermo and China residents outside into warm spring days armed with rakes, large trash bags, and gloves to clean lawns and roadsides of winter debris. Volunteers are needed; April 21 is Earth Day and we will be cleaning roadsides of trash and other debris. Thank you to the Goodine Family and to the Boy Scout Troop #479 for their past years of volunteerism. Please call me to volunteer so that we can plan accordingly. If there is any confusion, please meet at the South China Community Church or China Baptist Church between 8:30 and 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 21, to be assigned roads for clean-up. We will provide trash bags and gloves and bottles of water for hydration. You may take the full bags to the China transfer station directly or call 445-3033 to have the trash bags picked up or other heavy items left on the roadsides.

Drug Take-Back Day for China and Palermo residents is scheduled for Saturday, April 28, 2018 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The Kennebec Sheriff’s Office will again sponsor the event at the transfer station. The KSO will have an officer on site to receive the returned medications. This is a good opportunity to remove unneeded medications out of the hands of those who should not have access to them.