China select board hears proposal for street radio installations

/0 Comments/in , /by
by Mary Grow

China select board members’ main topic at their Dec. 2 meeting was a proposal by Tom Kroh, Regional Director, Site Acquisition and Deployment, for Ubicquia, Inc., based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. His company would like to contract with the town to attach street radios to town streetlights, to improve residents’ telephone and internet service.

Attaching the Ericsson street radios, Kroh explained in an on-line presentation, would provide residents with better cellular service; would bring the town a small amount of income; and would have no negative effects.

The street radios are small devices, 16 inches by nine inches by three inches high, that sit on top of streetlights, almost invisible from the ground. Ubicquia would be entirely responsible for installing them and signing up communications companies; the companies, not the town, would handle any maintenance issues. Ubicquia currently deals with AT&T, T-Mobile and U. S. Cellular, Kroh said, but not with Verizon.

Ubicquia would reimburse Central Maine Power Co. for electricity used. It would pay China $30 a month for each streetlight with a radio on top. The town’s contract would allow Ubicquia access to all streetlights, but, Kroh said, select board members could approve or disapprove use of specific ones.

Contracts are normally for five years, renewable, but Kroh said a three-year contract would be possible.

Holiday hours

The December holiday schedule for China town departments is as follows, according to Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood:

— Tuesday, Dec. 24, all town departments close at noon.
— Wednesday, Dec. 25, and Thursday, Dec. 26, all town departments closed.
— Friday, Dec. 27, and Saturday, Dec. 28, all town departments open as usual.
— Tuesday, Dec. 31, all town departments close at 2 p.m.
— Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, all town departments closed.

Kroh summarized: China would be making money off its existing streetlights and improving telephone and internet connectivity for residents, at no cost to the town.

What, board member Edwin Bailey asked, does Ubicquia get out of it? Kroh replied that Ubicquia sells use of the street radios to the carriers.

He listed other Maine towns in which his company has installed street radios or is negotiating installations. In Rumford, he said, there are reports of better coverage, fewer dropped calls and faster download and upload times.

Kroh will send a draft contract to Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood. Select board members intend to do more research, review the contract and have the town attorney review it before they make a decision.

Once a contract is signed, Kroh said, pre-installation procedures normally take from four to six months, installation another two or three weeks.

In other business Dec. 2, board member Blane Casey reported requests for bids had gone out for different pieces of the work of building the new records storage vault. He and Hapgood said some bids have already been received. Bid deadlines are staggered, up to Dec. 10.

Board members continued the review of town policies they began in November. Hapgood presented seven more policies, six with no or minor changes and a new one recommended by the Maine Municipal Association. Board members approved all seven unanimously.

Hapgood shared reports from other town departments, including:

— A reminder that dogs need to be licensed before the end of the year;
— A reminder that 2025 transfer station stickers are now available at the town office and at the transfer station;
— A report that the skating rink has been relocated from the school grounds to the lot south of the town office, north of the intersection of Alder Park Road with Lakeview Drive; and
— A report that the new building at the transfer station to house the sandpile for China residents needing winter sand is finished.

The next regular China select board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16.

China planners hear residents’ concerns to South China boat landing upgrades

/0 Comments/in , /by
by Mary Grow

The China Planning Board’s Nov. 26 meeting included public hearings on two applications. The first, on the long-discussed document storage vault to be attached to the southeast end of the town office building, was short, and was followed by approval later in the meeting.

The second hearing, on the town’s application to move more than 100 cubic yards of fill on Town Landing Road, the access to the South China boat landing, lasted over an hour. More than a dozen people spoke, some on line and some in the meeting room.

Board members postponed action to their Tuesday, Dec. 10, meeting, deciding they needed time to consider the information and opinions presented.

A third application, for a new retail store on Route 3, in South China, in the South China Development District, was found to be complete. Board members scheduled a public hearing on that application for 6:30 p.m., Dec. 10

At the hearing on the town office storage vault, Municipal Building Committee chairman Sheldon Goodine briefly re-explained the plan, and committee member Scott Pierz emphasized the need.

The vault will be attached to the south side of the building, near the east end. The two men assured planning board members it should provide enough more storage space for several decades. It will be fireproof, and will have temperature and humidity controls to protect documents that the state requires a municipality to keep forever.

Board members unanimously approved the permit.

The boat landing application asks for an earth-moving permit for the purpose of erosion control on Town Landing Road. Former select board member Brent Chesley recommended planning board members authorize moving up to 400 cubic yards.

The plan, he said, is to replace “highly erodible material” – gravel – with materials like stone and pavement. He and others talked about the pavement being sloped toward ditches and the ditches designed to slow water flow.

Chesley said the town is waiting for boat ramp planks to be available to schedule the work next year. He said the state Department of Environmental Protection has approved a DEP permit.

Much of the discussion was over a broader topic, use of the landing. Many of the neighbors would like it to be limited to carry-in only, kayaks and canoes. This use, they said, would not require the trucks and boat trailers that either back down the 500-foot-long, narrow road or turn in residents’ driveways, and that have to go well into the lake to unload and load boats.

Carry-in would also be more compatible with swimming at the landing, they said.

Planners review application for new retail store at site of former Grace Academy

The China Planning Board has scheduled a public hearing for 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 10, on a conditional use application for a new retail store at 363 Route 3, in South China.

Engineer Steven Govoni, president of Skowhegan-based Wentworth Partners & Associates, spoke for the developer, Calito Development Group, of Torrington, Connecticut, at the Nov. 26 board meeting.

The developer plans to tear down the building on the site, most recently the home of Grace Academy Learning Center until it closed in June 2022, and replace it with a store selling, in Govoni’s words, “general merchandise.”

The new building will be 9,100 square feet, larger than the present one, with a smaller parking area. The result is to reduce phosphorus run-off, Govoni said, because paved parking areas are a larger phosphorus source than roofs.

Board members discussed the existing building’s varied commercial history. Codes officer Nicholas French said the septic system, updated when the building became a restaurant, is adequate for the proposed use.

Board members voted that the application was complete and scheduled the Dec. 10 public hearing.

Bob Hargadon, whose family has summered on nearby Jones Road for five generations, set the tone for neighborly objections to the proposal.

He said the China select board had mostly ignored area residents, “people most concerned about the lake,” and had ignored an earlier engineer’s report that recommended a carry-in landing.

Hargadon and other speakers questioned the accuracy of the application for the planning board permit. For example, one said, the application mentions a 25-foot vegetated buffer at the foot of the roadside ditch, but no buffer appears on the accompanying plan.

Another objected to the application’s saying if the project had any effect on adjacent property values, it would increase them by providing “quality access to the lake.”

Hargadon pointed out the lack of data to support statements in the application.

He and others doubt that China Lake needs three boat landings – the same number, he said, as for much larger Moosehead Lake.

Another speaker noted that the landings at the head of the east basin, outside China Village, and near the outlet of the west basin, in East Vassalboro Village, offer port-a-potties and adequate turning and parking space, not available in South China.

Chesley and others said erosion from the boat landing has impacted water quality for years, and controlling it is a high priority in the watershed management plan. Chesley explained that the vegetative buffer is not on the plan because DEP officials requested it during their review; it will be added.

The properly sloped paving, well-designed ditches and boat ramp planks with spaces between should minimize run-off and absorb contaminants, Chesley said. He accused the neighborhood residents of “just wanting to preserve their little piece of the pie.”

Margot Crosman, member of another family long established in the neighborhood, called Chesley’s assumption insulting. “The boats keep getting bigger and bigger,” she commented.

After planning board chairman Toni Wall closed the hearing, she reminded those present that the application to the board is only for earth-moving.

In other business Nov. 26, board members unanimously accepted Elaine Mather’s offer to become board co-chairman, running meetings when Wall is absent. They voted unanimously to cancel their second December meeting, which would have fallen on Christmas Eve.

Local artist gifts piece to China Community Food Pantry

/0 Comments/in , /by

The photo of a gift to the China Food Pantry. The gift is a large painting (approximately 8 feet long) by Chris Fields, a resident of South China. The painting depicts Fields’ concept of the Pantry’s 32-year contribution to the town of China, painted on local lumber. (contributed photo)

EVENTS: China flag retirement ceremony set for Dec. 5

/0 Comments/in , , , /by
by Mary Grow

A flag retirement ceremony is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 5, at the Boynton-Webber American Legion Hall, in South China. Transfer station safety officer Cheyenne Houle said it will honor the more than 300 worn-out United States flags that have been left in the flag disposal boxes provided at the transfer station, plus others from Boy Scouts and other local groups.

The event is open to the public. Anyone with a worn-out or damaged flag is welcome to bring it to be added to the ceremony, Post Commander Neil Farrington said.

An on-line document from the National Flag Foundation describes a typical procedure for this ceremony, which honors the used flags. One is selected as representative of all: it is hoisted to the top of a flagpole by a color guard, saluted by the audience, who then recite the pledge of allegiance; and respectfully lowered and folded.

The best-known way to dispose of used flags is by burning them and burying the ashes. Farrington said the Dec. 5 ceremony will use an alternate method, cutting flags in half vertically and again horizontally, without damaging the block of 50 stars. The pieces are returned to the transfer station.

CRLA inspectors find no invasive plants in China Lake, Three-mile & Webber ponds

/0 Comments/in , , /by

China Lake, in fall 2024. (photo by Roland D. Hallee)

by Gerry Boyle

The boat inspection period at China area lakes was extended by a month, an additional day was added to the weekly schedule, inspections were extended to cover anchors and other gear, and the weather cooperated.

All of that added up to 20 percent more boat inspections, and more plant fragments found, but the same result as in past years – not a single invasive discovered.

That was the very good news in the 2024 Courtesy Boat Inspection report from the China Region Lakes Alliance. The water bodies covered by the CRLA inspections – China Lake, Three-mile Pond, and Webber Pond – showed no evidence of invasive plants, at a time when other lakes and ponds in the region and state are grappling with Eurasian milfoil, hydrilla, and other environmentally damaging species.

“We didn’t have any confirmed invasive on any of the lakes or any of the launches,” said then-CRLA Director Jessie Mae MacDougall.

A total of 1,327 boat inspections were conducted at the three water bodies this year, up from 1,138 in 2023. While 111 plant fragments were found, none were determined to be invasive plants, after examination by the state Department of Environmental Protection or Lake Stewards of Maine. There were a couple of occasions where analysts asked for additional photographs of plant fragments, MacDougall said. “We keep them in a refrigerator until it’s deemed not a problem,” she said.

That was the outcome for the China-area samples, but other vegetation collected in Maine this summer were deemed a problem. Inspectors discovered more than 100 invasive plants, mostly from boats inspected as they were leaving affected water bodies. As most boaters who trailer their boats hop from one Maine lake to another, preventing the spread of invasives is crucial.

Lake associations in the Belgrade and Winthrop areas, just 20 miles from China Lake, for example, have been grappling with invasives for years. In other New England states, the problem is serious – and expensive. A study cited by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, shows that invasive plants can cost $12,000 in lost property value for each shoreline owners. Controlling the problem mechanically or chemically can cost $200 to $2,000 per lake-acre every year, the study says.

In the China area, inspectors did come up with more plant fragments than in past years, which may be the result of the inspections being extended until the third week in September, a full month later than had been customary. MacDougall said September is a high-growth season for aquatic plants in Maine lakes, and more vegetation closer to the surface results in more plants being caught on propellers and hulls.

In addition, inspectors were dispatched singly, rather than in teams of two – which had been past practice – which expanded coverage without increasing costs. The inspectors, many of whom are high-school students, were provided with safety training and emergency numbers. “We knew everybody was comfortable being there by themselves,” MacDougall said. “And things were great. Generally, people are willing to assist.”

The China-area boat inspections are relatively convenient compared to invasive protection in place in other parts of the country, and in New England, she said. In some parts of the western U.S., boats and trailers are put in a decontamination station that kills all organisms. In some states, inspections are mandatory, and administered, not by volunteers, but by state inspectors. Only a boat with an inspection tag is allowed to be launched.

It’s a serious effort, for good reason.

In addition to having to contend with invasive plants, communities are seeing threatening invasive organisms like the spiny water flea and the zebra mussel. The spiny water flea, which is native to Eurasia, was brought to this country in the ballast of freighters. The organisms, which outcompete native fish and plankton for food, were recently found in Lake Winnipesaukee, in New Hampshire. Zebra mussels, which can foul water pipes, are established in lakes in New Brunswick, Canada, just over the Maine border.

“It’s especially important to keep vigilant about those organisms as well,” MacDougall said. “That’s why we’re trying to encourage the inspectors to use language that includes the animals, the insects – everything – so that people understand that it’s not just plants that they’re concerned about.”

“These inspections are absolutely crucial to keeping our area lakes and ponds free from invasives that could have devastating effects,” said Stephen Greene, president of China Lake Association, which helps fund and manage CRLA, with grants from the town of China. “We can’t afford to let our guard down.”

China committee, manager continue talks on transfer station changes

/0 Comments/in , /by
by Mary Grow

China Transfer Station Committee members and Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood continued discussion of pending changes at the China facility at a Nov. 12 meeting.

Station manager Thomas Maraggio said the new building to cover the sandpile available to China residents for winter driveway sanding is almost done. He plans to post informational signs on it.

One sign will direct people where to put “hot loads,” defined as “loads of solid waste that are on fire, smoldering, or are potentially flammable by spontaneous combustion.” Disposal of hot loads is illegal, “but we get ’em,” Maraggio said.

“Common sense is not all that common,” observed committee chairman Christopher Bauman, saying he was quoting Will Rogers.

E-cigarette cartridges are also unacceptable at the transfer station, Maraggio said. The state Department of Environmental Protection defines them as hazardous waste.

Hapgood said China has received a grant to pay for a new baler that will let the transfer station accept #1 plastic for recycling. It should be in operation early in 2025; there will be publicity.

Maraggio shared an updated five-year plan for the transfer station and an updated fee schedule. Committee members recommended by consensus the select board approve the fee schedule.

Hapgood said 2025 transfer station stickers will be available beginning Dec. 1 at China and Palermo town offices and at the transfer station with presentation of a valid vehicle registration in China or Palermo. The charge is $2. Transfer station users will have until the end of January 2025 to update their stickers.

The next transfer station committee meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 10, at the China town office.

China planners set hearings on two applications

/0 Comments/in , /by
by Mary Grow

The three China planning board members at the Nov. 12 meeting scheduled Nov. 26 public hearings on both applications on their agenda.

They decided the first hearing, at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 26, in the town office meeting room, will be on the application to add a records storage vault to the town office building (see The Town Line, Oct. 31, p. 3, and Nov. 14, p. 3).

The second hearing, which they expect will be longer, is tentatively scheduled for 7 p.m. Its topic will be proposed improvements to Town Landing Road, which leads to the South China boat landing.

The only question about the new plan for the vault was about its location in relation to China Lake. Codes officer Nicholas French explained that the town office is outside the shoreland zone, which has extra restrictions.

The office is within the larger area covered by China’s Phosphorus Control Ordinance. This ordinance applies in the watersheds of China Lake and Three Mile Pond. The permit application says the vault project does not exceed allowable phosphorus export.

Joining virtually in discussion of Town Landing Road were several members of the Neighborhood Association, South China Village residents who live near the boat landing. Their main concerns at this stage were receiving information before the Nov. 26 hearing, and ensuring the hearing is well publicized.

A large paper drawing of the landing plan was on the town office meeting room wall. French said he needs a smaller version to copy for the website and other publicity; he hoped to have one in a few days.

Board chairman Toni Wall assured residents that property-owners abutting the landing will be notified and the hearing will be broadcast for virtual viewing.

Several members of the group indicated they intend to present objections to and questions about the work. Wall said she hopes someone involved in planning it will be at the Nov. 26 hearing with explanations.

As the planning board meeting began, Wall was re-elected board chairman. Select board members reappointed her to the board on Nov. 4.

Also on the Nov. 12 agenda was discussion of amending China’s subdivision ordinance and adding a site review ordinance. Both were postponed.

CMP reps: No new power line planned through China

/0 Comments/in , /by
by Mary Grow

In response to China voters’ Nov. 5 approval of a moratorium on new power transmission lines through town, three representatives of Central Maine Power Company (CMP) attended the Nov. 18 select board meeting to ask about local concerns.

Katie Yates, program manager, community relations, emphasized that as of now, the company does not plan to run any new power lines through China. The discussion was entirely preliminary, in case CMP does develop a plan.

Select board member Jeanne Marquis, who helped collect signatures to put the moratorium on the local ballot, listed concerns she heard. They include negative effects on farming; disrupting “legacy properties” that a family has owned for generations; blocking scenic views; reducing adjacent and nearby property values; and using herbicides in the China Lake watershed.

Residents have “a lot of fear about their property” and want to be treated fairly, she summarized.

Yates and her companions offered two reassurances. First, they said, if CMP were to run another line through China, it would be in an existing corridor. And second, CMP uses minimal herbicides, usually in spot applications.

The company does not routinely notify abutters before using herbicides, Yates said. New select board member Thomas Rumpf agreed: he owns land abutting a CMP corridor and has never been notified, he said.

However, he added, he believes the company has been doing more cutting and relying less on chemicals in recent years. When he identified himself as president of the Four Seasons Club, the CMP group thanked him for providing trails that help them get to their lines.

Also at the meeting was China resident James Hsiang, for the China for a Lifetime Committee. He proposed creating a China community garden and offered a more detailed plan if select board members were interested. They were, and Hsiang is scheduled to return at either the Dec. 16 or the Dec. 30 meeting.

Hsiang said as proponents gauged local interest, they collected 280 signatures, and a dozen people volunteered to help. The planned site is the town-owned Lakeview Drive lot south of the town office.

In updates on the storage vault to be added to the town office building, select board member Blane Casey said he has been helping prepare contracts for each aspect of the work. His plan is to have requests for bids out immediately; bids due back early in December; and decisions at the Dec. 16 select board meeting.

Planning Board chairman Toni Wall said from the audience the board has scheduled a public hearing on the vault application for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 26.

The Nov. 18 select board meeting was the first for newly-elected members Edwin Bailey and Rumpf. The five members elected Wayne Chadwick board chairman and Jeanne Marquis board secretary.

Water level on China Lake not yet achieved

by Mary Grow

China Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood received two inquiries from residents about the China Lake water level, which they said was unusually low. In response, she queried Vassalboro town manager Aaron Miller and Kennebec Water District Water Quality Manager Robbie Bickford in a Nov. 16 email.

In his Nov. 18 reply, Bickford said the current level at the outlet dam in East Vassalboro is 26 inches below the spillway. The goal of the annual fall drawdown is to bring the level down to 30 inches below the spillway.

Bickford said the goal had not been achieved “in the past couple years.” Vassalboro dam managers intend to achieve it this year, he said.

In other business:

— Board members unanimously authorized taking another $450 from the fire department reserve account to pay for the South China Volunteer Fire Department’s air compressor. They had previously authorized using up to $9,000; the total cost was $9,450, Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood said.
— Hapgood and board members thanked former board member Brent Chesley for his service. Board members unanimously appointed him to the road committee, the budget committee and the appeals board.
— Board members approved an amended fee schedule at the transfer station, and an amended agreement with Albion, whose residents may dispose of specific things in China.
— They reapproved five municipal policies, two unchanged and the other three, Hapgood said, with non-substantive changes, like updating the title of the town website.

Hapgood reported China has been awarded a Cybersecurity grant, in the amount of $139.52. It is intended to provide a review of China’s cybersecurity, with a report and alerts, and training webinars for Hapgood.

Hapgood’s name is on the ballot for election to the Municipal Review Committee (MRC), the group representing towns that used the former Hampden trash facility. She explained she was talked into being listed due to a shortage of candidates; she is willing to serve if elected. Board members voted for her.

China municipal services will be closed Nov. 28 and 29 for the Thanksgiving holiday. The next regular select board meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 2.

PUBLIC NOTICES for Thursday, November 14, 2024

/0 Comments/in , /by

CHINA

Notice of Public Hearing

A Public Hearing is scheduled during the Planning Board meeting November 26th at 6:30PM at the Town Office on the Town Office Records Vault/Expansion at 571 Lakeview Drive (Map 38 Lot 013). You are hereby invited to attend the meeting in person or via Zoom (link posted in the Calendar of Events at chinamaine.org). Written comments may also be submitted by email to ceo@chinamaine.org or to Attn: CEO Town Office 571 Lakeview Drive China, ME 04358

Notice of Public Hearing

A Public Hearing is scheduled during the Planning Board meeting November 26th at 7:00PM at the Town Office to authorize Earth-Moving in the Shoreland of more than 100 cubic yards in one year to the Town Landing Road. You are hereby invited to attend the meeting in person or via Zoom (link posted in the Calendar of Events at chinamaine.org). Written comments may also be submitted by email to ceo@chinamaine.org or to Attn: CEO Town Office 571 Lakeview Drive China, ME 04358

Outgoing select board member cited for service

/0 Comments/in , /by

Janet Preston

The Nov. 4 China select board meeting began with a short presentation recognizing retiring member Janet Preston.

To applause from the audience and board members, Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood gave Preston a certificate in appreciation of her service to the town, and later a bouquet of flowers.

Fellow board members thanked Preston. “We didn’t always agree, but it’s been a pleasure,” Blane Casey said, and chairman Wayne Chadwick concurred.

Preston, who was first elected in 2020, said it has been “an honor to serve the people of China,” and an interesting experience. But, she said, she looks forward to having more time with her grandchildren.