VASSALBORO: Action postponed on rate increase for large items at transfer station

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro select board members disposed of three issues on their lengthy Jan. 9 meeting agenda.

By unanimous votes, board members:

— Agreed that the state-required wage deduction to support the new paid family medical leave program will be split 50:50 between employees and the town; and
— Agreed to buy new propane tanks for the town office and the Riverside Fire Station from M. A. Haskell, of China, the only bidder.

Board members also finished reviewing the town’s personnel policy, half of an agenda item that also calls for updating Vassalboro Recreation Committee bylaws. Town Manager Aaron Miller will have a revised personnel policy draft ready for their Jan. 23 meeting.

Select board members and transfer station manager Adam Daoust again considered whether to increase fees charged for some of the large items, like mattresses, that residents can dispose of at the transfer station. Board members postponed action.

From the audience, Douglas Phillips said the Vassalboro Historical Society has traditionally had transfer station fees waived. A year ago, he said, the select board renewed the waiver for one year.

The current board promptly and unanimously repeated the action.

The request for a handicapped parking spot at Hair Builders, a business on Oak Grove Road, first came up at the board’s Nov. 13, 2024, meeting, when Miller said he needed time for research:

After receiving guidance from the New England Americans with Disabilities Act Center, as well as legal advice, Miller recommends a “pretty simple” ordinance amendment.

The manager plans to have legally approved language ready for review at the board’s Jan. 23 meeting. Assuming acceptance, the mandatory public hearing could be held at the Feb. 6 board meeting.

Another previously-discussed issue is combining elections for the Vassalboro Sanitary District (VSD) board of trustees with municipal elections. At previous meetings, board members believed only voters living in the area VSD serves could vote for trustees.

On Jan. 9, however, Miller said VSD’s attorney said all town voters could vote for the trustees, just as they vote for select board members.

Board chairman Frederick “Rick” Denico, Jr., thought the limitation on voters was state law. If it is, he said, a town cannot broaden a state mandate.

Board members asked Miller to get another legal opinion.

Board member Chris French recommended increased funding for Vassalboro First Responders in the 2025-26 budget and future years, looking ahead to the time when the group would need a rescue vehicle.

Currently, members use their private vehicles; if transport is needed, Waterville-based Delta Ambulance responds. French is concerned about Delta’s long-term financial stability.

Board member Michael Poulin proposed amending Vassalboro’s Tax Increment Financing (TIF) policy to allow additional uses of TIF money. The TIF account is fed annually by taxes paid on the gas pipeline that runs through Vassalboro from Augusta to Winslow.

Vassalboro’s current TIF ordinance (found online under Documents) establishes a 9.5-acre TIF District along Route 201, where the natural gas pipeline runs, and along VSD lines, including a connection to Winslow. It limits major projects to the expansion of Vassalboro’s sewer system to connect with Winslow, which has been done, and “eventually” contributing to a phosphorus removal plan for China Lake, in collaboration with other groups.

Poulin recommended adding more projects with which TIF funds could assist, including work on the Webber Pond dam and the Mill Hill Road bridge replacement. Discussion will continue.

Miller reported he met with representatives of Maine Rivers and other groups working on the Webber Pond dam. They have funding for a major rebuilding planned for the summer of 2025, he said.

The current plan, being discussed with residents, requires closing the north end of Dam Road, near Webber Pond Road, from mid-July through September, rerouting traffic from Hannaford Hill Road over McQuarrie Road, Miller said. That way, large equipment, like an excavator and a crane, can work at the dam site.

The next regular Vassalboro select board meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 23.

VASSALBORO: Erosion control cost estimate higher than expected

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro Conservation Commission members re-discussed a main topic from their Dec. 18 meeting on Jan. 8, after they got a higher than expected cost estimate for their December plan.

They agreed in December to improve buffering along the China Lake shoreline in East Vassalboro’s Monument Park, with the goals of increasing erosion control and providing an educational example of a buffer.

At the Jan. 8 meeting, commission member Steve Jones, owner of Vassalboro’s Fieldstone Gardens, presented a $3,084 cost estimate for about four dozen perennial plants. Commission Chairman Holly Weidner and member Matthew Pitcher pointed out other costs, like special mulch and ongoing maintenance.

Commission member Paul Mitnik urged planting trees instead, spaced far enough apart so they wouldn’t block views of the lake. They’d be less expensive and, he said, as effective.

Mitnik’s idea got more objections than support during a debate that ended with Weidner suggesting he talk with Jen Jesperson, the Ecological Instincts consultant who is advising on China Lake water quality issues.

In other business Jan. 8, commission members agreed they will not apply for a 2025 grant from the state program called Project Canopy to plant trees. The program paid for trees in the town’s new Eagle Park on Route 32 and Outlet Stream.

Pitcher said he does not have time to write a grant application this spring. Peggy Horner said the commission hasn’t chosen places to plant trees. Jones is still angry about some Project Canopy trees that were cut down last spring; he opposes asking for any more “till the town ‘fesses up.”

Project Canopy is a good program, they said, and if the town wants to apply, that’s fine.

Commission members agreed by consensus to partner with the Webber Pond Association as it seeks a grant to deal with blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria, in the lake water.

Wiedner said she had a request to support the grant application from Mary Schwanke, whom she later identified as lead biologist on the water monitoring and sampling team for the tri-watershed based management plan project that includes Webber Pond.

Commission members again expressed appreciation for the Vassalboro public works department’s help with Eagle Park landscaping. They need to discuss with Public Works Director Brian Lajoie and Town Manager Aaron Miller how much more work is planned – parts of the ground are still very rough, they said

Pitcher had talked with Rob Lemire, owner of Maine Adirondack Chairs, on Holman Day Road, about picnic tables. He reported Lemire is offering six-foot white cedar tables unfinished for $269, or with a natural finish for an additional $150.

Weidner thinks the to-be-constructed Eagle Park pavilion should have room for up to three tables. Commission members agreed they need to consult with Lajoie, for example about winter storage, and to see how their budget looks.

They had intended to discuss the commission’s 2025-26 budget request at the Jan. 8 meeting, but needed detailed updates on 2024 funding and expenditures first. Weidner intends to have more information at the next meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 12, in the town office meeting room.

Eric Handley elected district scouting chairman

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Eric Handley with his Eagle Scout sons Devon, left, and Jared. (photo by Chuck Mahaleris)

by Chuck Mahaleris

The Kennebec Valley District of Scouting has elected Eric Handley, of Sidney, to serve as District Scouting Chairman and Christopher Santiago, of Vassalboro, was tapped to serve as District Scouting Commissioner. This took place during the annual meeting of the district on Wednesday, January 8, at the Pleasant Street United Methodist Church, in Waterville.

The Kennebec Valley District delivers the programs of Scouting to communities and youth in Kennebec, Lincoln, Knox, Somerset and Franklin counties. The district is one of four in Pine Tree Council which covers the southern and western half of Maine. At the end of 2024, Kennebec Valley District had 22 Scout Troops and 12 Cub Scout Packs made up of 194 Scouts and 232 Cub Scouts. Twelve youth in Kennebec Valley earned Scouting’s highest rank, the Eagle Scout award, in 2024 and 564 Merit Badges were earned by the Scouts.

“I’m happy to serve Kennebec Valley Scouting,” Handley said. “My approach will always be to place the Scouts first.” Handley, in his role as District chairman, will preside at district committee meetings and represent the district on the council executive board. He will oversee all subcommittees that help deliver and grow Scouting including membership, program (events/ training/ advancement/ camping), and fund development functions (including popcorn sales and Friends of Scouting). Handley, who is the Point of Sale IT manager for Aubuchon Company, had been serving as the District Commissioner prior to the annual meeting.

He began his Scouting career in 1972 when he joined Cub Scouts, in Gorham, New Hampshire, and followed that as a Scout, in Windsor, Vermont Troop #218. “My son Jared asked to join Cub Scouts as a Tiger the Spring of 2006. I became the Cub Master of Pack #401 in Spring of 2007, in Sidney, and stayed with the Pack until May 2018 when I became Scoutmaster of Troop #401,” Handley said. Handley has also served as a Unit Commissioner, on the Advancement Committee, Roundtable Commissioner, Camp Bomazeen Staff, and on the Kennebec Valley District Band. Handley said that his goals are to increase the visibility of Scouting in the local community and to increase membership by providing excellent programs to the youth in the district.

Santiago, who is the Director of Safety and Security, at Thomas College, in Waterville, said, ” I am truly honored and blessed to be nominated by my peers to this position of leadership within Scouting America. I will continue to develop scouts and their leadership skills, with a focus on living the Scout Oath and Scout Law; and I will work diligently to provide leadership and mentorship to my peers so that they may do the same.” He has been involved in Scouting since his son joined Cub Scouts, in Vassalboro Pack #410, serving as Den Leader and then Cubmaster. This was followed by Assistant Scoutmaster in Troop #410 when his son crossed over to the Scouts. He is still serving as Scoutmaster of Troop #410. At the same time, he has also served on and is still currently serving Scouting on the District Committee, as the District Duty to God Coordinator, as a Unit Commissioner and as the District Training co-chairman. The district commissioner leads the commissioner staff of the district, guiding and measuring the district’s unit service program. The Roundtable Commissioner also is part of the District Commissioner’s team. Santiago said his goals as District Commissioner are to provide quality support to Scouters, while ensuring that all units (Packs and Troops) within the district are delivering an excellent scouting program and experience.

The District Committee also selected Jamie Santiago, of Vassalboro, to serve as District Vice Chairman of Finance and Joseph Poulin, of Oakland, to serve as District vice chairman of Program. The position of District Vice Chair for Membership is currently vacant.

These elections took effect immediately following the close of the annual meeting.

From left to right, Jamie Santiago, Life Scout Arianna Allen, Tenderfoot Scout Christopher Santiago, Eagle Scout Eric Allen, and Christopher Santiago. The Allens are niece and nephew of Jamie and Christopher Santiago. (photo by Chuck Mahaleris)

Eugene Field retires as Vassalboro public works director

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Outgoing Vassalboro Public Works director, Eugene Field, left, with his wife Debbie, at his retirement party held on December 13, 2024, at Natanis Golf Course. (contributed photo)

by Mary Grow

Back in the early ’80s, Frederick “Rick” Denico, Jr., reminisced, when his father, Frederick Denico Sr., was on the Vassalboro select board, he brought home the report that there was “a young kid working for the town” under the federal CETA (Comprehensive Employment and Training Act) program.

“That was 44 years and six town managers ago,” Denico observed.

The “kid” was Eugene “Gene” Field, and Denico was master of ceremonies at his Dec. 13 retirement party, attended by more than 75 people.

During his 44 years, Field rose to become Vassalboro’s public works director. “We were very lucky to have him for all those years,” Denico said, praising Field for his many skills – preparing and explaining budgets, managing a crew, keeping up with equipment needs, running the equipment himself.

Mary Sabins, the former town manager under whom Field worked longest, called him her “go-to guy for road issues” and praised his willingness to lend his expertise and his crew for other town needs as well.

Denico read a message from current town manager Aaron Miller, recovering from bronchitis, regretting that he had not had more time to learn from Field.

Former budget committee and select board member Lauchlin Titus remembered that Field always presented an annual budget request with “good numbers and reasons.” On the select board, Titus said, he found Field’s reports to board meetings one of the best sources of information about what was going on in town.

State Senator Richard Bradstreet read a letter commending Field for his dedicated service and commitment, with a lasting impact on the town.

Peter Coughlan and Tammy Sobiecki represented the Community Services Division of the Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT). One of its responsibilities is providing training for municipal road crews; they commended Field for his consistent willingness to learn and to send department members to learn. Vassalboro is consistently represented at training sessions, they said.

Sobiecki had a two-page list of classes Field had attended since 1990, and shared some of the titles with her audience. She gave Field a plaque recognizing his excellence in public works.

Coughlan, on behalf of the Maine Chapter of the American Public Works Association, said that group gave Field its 2018 Maine Public Works Leader of the Year award. He read a letter from the organization praising Field’s contributions to Vassalboro and gave Field a copy of the letter and a photo of the earlier award presentation.

After the speeches, public works department members unveiled the highlight of the evening: the new sign to go on Vassalboro’s public works garage, designating the Eugene D. Field Public Works Complex.

Field replied briefly, saying he had enjoyed his 44 years and was looking forward to time off. The audience responded with standing applause.

Town office staff organized the retirement party, held at the Natanis Golf Course clubhouse. It included a generous buffet meal; Field and his wife Debbie headed the line. Tables were decorated with small plastic dump trucks and other road-work vehicles, and with orange traffic cones labeled “No Work Zone Retired 2024.”

Legion Christmas stockings drive

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Contributed photos

The American Legion Post #126, in Vassalboro, thanks all the individuals and groups who donated items and volunteered to fill the stockings. Through their generosity 250 Christmas stockings and 20 Hanukkah dreidels were filled on December 9, 2024, and delivered December 12.

Sophia Labbe named to Lasell University Fall 2024 dean’s list

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Sophia Labbe, a Lasell University student, from Vassalboro, was named to the dean’s list for their academic performance in the Fall 2024 semester, in Newton, Massachusetts.

Judson Smith adjusting well at Maine School of Science & Mathematics

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Judson Smith, center, flanked by his mother Lisa Libby, left, and his father Zachary Smith. (contributed photo)

by Mary Grow

Vassalboro resident Judson Smith, 14, has no regrets about choosing the Maine School of Science and Mathematics (MSSM), in Limestone, as his high school.

Home for Christmas break after his first semester, Smith said adjustment wasn’t easy, but now, “I’m happy with it. I really like the school.”

His parents, Zachary Smith and Lisa Libby, are also pleased with their son’s choice. They appreciate the education, and the frequent contact with the school – the one day their son was ill, they had a conversation with the school nurse who attended him in his dormitory room.

Courses are hard, advanced enough that students can arrange to get college credit at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. Smith is satisfied with his A’s and B’s.

MSSM students take at least four core courses a semester; Smith’s were math, science, English and French. Next semester, maybe six, he said.

Students live on campus. Their dormitory, close to the academic building that also houses Limestone Community High School, has two wings for boys and two for girls, plus common areas: a lounge, a kitchenette, a room with pool tables, a fitness room and a gym. In the academic building is an Olympic-size swimming pool that MSSM and LCHS share, Smith said.

In some ways, Smith makes MSSM sound almost overprotective. Students need a phone app to check out of their dormitories. There are mandatory study hours from 6:30 to 8 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays, with students who have shown a need for supervision expected to report to the library and the rest to study in their rooms or other appropriate places (including picnic tables in mild weather). Students’ bicycles were locked in a storage shed before the first snowfall.

Every student has a campus job, Smith said, though nothing that takes a lot of time away from education.

Students also enjoy a multitude of activities, sports and clubs. The seniors who serve as dorm residents organize activities. Every other weekend offers a shopping trip to Presque Isle, a city half an hour away that’s almost six times the size of Limestone.

The lettuce club intrigues Smith’s mother. Smith explained that the club meets annually: a head of lettuce is put before each student, and whoever eats his or hers fastest becomes club president.

When a student has a birthday, the food service staff bakes him or her a cake.

Most important, Smith said, is the constant support, from teachers, other staff and fellow students. When he found himself ill-prepared for one of his courses, he was able to get almost daily help from his teacher and from other students. By next year, he sees himself helping first-year students.

“It’s definitely a difficult school. They try their best to make it fun, but a challenge at the same time,” he summarized.

Stormwater solution highlights power of collaboration for China Lake

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stormwater runoff before

Submitted by Jennifer Syer

A serious runoff problem that was dumping phosphorus-laden water into China Lake has been resolved, thanks to teamwork that saw private landowners, nonprofits, and government agencies joining forces with the goal of protecting the lake’s water quality.

The issue originated with a culvert that drained runoff under Lakeview Drive from 40 acres of woodland east of the road. In 2015, new owners of what would become The Cottages at China Lake installed an additional culvert to direct runoff from the roadside into a plunge pool near the shoreline. Over time, the pool filled with sediment and vegetation. “The water would rush straight into the lake, untreated and uncontrolled,” said John Perron, a Cottages owner and member of the property’s buildings and grounds committee.

stormwater runoff after

Recognizing the problem, Perron and Cottages’ association president Mike Stillman contacted Scott Pierz – then head of the China Region Lakes Alliance (CRLA), and former president of China Lake Association – who they knew had previously been involved in shoreline protection at the property. “It was really time to take up the task,” Pierz said.

He brought in CLA, which then reached out to the state Department of Environmental Protection and Kennebec County Soil and Water Conservation District for additional help.

“This was a highly collaborative effort,” said CLA President Stephen Greene. “Everyone had the lake’s best interest in mind.”

Eventually, Boyd Snowden, of Snowden Consulting Engineers, was brought into the fold to design a site plan, which was developed over a year’s worth of visits, planning and permit approvals. The final design included a plunge pool, catch basin and vegetated buffer to trap sediment and slow runoff before it reached the lake.

“We didn’t just stop at the basics,” said Snowden, who has been designing storm-water containment systems for more than 30 years. “We added a meadow buffer to provide the best treatment possible.”

Funding came from multiple sources. Maine DEP authorized KCSWCD to allocate $14,000 through a federal grant* aimed at reducing phosphorus in China Lake. CLA contributed $9,321, matched by the Cottages’ 20 owners, while CRLA provided $5,000.

Construction began in October 2024 after permits were secured. Over the course of a week, W.D. Chadwick Construction installed the multi-tiered system, which now filters the runoff, trapping sediment from running into the lake – and fueling algae growth and harming water quality. Fieldstone Gardens, of Vassalboro, supplied plants for the buffer area.

Pierz expressed confidence that the Cottages’ association will maintain the system and continue improving shoreline protections. Greene praised the project as a model for collaboration between private owners, nonprofit organizations, government agencies and contractors.

“This project shows how teamwork and a shared goal can solve complex problems,” Greene said. “The China Lake Association is proud to have been a part of a solution that will benefit the lake for decades to come.”

  * Funding for this project, in part, was provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. The funding is administered by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection in partnership with EPA. EPA does not endorse any commercial products or services mentioned.

Vassalboro transfer station task force continues talks at Lombard Road facility

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro Transfer Station Taskforce members met Dec. 12 to continue discussion of options for changes at the facility on Lombard Dam Road. (See the Nov. 21 issue of The Town Line, p. 8).

The group began months ago with one main goal: improve safety by eliminating the need for users to back their vehicles to the disposal containers. That safety issue is still vital, taskforce chair (and select board member) Chris French emphasized.

Since discussion began, the town has had an engineer, Jeff Senders (head of Senders science, engineering & construction, of Camden), prepare three possible configurations for a covered, drive-through building that would eliminate backing up except, probably, for commercial haulers.

New station manager, Adam Daoust, has two more goals: improve efficiency and save money. A concept he proposes includes removing the tower and providing two containers, with cover from rain and snow; and allowing two vehicles at a time to dump into the containers, driving by rather than backing up. After the Dec. 11 rainstorm, he emphasized covering all on-site containers, so voters do not pay to truck water to disposal sites.

Taskforce member Amy Davidoff added a third goal: more recycling. Vassalboro now recycles metals and cardboard; Davidoff would like flexibility to add more materials as markets change.

Shannon Conti, an environmental specialist with the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Bureau of Remediation and Waste Management, attended the Dec. 12 meeting. She said any of Senders’ plans appears doable.

Vassalboro has foreclosed on an adjoining property, about five acres with buildings, for unpaid taxes. State law requires the town to sell the property, keep what is owed in taxes and any other charges and give the rest of the proceeds to the prior owners or heirs.

Town officials’ current plan is to sell the house and garage with a minimum lot and keep the rest of the land, perhaps for future transfer station expansion.

Conti provided information on actions that might or might not require DEP pre-approval, and on how to find permit application requirements.

Taskforce members were surprised when Conti said if the town keeps foreclosed land, clears or otherwise changes it, and only afterward makes it part of an expanded transfer station, her division does not care how it is changed. If, however, town officials designate an area for transfer station expansion, they will need a DEP permit to make changes to it.

Daoust would also like to add scales and pave more of the grounds. A new backhoe would be very useful, he added.

French called for taskforce members to reach consensus at their Jan. 9 meeting, to be held in the town office building at 5:15 p.m., before that evening’s select board meeting. Town Manager Aaron Miller summarized their options: do nothing; recommend building Senders’ covered drive-through building; recommend accepting Daoust’s less extensive reconfiguration; or recommend adopting a temporary improvement plan.

Vassalboro conservation committee focuses on town parks

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Vassalboro’s Civil War monument located at the East Vassalboro boat landing. (photo by Eric W. Austin)

by Mary Grow

Vassalboro Conservation Commission members devoted most of their Dec. 18 meeting to updates on two town parks, Monument Park, at the outlet of China Lake in East Vassalboro, and Eagle Park, on Outlet Stream, a short distance north.

At Monument Park, they are working with Jen Jespersen, of the Manchester-based consulting firm Ecological Instincts, on projects to improve China Lake water quality.

Commission member Matthew Pitcher said he met with Jespersen earlier this fall to assess the park’s shoreline buffer. They found no erosion problems, making any changes low priority. But, commission member Peggy Horner said, the buffer should be widened to at least 10 feet.

Commission members decided any new plantings should be low-growing, not bushes that would get tall enough to block the view of China Lake. They plan to use native plants as much as possible, without being totally rigid.

Horner and commission chairman Holly Weidner defined the goal of the plantings as three-fold: erosion control, education (by providing a demonstration lakeside garden) and landscaping the park.

Next steps include deciding on specific plants and developing cost estimates for initial plantings and maintenance.

Commission members reviewed Jespersen’s report on the China Region Lakes Alliance’s 2024 Courtesy Boat Inspection (CBI) program, which stations people at boat landings on China Lake, Three Mile Pond and Webber Pond to look for fragments of invasive plants on boats being launched into the lakes.

No invasives were found. Weidner credited the good record at least partly to the educational effect of the CBI program.

Horner, playing, she said, devil’s advocate, asked whether Vassalboro taxpayers need to continue to support boat inspections, if no invasive plants are detected. Jespersen’s report said the program cost $23,148 in 2024; Weidner found Vassalboro voters appropriated $10,584 as the town’s share.

That amount is a fraction of what it would cost to remove invasive weeds if they were imported, Weidner said. Horner added that a weed-free lake helps keep property values up.

Current Eagle Park issues discussed briefly include the park sign, fencing, handicapped access and the planned pavilion. Weidner said the pavilion’s cement base is done, and she hopes structural work will start early in 2025.

The Vassalboro Public Works Department has been very helpful. Commission members expect to continue to work with new director Brian Lajoie.

Commission member Steve Jones asked whether the public works crew could plow the parking lot for the town forest trail, which begins north of the recreation fields and close enough to the public works garage so that winter trail users park in the public works driveway. Someone from the commission will ask Lajoie.

Commission members briefly reviewed their cooperative arrangement with the Vassalboro Cemetery Committee regarding tree-cutting in town cemeteries. The program Town Manager Aaron Miller presented in October includes:

— Develop a cemetery maintenance plan and an annual budget;
— Each summer, have an arborist and the sexton evaluate trees and recommend any that need to be cut to avoid damaging stones or fences, within budgetary limits;
— Explain to interested committees and residents the recommendations and reasons; and
— Have the cutting done annually after the ground is frozen.

Conservation Commission members scheduled their next meeting for Wednesday evening, Jan. 8, 2025.