Vassalboro News: Public hearing planned for revised sanitary district charter

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by Mary Grow

VASSALBORO — At the April 6th Vassalboro selectmen’s meeting, selectmen and Sanitary District trustees discussed the revised sanitary district charter that town voters will be asked to approve or reject at the June 5th town meeting.

Selectmen scheduled a public hearing on the document for Thursday evening, May 4. Town Manager Mary Sabins suggested a hearing on proposed revisions to Vassalboro’s shoreland ordinance the same evening if the date is acceptable to the Planning Board.

Raymond Breton, chairman of the sanitary district board, said the current charter dates from 1972. The trustees had an attorney prepare the revision to bring the charter up to current standards.
Selectmen had questions about whether the revised charter matches actual practice. In other business April 6, board Chairman Lauchlin Titus congratulated public works employee James “J.J.” Wentworth on receiving a Road Scholar award for participation in state training sessions.

Sabins explained that the Road Scholar designation, granted by the state Department of Transportation, is the “highest achievement of public works employees,” equivalent to certification for a town clerk or a town manager. To earn Road Scholar status, a public works employee must attend ten workshop days, seven mandatory classes and three optional, sponsored by the department’s Local Roads Center.

Public Works Director Eugene Field attained his Road Scholar certification in the spring of 2014, Sabins said.

Selectmen awarded two bids. The cemetery mowing bid went to Scott’s Property Care, of Oakland, the company which did the work last year for the same price, $24,500, Sabins said. The 1984 fire truck was sold to David Saunders, of Orland, highest of seven bidders, for $4,125.25. Board members unanimously agreed that the transfer station will be closed Sunday, April 16, for Easter.

They approved and signed a letter asking the school board to take time to advertise future vacancies, instead of filling them immediately.

The next regular Vassalboro selectmen’s meeting will be Thursday evening, April 20. The budget committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday, April 13, and if necessary again on Tuesday, April 18, to make recommendations on proposed town meeting expenditures.

VASSALBORO NEWS: School budget does not look good for taxpayers

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by Mary Grow

State and other non-tax revenues down, expenditures up – the initial proposal for the 2017-18 Vassalboro school budget does not look good for taxpayers.

At the first joint meeting of the school board and budget committee, AOS (Alternative Educational Structure) #92 Superintendent Eric Haley said he expects a slight improvement by the time the two committees meet again April 11; but he will not have final revenue figures until state legislators and the governor approve school funding in June.

Potential reductions in expenditures include a downward revision of the salaries and benefits line to allow for the replacement of two veteran teachers who are retiring in June with less experienced and lower-paid teachers; a reduction in expected tuition costs; and, with luck, a smaller increase in insurance premiums than projected.

The preliminary budget papers school board and budget committee members shared at their March 30 meeting showed an increase in expenditures of more than $196,000 and a decrease in non-tax revenue of almost $329,000. Without changes, the school department would need $525,522 from local property taxes for 2017-18, 16 percent more than in the current fiscal year. School Board Chairman Kevin Levasseur observed that every school district in Maine is taking a similar hit. Perhaps, he said, there will be pressure on the legislature to increase state funding.

Superintendent Haley said one provision in Governor Paul LePage’s school budget plan eliminates state support for superintendent’s offices, to encourage schools to join in regional service centers. AOS #92 is slated to lose its central office support, a loss of more than $100,000, Finance Director Paula Pooler said. Haley said by his definition the office is a service center administering the three separate Vassalboro, Waterville and Winslow school systems, and should not be penalized.

Budget committee members did not go into details of the proposed budget. They met April 3 to develop questions to forward to the school department in advance of the next joint meeting, scheduled for Tuesday evening, April 11.

VASSALBORO NEWS: Budget process begins with committee agreeing on two items

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by Mary Grow

VASSALBORO — At the end of their third 2017 meeting, Vassalboro Budget Committee members agreed on two things: they cannot start making recommendations on the 2017-18 municipal budget until after they talk with school officials about the school budget, and they might need more than one other meeting after two joint meetings with the School Board.

The school board is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 30, at the school, to be joined at 7 p.m. by the budget committee. The two boards meet again Tuesday, April 4, probably at 7 p.m. at the school. The budget committee plans to meet at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 13, at the town office, and if necessary Tuesday, April 18, same time and place.

As in past years, budget committee members have differing views on basic questions, including whether and if so how they should recommend a municipal budget that will not raise property taxes; whether town equipment needed part-time should be rented or bought (referring specifically to the excavator the public works department has been leasing); and whether necessary equipment purchases should be financed by setting aside reserve funds or borrowing money when it’s needed.

After their initial meeting March 9, budget committee members met March 21 with representatives of non-profit and social service agencies and March 23 to consider capital improvements and other issues.

Committee members heard presentations from Nan Bell of the Family Violence Project, which served 23 Vassalboro residents last year; Lucille Murphy of the Waterville area Literacy Volunteers, an agency that has not previously asked for town support; Jim Wood of Kennebec Valley Community Action Program (KVCAP) transportation services; Lee Duff of Friends Advocating for Vassalboro Older Residents (FAVOR), also making its first request; Jim Hart of the China Region Lakes Alliance (CRLA); and new police chief Mark Brown.

Murphy said there has been “an alarming increase in illiteracy in Maine” that Literacy Volunteers aims to combat. She added that the percentage of children not reading proficiently by fourth grade has been found to be an indicator of future need for prisons. Brown nodded agreement.

Wood has been working with Town Manager Mary Sabins to expand transportation services to Vassalboro and perhaps China. Duff said FAVOR’s purpose it to determine how best to organize support for senior citizens, including but not limited to KVCAP transportation.

Hart summarized three major CRLA projects: the courtesy boat inspections that seek to protect China Lake and nearby lakes from invasive plants; the Youth Conservation Corps, which includes the LakeSmart program recognizing landowners who minimize pollution from their properties; and the Alewife Restoration Initiative (ARI) aimed at restoring sea-run alewives to China Lake via the Sebasticook River and Outlet Stream.

Family Violence asked for $4,925 from the town; the selectmen and town manager recommend $2,500. Literacy Volunteers requested $500, not supported by the selectmen. KVCAP asked for $1,350, supported. CRLA asked for $15,000; the selectmen recommend $5,000. FAVOR’s $1,000 request has the selectmen’s endorsement.

Police Chief Brown’s main concern was the proposed new police vehicle, suggested by his predecessor, Richard Phippen (who is a budget committee member). Brown has specifications on a Ford Explorer, with an estimated cost of $35,000 including equipment. Trading in or selling the current vehicle would contribute toward the new one.

Committee Chairman John Melrose raised a broader issue: does Vassalboro need a policeman, or should town residents rely on county and state law enforcement? The 2017-18 request for public safety totals almost $68,000, with almost $14,500 for animal control, $26,476 for dispatching and the rest for the police chief’s salary, benefits, equipment and vehicle maintenance.

At the March 23 meeting Sabins summarized the town’s revenues and answered committee members’ questions about employees’ salaries and benefits. She recommends three percent salary increases next year except for herself; her contract calls for a two percent increase.

VASSALBORO NEWS: Selectmen postpone vote on mowing contracts

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by Mary Grow

VASSALBORO — At a short meeting March 23, Vassalboro selectmen reviewed four bids for mowing town cemeteries and postponed action until they review references.

Town Manager Mary Sabins reported that the Maine Municipal Association told her the Vassalboro School Board broke no laws by appointing a new member without advertising the vacancy.

Earlier in March, resident Douglas Phillips asked Sabins to seek a legal opinion. In December 2016 the school board promptly appointed Lori Fowle to the seat from which Elizabeth Mitchell resigned after being elected judge of probate.

Lauchlin Titus, chairman of the board of selectmen, commented that he saw no harm in telling the school board that selectmen “are not happy” with the procedure.

In other Vassalboro news, Town Clerk Cathy Coyne has posted notice that nomination papers are available for June local elections. Positions to be filled are one seat on the Board of Selectmen, three seats on the School Board and two seats on the Sanitary District Board of Trustees. Signed papers are due at the town office by 4 p.m. Monday, May 1, for candidates’ names to appear on the local ballot.

The next regular selectmen’s meeting is scheduled for Thursday evening, April 6.

Vassalboro News: Selectmen, budget committee look at initial budget

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by Mary Grow

The Vassalboro selectmen’s March 9 meeting was followed by an initial 2017 Budget Committee meeting at which major department heads presented funding requests.
Selectmen and two cemetery committee members discussed a plan to find out for sure who is buried where in Vassalboro cemeteries, a plan set back by recent denial of a grant application for the project.

Town Manager Mary Sabins and Selectman Philip Haines know of a man with ground-penetrating radar they could hire to work on the project. Board Chairman Lauchlin Titus said two area women who call themselves grave-dowsers might help. Cost of the project is estimated at $50,000. Currently, Sabins said, the town has more than $12,000 in the fund that came with the Cross Hill Cemetery when it became a town-managed graveyard plus more than $5,000 in interest from the cemetery perpetual care fund. The principal in the perpetual care fund cannot be spent, she said.

Selectmen are likely to propose asking voters to contribute to the project. They did not have an opportunity to present the idea at the budget committee meeting.
Another issue at the selectmen’s meeting was the 2016 town report. Board members unanimously accepted Titus’s suggestion that the former mill superintendent’s house in North Vassalboro be the centerpiece, and talked about some of its history. Anyone with documented knowledge about the building or any of its owners or inhabitants is invited to get in touch with Sabins at the town office.

Budget committee members spent two hours hearing presentations from Transfer Station Manager George Hamar, Public Works Director Eugene Field and Sabins on 2017-18 budget requests for solid waste disposal, road maintenance and town government.

Sabins recommends three percent salary increases for town employees, except two percent for herself.

The transfer station budget shows increases in trash-hauling costs and equipment maintenance. The latter, Hamar said, is because the town’s old backhoe, which he used to borrow from public works, has been turned over to his department. Although he adds maintenance and fuel costs, he gains convenience.
Field said the past winter depleted the supply of road salt more than usual, and he is also low on culverts. The longest discussion was over paving and – mostly – repaving town roads. Field had asked for almost $900,000; selectmen recommend less than $400,000.

The selectmen’s March 9 list includes part of Taber Hill, Cross Hill and Cushnoc roads, Holman Day Road, Webber Pond Extension, Mill Hill and more of the Hunt Road. Titus said they deleted the Nelson Road and town buildings’ parking lots from Field’s list to save money.

Budget committee members asked questions, but made no decisions. Their next meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 21. Sabins plans to invite representatives of two social service agencies applying for town funds for the first time and one whose budget request has been cut, and to notify other out-of-town agencies of the meeting. Also scheduled to attend are Police Chief Mark Brown to talk about replacing Vassalboro’s 2007 police car and a representative of Vassalboro Rescue to discuss that budget request.
On Thursday, March 23, selectmen will again meet an hour earlier than usual, at 6 p.m., leaving time for a 7 p.m. budget committee meeting.

Vassalboro News: 3-year lawn care contract awarded to Attention to Detail

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro Public Works Director Eugene Field told selectman at their March 2 meeting that Darrell Gagnon’s work mowing town recreation fields and lawns around town buildings has been very satisfactory. Selectmen voted unanimously to renew Gagnon’s contracts for three years after the current year, Town Manager Mary Sabins reported after the meeting. Gagnon will be paid $15,600 in 2018 and again in 2019 and an additional $200 in 2020.

Field also joined in a discussion of 2017 road paving priorities as selectmen prepare to present their draft municipal budget to the town budget committee. The first budget committee meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, March 9; topics committee members hope to cover include funding for the transfer station, public works, paving and town administration.

Selectmen again discussed conversion of Vassalboro’s streetlights to LED lights and asked Sabins to inform the budget committee that the idea is under consideration.

Other actions at the March 2 meeting, Sabins said, included:

  • A decision to advertise the 1984 fire truck for sale.
  • Agreement to let residents take the woodchips accumulated at the transfer station as the result of a vehicle accident at no charge, to get rid of the pile.
  • At board Chairman Lauchlin Titus’s initiative, a direction to the manager to inform the town attorney that the town intends to seek reimbursement for legal fees incurred in defending against “frivolous cases” filed by a resident.
  • Two more requests to Sabins, recommended by planning board member Douglas Phillips: to ask the Maine Municipal Association if it is appropriate for the school board to fill vacancies without advertising them and to look into arranging for Vassalboro residents to have use of a document-shredding service.
  • Scheduling the summer selectmen’s meetings for July 13 and Aug. 10, both Thursday evenings.

The next regular Vassalboro selectmen’s meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, March 9, an hour earlier than usual to accommodate the budget committee meeting at 7 p.m.

VBA offers scholarship

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The Vassalboro Business Association has announced that it will offer $500 scholarships to at least three Vassalboro students who plan to attend a Post-Secondary Program of Study in the fall of 2017.

Students must have been  residents in Vassalboro for the past two years, provide evidence of community service in that same two year period, and be enrolled in a post-secondary two to four year program of education or training.

Applications are available by emailing lindatitus@hotmail.com or calling 873-2108.  They should also be available in local guidance offices. The deadline to return the completed form is April 15, 2017.

VASSALBORO NEWS: 26 parcels due for foreclosure for unpaid taxes

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro has an unusual number of taxpayers whose taxes are seriously overdue, Town Manager Mary Sabins told selectmen at their Feb. 9 meeting.

With the foreclosure deadline for 2014 taxes – the date on which the town acquires the property if taxes are not paid – that night at midnight, Sabins said 26 parcels were on the verge of becoming town-owned. The blizzard that started as selectmen met that morning did not make her optimistic about people coming in at the last minute.

Town office staff made repeated efforts to reach people through mailings and telephone calls to make sure everyone was aware of the deadline, she said.
For the current tax year, the third quarterly tax payment is due Monday, Feb. 27, by town meeting vote. Voters also agreed to charge interest for taxes paid after the deadline.

In other business at a short meeting, selectmen again talked briefly about changing the town’s streetlights to more energy-efficient LED lights and agreed they need not rush to a decision. They have heard proposals from two private companies, but are waiting for information from Central Maine Power Company.
Selectmen were scheduled to begin discussion of the 2017-18 budget at a Feb. 13 workshop, but canceled it because of bad weather.

VBA offers scholarship

/0 Comments/in , /by

The Vassalboro Business Association has announced that it will offer $500 scholarships to at least three Vassalboro students who plan to attend a Post-Secondary Program of Study in the fall of 2017.

Students must have been  residents in Vassalboro for the past two years, provide evidence of community service in that same two year period, and be enrolled in a post-secondary two to four year program of education or training.

Applications are available by emailing lindatitus@hotmail.com or calling 873-2108.  They should also be available in local guidance offices. The deadline to return the completed form is April 15, 2017.

Vassalboro News: Selectmen OK letter to KWD seeking support for Alewife Restoration Initiative

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by Mary Grow

Vassalboro selectmen heard two requests and one proposal at their Jan. 26 meeting. They granted one request and took the other two items under advisement.

Board members approved Frank Richards’ request that they write a letter to the president of the Kennebec Water District (KWD) Board of Trustees asking the district to support the project to restore alewives to China Lake, known as ARI (Alewife Restoration Initiative).

Richards is Vassalboro’s new representative on the board. One reason he sought the position, he said, was to try to get KWD to support ARI financially.
The current KWD position, as stated by General Manager Jeffrey LaCasse (see The Town Line, Jan. 19, 2017, page 8), is neither for nor against alewife reintroduction. KWD officials do not believe alewives are responsible for water quality improvements; neither do they believe the small fish will harm water quality.

Richards praised state Representative Timothy Theriault, of China, for introducing a bill, LD 55, co-sponsored by legislators from Winslow and Fairfield, that would impose a fee on KWD customers to go toward China Lake water quality restoration. (For another perspective on LD 55, see The Town Line, Jan. 26, 2017, p. 3. )

Selectmen agreed that board Chairman Lauchlin Titus and Town Manager Mary Sabins will draft a letter to KWD Board President Al Hodsdon.
The second request was from Holly Weidner, who asked selectmen as they prepare 2017-18 budget recommendations to reconsider the policy of flat-funding out-of-town social service agencies. Weidner argued that many of the agencies, like those dealing with sexual assault and domestic violence, perform valuable public safety functions and should be more generously supported. Selectman Phil Haines said selectmen and budget committee members constantly balance between the needs presented to them and the need to keep the local tax rate as low as possible.

Agency requests are included in the town meeting warrant, Sabins pointed out, giving voters the option to appropriate the full amount an agency wants when town officials recommend a lower amount.

Selectmen are scheduled to begin review of the proposed 2017-18 municipal budget at a workshop scheduled for 1 p.m., Monday, Feb. 13. The budget committee’s tentative schedule has social service agency requests to be considered the evening of Thursday, March 9.

The proposal at the Jan. 26 meeting, submitted by a representative of Maryland-based RealTerm Energy, was to replace current street lights with LED lights.

Paul Vesel, the company’s northeastern director of business development, gave selectmen and audience members a 33-page document describing plans for the change and projected cost savings.

In April 2016 selectmen heard another proposal on the same topic from Pemco & Company, LLC, of Florida.

In other business Jan. 26, Sabins reported on two initiatives from Vassalboro’s Senior Citizens Working Group. Members are still discussing provision of bus service in Vassalboro, she said, and they are planning a May 25 Senior Citizens Services Fair at which area organizations whose responsibilities include assisting seniors will be invited to distribute information about their services.

Selectmen approved a liquor license renewal for Natanis Golf Course, with board member and Natanis owner Rob Browne abstaining on the vote.

The next regular Vassalboro selectmen’s meeting is scheduled for Thursday evening, Feb. 9.