China select board discourages two residents asking for town expenditures

by Mary Grow

At their Feb. 10 meeting, China select board members discouraged two residents recommending town expenditures.

Director of Public Services Shawn Reed, who made a second pitch for a new town truck, was rejected, on a split vote.

Board chairman Wayne Chadwick told Broadband Committee chairman Robert O’Connor and member Jamie Pitney he would oppose a broadband expansion proposal unless it met his criteria.

Reed repeated points he made two weeks earlier about the age of town plow trucks and the difficulty of keeping roads clear when a truck is out of service, as happens almost every storm (see the Jan. 30 issue of The Town Line, p. 3). He expects truck prices will continue to increase, perhaps in part because of the Trump administration’s tariffs on steel.

Asked about the $297,676 price he had two weeks ago from O’Connor Motors, in Augusta, Reed said he was not sure it was still good; nor could he guarantee that signing a purchase agreement would hold a price.

Reed and Chadwick discussed types of undercoating that might extend truck life. Frequent washings help, Reed said; one more bay on the town garage would provide an indoor space, so his crew would not have to work outdoors, wearing creepers to avoid falling as the washwater froze on the driveway.

After a 15-minute discussion, board members voted not to buy a new town truck in 2025. Only Edwin Bailey and Jeanne Marquis were in favor; Chadwick, Blane Casey and Thomas Rumpf voted no.

O’Connor had sent board members a proposed contract with Unitel, the Albion-based Direct Communications subsidiary with which China’s Broadband Committee has been working. The town committee’s goal is to expand and improve broadband service in China, starting with unserved and underserved areas.

The plan O’Connor explained involves China contributing $370,000 in already-approved TIF (Tax Increment Financing) funds toward expansion. Pitney said the estimated total cost is around $2 million.

The project has two parts: a new main line running from Albion through China to connect with Palermo, a member of the five-town group that also works with Unitel; plus expansion of service to un- and underserved parts of China.

This project depends on a successful grant application. O’Connor urged select board members to send a letter supporting the grant. Without grant funding, Pitney said, only the main line would be built.

Chadwick considers the main line a benefit to Unitel, not China, and if China pays, he wants to be sure China benefits. Unless he is guaranteed the project will include expanded service in China, he will vote against it, he said. Marquis voiced a similar concern.

No action was taken.

In other business, board members unanimously accepted the lowest of three bids to replace a heater in the town garage, $4,813.99 from M. A. Haskell Fuel Company, of Palermo.

Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood summarized changes in speed limits in the Weeks Mills Village area that were recently approved by the state Department of Transportation.

The manager reported the following items from town departments:

— A reminder that all proposed questions for the June 10 town business meeting need to be reviewed by select board members in March, to meet the April 11 deadline for a final meeting warrant. March select board meetings are scheduled for the evenings of Monday, March 10, and Monday, March 24.
— Notice that the transfer station is now accepting number 1 plastic for recycling.

Schedules of events for China Ice Days, Feb. 14 through Feb. 16, are on the China Four Seasons Club website and in the recently mailed Feb. 7 issue of China Connected. Hapgood and board members briefly considered potential effects of the snowstorm forecast for Sunday, Feb. 16.

All town services will be closed Monday, Feb. 17, for the Presidents’ Day holiday, Hapgood said.

Select board members did not discuss the draft 2025-26 budget at their Feb. 2 meeting, deciding 8 p.m. was time to adjourn. They plan to start their Feb. 24 meeting at 5:30 p.m., half an hour earlier than usual, to leave more time for budget review.