Sidewalks, fireworks among Fryeburg town meeting issues
Published Date
FRYEBURG — Sidewalks and fireworks are among the issues to be taken up at Fryeburg's annual town meeting Thursday.The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at the Leura Hill Eastman Performing Arts Center on 18 Bradley Street.
Several warrant articles would restrict the sale, possession and use of fireworks. The state has legalized fireworks, but towns can choose them illegal, and selectmen want to give residents that option.
There is also a proposal to transfer $142,100 from an existing account for the town's share of a sidewalk improvement project.
Another warrant article would reestablish use of the transfer station shed, which contains reusable items.
Article 3: To spend $387,728 for the administration account. Selectmen unanimously recommend the article and the budget committee voted 5 to 1 to recommend.
Article 4: To spend $481,259 for the police department account. Selectmen unanimously recommend this article and the budget committee voted 4 to 1 to 1 to recommend.
Article 5: To spend of $305,176 for the solid waste department account. Both the selectmen and the budget committee recommended this article unanimously.
Article 6: To spend $550,185 for the public works department account. Selectmen unanimously recommended this article and the budget committee voted 5 to 1 to recommend.
Article 7: To spend $138,638.72 for the Fryeburg Fire Department account. Selectmen recommended it by a vote of 2 to 0 to 1 and the budget committee recommended it unanimously.
Article 8. To spend $73,660 for the library account. Selectmen unanimously recommended this article and the budget committee voted 5 to 1 to recommend.
Article 9: To spend $67,825 for the recreation department. Selectmen recommend it by a vote of 2 to 1 and the budget committee voted 5 to 1 to recommend.
Article 10: To spend $25,000 for the equipment capital reserve account. Selectmen unanimously recommend this article and the budget committee voted 5 to 1 to recommend.
Article 11: To spend $15,000 for the fire department truck fund account. Selectmen unanimously recommended this article and the budget committee voted 5 to 1 to recommend.
Article 12: To spend $172,000 for the roads capital reserve account. Selectmen recommend this article unanimously and the budget committee voted 5-0-1 to recommend.
Article 13: To spend $18,575 for the Saco Valley Fire Department. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 14: To spend $70,370 for Fryeburg Rescue. Both the selectmen and budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 15: To spend $510,965 for the debt service account. Selectmen unanimously recommend this article and no tally is available for the budget committee.
Article 16: To spend $13,874 for town boards and committees accounts. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 17: To spend $14,000 for the General Assistance Account. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article
Article 18: To spend $23,500 for the professional services account. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 19: To spend $147,164.75 for the civil services account. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 20: To spend $12,175 for the maintenance and electricity of town parks. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 21: To spend $15,413 for the annual expenses for town-owned buildings. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 22: To spend $59,800 for unclassified town insurances. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 23: To spend $10,000 for social service agencies. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 24: To spend $16,548 for unclassified service organizations. Both the selectmen and budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 25: To spend $1,750 for unclassified events. Both the selectmen and the budget committee voted unanimously to recommend this article.
Article 26: To see if residents will appropriate 100 percent of the money received from the state for snowmobile registration fees to the Interstate Snow-Goers Club for the maintenance of snowmobile trails, on the condition that those trails be open in snow season to the public for outdoor recreation at no charge and to authorize the selectmen to enter into an agreement with the club, under such terms and conditions as they deem advisable, for that purpose.
Article 27: To see if residents will appropriate up to 85 percent of the cable franchise fee received from Time Warner Cable to Valley Vision for the continued coverage of Fryeburg municipal meetings and other Fryeburg events, and to authorize the municipal officers to enter into an agreement with Valley Vision, under such terms and conditions as the municipal officers deem advisable, for that purpose.
Article 28: To see if residents will authorize the tax collector to accept prepayment of taxes not yet committed, and pay no interest on those prepayments.
Article 29: To see if residents will authorize the tax collector to collect taxes twice a year and to establish Oct. 11 and May l0, 2013 as the due dates. Interest will be charged on each of the unpaid balances at 7 percent annually after Oct. 11 and May 10, 2013, respectively.
Article 30: To see if residents will set the interest rate to be paid by the town on abated taxes or have overpaid their taxes for the year 2013 at 3 percent.
Article 31: To see if residents will authorize selectmen to accept gifts of money, donations, real or personal property or pass-through funds, and to apply for and receive any and all grant funds which the selectmen determine to be in the town's best interest.
Article 32: To see residents will authorize the selectmen, on behalf of the town, to sell and dispose of any real estate acquired by nonpayment of taxes thereon, on such terms deemed advisable, and to execute deeds for such property and the proposed action of the selectmen shall be advertised for two weeks.
Article 33: To see if residents will authorize the selectmen to dispose of town-owned personal property with a value of $25,000 or less, under such terms and conditions as they deem advisable.
Article 34: To see if residents will appropriate excise tax, tree growth reimbursement, veteran exempt reimbursement, boat excise tax, excise tax, building permit fees, state road assistance, town agent fees, town clerk fees, plumbing and building permit fees, revenue sharing, and miscellaneous revenue to be used to reduce the property tax commitment.
Article 35: To see if residents will authorize up to $350,000 from undesignated surplus, to be used to reduce the property tax commitment.
Article 36: To see if residents will appropriate from surplus the overdrafts to town accounts as of June 30, 2013.
Article 37: To see if residents will authorize selectmen or the town manager, acting in concurrence with said selectmen, to carry forward to the following year any unexpended balances, and in accordance with the fund balance policy, any fund balance in excess of 15 percent of the gross town, school, and county expenditures less debt service, to accounts as designated by the selectmen.
Article 38: To see if residents will authorize selectmen to accept donations for the fuel fund program, to designate the general assistant administrator and town manager to administer the fuel fund program and to establish fuel fund guidelines, to be approved by the selectmen.
Article 39 through 41: To see if residents will support prohibiting or restricting, by ordinance, the sale of consumer fireworks, the possession of consumer fireworks and the use of fireworks.
Article 42: To see if the voters shall approve rescinding the recent transfer station policy which prohibits the removal of usable items from the Fryeburg Transfer Station site, and to reinstall and reinstate the building collectively known as the "Free Shed."
Article 43: To amend the land-use ordinance under Section 2.F.3 Land Use Authorization Review Procedure, whereby no application may be reviewed for completeness at a planning board meeting if it has not been received by the planning board at least 14 days prior to that meeting.
The ordinance currently states that applications need to be received "at least seven days prior to that meeting."
Article 44: To enact a "Town of Fryeburg Mobile Vending Ordinance," which would allow ice cream trucks to play a jingle, according to town officials. Copies of the full text of this ordinance are available at the town clerk's office and will be available at the town meeting.
Article 45: To amend Section 16.N and Section 25 of the land-use ordinance, related to performance standards for signs and definitions for signs. Copies of the full text of these amendments are available from the town clerk's office and will be available at the town meeting.
Article 46: To enact an ordinance exempting eligible active-duty military personnel from vehicle excise tax.
Article 47: To see if residents approve up to $142,100 for the estimated local funding needed to apply for the Route 302, Main Street/Bridgton Road sidewalk. A minimum of 20 percent of the total project cost is required for the Quality Community Program, Maine DOT Transportation Enhancement and Safe Routes to School project.
The $142,100 will be transferred from the Fund Balance Reserve Account to be held in escrow in the town's sub-account fund to be used for the required 20 percent match needed. In the event that the town doesn't receive funding for the Transportation Enhancement or Safe Routes to Schools project, or if the town doesn't use all the $142,100, the funds will be transferred back to the fund balance reserve account.
This article is unrelated to the the federal beautification grant that would have required the town to designate a portion of the downtown as a slum, according to town manager Sharon Jackson. Voters rejected that grant at a special meeting earlier this year.
"Article 47 is for a 'Quality Community Program Maine DOT Transportation Enhancement and Safe Routes to Schools' grant," said Jackson. "Not the same kind of grant, not the same location, and not the same grant sponsor."
