Conway Village voters approve water, sewer projects

Bond issues pass, along with funding to create park

Voters in the Conway Village Fire District took care of their basic necessities Monday night and even treated themselves to a little something extra.Along with a host of articles, including more than $1 million in bond issues, for water, sewer and fire operations, voters at the precinct's annual meeting also approved a $250,000 request to create a park on the former elementary-school property in the center of the village.The park article generated the most discussion during the four-hour meeting at Conway Village Fire Station, in large part because it was presented without the recommendation of the three precinct commissioners, Robert DeVos, Carl Thibodeau and Jeffrey Cote.Cote said the proposed park was a "great project" but that with all the other expenses facing the precinct, both long-term and short-term, "it was a really big bullet to swallow."Cote said the project was put out to bid, and there were "three coronaries when the bids came back in." However, commissioners later determined that it might be possible to phase the project, which they felt was worth considering because all the money wouldn't have to be raised in one year.Betty Hounsell, who served on the committee that helped develop the park plans, said the shock for her wasn't the cost of the project but the fact that commissioners didn't recommend it. She added, "It never costs less to do things later, and it never costs less to do things in phases."Cote said commissioners wanted voters to look at the park article "independently" of other, more pressing projects. Water and sewer improvements are "paramount" to the survival of the village, he said, adding, "The park is paramount to the cohesiveness of the village, but if it doesn't happen, we don't die."Randy Davison had a similar viewpoint."I'm all for it," Davison said, "but is this the time for it? We need water, we need sewer, but do you need this park?"The article called for raising $150,000 from taxes, with the other $100,000 coming from federal grants, putting the estimated tax impact at $1.48 per $1,000 valuation. Bayard Kennett proposed an amendment authorizing commissioners to issue a three-year note for the $150,000, enabling the project to proceed but allowing the precinct to pay back the money over three years.When concerns were raised about the legal ramifications of raising more than $100,000 over a period of more than one year, Kennett proposed a new amendment to raise $51,000 this year and borrow the other $99,000 on a two-year note. That amendment passed easily, with 38 people voting in favor and 12 against.Earlier in the evening, voters approved bond issues for $270,000 to upgrade the water main on Quint Street; $260,000 to install sewer mains on Jack Frost Lane; and $495,000 to upgrade the aeration system at the treatment plant. All three articles easily received the two-thirds majority needed for passage, with the $495,000 aeration article receiving unanimous support, 56-0.But that money is nothing compared to what the precinct may be facing in the future. At the outset of the meeting, consultants Julie Simonton and Jeff Diercks, of CDM, gave an overview of the master plan they prepared on the precinct's water and wastewater systems, forewarning voters that it will cost millions of dollars in system upgrades and changes to ensure adequate water supply and sewer services over the long term.A $50,000 article to conduct a feasibility study for the "regionalization" of the water and wastewater systems of Conway Village and North Conway was approved by voters as the next step in that direction.When it came time to consider the budgets for general district operations and the water, sewer and fire departments, Berk Hounsell proposed giving precinct employees more than the 2.5 percent cost-of-living raises offered by commissioners. By giving employees more money now, Hounsell argued, the precinct wouldn't have as much "catching up" to do later, when the precinct is facing other major expenses."If we give them (employees) enough now, it's not going to hit us as hard three or four years down the road," Hounsell said.An amendment to reflect a 3.5 percent pay increase received some support, but the majority of voters went along with the commissioners' proposed budgets for the various departments.Voters also approved $155,000 for a sewer pump station on Eaton Road; $28,000 to improve security around the municipal wells; and $20,000 for a thermal imaging device that can be used by the fire department to locate victims and hot spots inside burning buildings.