At their March 4 meeting, the Select Board will discuss whether to limit parking on Outlet Road and reduce its posted speed limit to 25 mph. They will also consider the Economic Development Committee’s application for the Town to be designated an Age-Friendly Community, opening eligibility for grants and other support.
The board will open bids for the heating/cooling system at Town Hall and will consider replacing the waste oil burner at the Public Works building. Also on the agenda is discussion of broadband and, in particular, a longstanding request for help with internet access from residents of Beaver Dam Road, for whom ARPA funds were set aside.
The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Meetinghouse and will be broadcast on local cable and live-streamed at this link.
Outlet Road parking and speed. The public safety advisory group is recommending that the Town post No Parking signs on the north side of Outlet Road and ask MDOT to reduce the speed limit on the road to 25 mph, according to a brief memo from Manager Bill Kerbin (agenda packet p.20). The advisory group’s meetings are not public, Kerbin has said. The advisory group was formed after the Select Board disbanded the Public Safety Committee, a standing town committee.
Age-Friendly Community designation request. The Economic Development Committee is asking the board to support its application for the Town to be designated an Age-Friendly Community by AARP. With the designation, New Gloucester would join 87 Maine communities currently in AARP’s network and would become eligible for grants, technical assistance and other resources. Find the application and related information at pp. 5-14 of the agenda packet.
Bids for Town Hall heating/cooling system. Town Hall’s oil-fired heating and cooling system dates from 2002 and no longer functions effectively or efficiently. An RFP went out for replacement solutions (pp.15-19); bids will be opened at the March 4 meeting. An ad hoc committee was recently appointed to study the long-term suitability of Town Hall.
The board will also discuss replacing the waste oil burner at the Public Works building. A $49,000 quote for a new used-oil system and installation is in the agenda packet (p. 21).
Broadband, Beaver Dam Road and ARPA. A plan to use $25,000 in ARPA funds to help the Beaver Dam Road area gain internet access has apparently been mooted because of prohibitive associated costs for the residents, according to a memo from Manager Bill Kerbin (p.28). Beaver Dam residents brought the issue to the board in January 2022. The board is likely to discuss both the broadband question and use of the now-available $25,000 in ARPA funds.
Find the full March 4, 2024, Select Board meeting agenda at this link.
Public comments can be submitted by email before 10 am on Monday, March 4, 2024, to townmanager@newgloucester.com and smyers@newgloucester.com. If you want your written comment read aloud, please indicate that in the subject line.
Find contact information for Select Board members and links to meeting agendas, minutes and related documents at this link.
— Joanne Cole
