Government Spotlight

Quarry Road, MSAD 15 Strategic Plan, Senior tax relief discussed at Select Board

Intersection of Outlet Road, Route 26 and Quarry Road

| Joanne Cole |

Listening and information-gathering were the main order of business at the Select Board’s August 1 meeting. Board members heard about MSAD 15’s new Strategic Plan, Cumberland’s Senior Tax Relief program, the Shakers’ perspective on the gravel section of Quarry Road, and a resident’s request for a right-of-way across town property near Morse Road. Also on the agenda: opening bids for a replacement ambulance and heat pumps for two town buildings and revised By-Laws for Boards and Committees.

Public meeting ahead for gravel portion of Quarry Road. Shaker property on Quarry Road, across Route 26 from Outlet Road, has for decades been the site of significant dumping and illegal camping, fires, vandalism and similar activities. But when the town closed Quarry Road’s gravel section for mud season this spring, the problems “disappeared almost immediately,” Shaker Village Director Michael Graham told the board. Walkers and recreational activity sprang up, “a whole new population,” Graham said.

The dramatic improvement led the Shakers to inquire whether the town might consider permanently discontinuing the gravel section as a town road. That possibility brought Graham and Brother Arnold Hadd to the Select Board on Monday.

In remarks to the board, Graham framed the Quarry Road idea as a way to further long-term plans for walking trails and outdoor learning on the Shakers’ unique conserved lands — significant nationally, regionally and locally as the only active Shaker community, the largest National Historic Landmark in Maine, the state’s oldest ongoing farm.

Because the Shakers own both sides along Quarry Road, closing the gravel section would create a single, contiguous parcel – about half of the Shakers’ total property. The land would be opened up for the new uses, Graham said. “It’s not just a road closure,” he said, “but a replaced use.” Management, safety and security in that area of town would all be enhanced, he said.

Board members cheered the seasonal closure but were cautious about discontinuing the road. Under Maine law, discontinuance is a formal multi-step process with notice and hearings, and those adversely affected may be entitled to compensation. The Shakers are the sole New Gloucester abutters to the gravel section of the road, Town Manager Christine Landes confirmed, but closure would affect those farther up Quarry Road as well as residents on Colbath Road. Poland is also in play, given the town’s boundary at Quarry Road.

As a next step, the board decided on a public meeting to discuss the future of the gravel portion of Quarry Road. Notices will go out to affected residents, and conversation with Poland Town Manager Matt Garside will continue.

A car disappears into the dust on the gravel section of Quarry Road

MSAD 15 Strategic Plan. Superintendent Craig King presented on the District’s newly adopted Strategic Plan. The plan will guide the District’s work over the next several years and is the product of a comprehensive and inclusive process. Some 400 individuals participated in focus groups and forums, King said, including parents, school staff, community members, and area businesspeople. They addressed what the district is doing well, what it can improve on and what a high school graduate needs to know to be a successful adult in today’s world.

“Preparing students for their next step and instilling aspirations through rigorous and relevant educational experiences” is the mission. King elaborated: “We really want our students to be able to achieve,” he said, and to have “a rigorous experience academically.” In order to prepare for the competitive world ahead, “We want them to work hard and then work just a little bit harder.”

Among strengths, King cited prompt, targeted support for struggling students, the International Baccalaureate program that offers college-level academics, the alternative education program ExCEL (Expanding Choices for Each Learner) and paths to careers for those not headed to two- or four-year colleges. Robust after-school programs, which King described as “an extension of the academic program,” are another realm where students can excel while being active, safe and engaged, he said.

The Strategic Plan continues the District’s emphasis on reading, writing and math instruction and has goals involving facilities and safety. Security and safety upgrades are being installed, funded largely by a $550,000 federal grant, and will include keyless entry systems, cameras and central monitoring, and integration with first responders.

King said the District will be sharing the full Strategic Plan document with the community and will follow up regularly with progress updates in the coming months and years.

Senior Tax Relief in Cumberland. Saying “Every town should do a similar program,” Cumberland Town Manager William Shane was equal parts information, enthusiasm and advocacy as he described his town’s Senior Tax Relief Program. The program, in effect for 15 years, gives qualifying residents 70 and older a property tax rebate of up to $750.

Shane invited the Select Board to take Cumberland’s ordinance and insert “New Gloucester” wherever “Cumberland” appears. Pointing to New Gloucester’s total valuation of $680 million, he said, “Ten cents on the mill rate gets you funded right out of the gate.”

To qualify in Cumberland (pop. 8,473 in 2020), Shane explained, an applicant must be 70 or older, have lived 10 consecutive years in town, have a homestead and a family household income under $91,000. Renters can participate, Shane said; 15 percent of their rent is assumed to go toward property taxes. Eighty percent of the community’s 200 or so recipients come in under the $60,000 line, and the town pays out between $75,000 to $85,000 annually.

Shane framed the program as “all about community and property tax fairness.” He noted the disproportionate burden on taxpayers “who stayed and built our great communities” but “feel they were forgotten.” He contrasted them with what he called “12-year wonders,” residents whose For Sale sign goes up alongside their ‘I have a graduate” sign.

Each Cumberland rebate check reflects two elements: first, the increase in the household’s property tax since the prior year, capped at $200, and a second component pegged to income. Cumberland uses five income bands: a household with gross income of $30,000 or less receives $550 on the income element; those between $30,000 and $40,000 receive $400, and so on, down to $50 at the high end.

Acknowledging Cumberland’s seemingly generous $91,000 income limit, Shane explained that the state has a property tax deferral program for those with incomes under $40,000. But there’s nothing similar above that for households with two earners working hard.

Shane confirmed that Cumberland doesn’t take residents’ assets into account, just income as reflected on a federal tax return or equivalent. That makes the program straightforward and speedy to administer: less time than to register a car, he said. North Yarmouth has a similar program, Shane said, but takes the amount directly off the resident’s tax bill instead of issuing a check.

Board Chair Peter Bragdon recalled a tax relief measure that failed 25-21 at a June 2019 New Gloucester special town meeting. That proposal required household income under $40,000 and required applicants to have received the state’s Property Tax Fairness credit the preceding year. In the years since, no tax relief proposal has been put forward by the Select Board.

Board members had questions about Cumberland’s budgeting and how the program relates to state tax relief measures, including a recent law that allows seniors to freeze their property taxes. The board took no action but are likely to revisit the topic in the future.

Bids for ambulance and heat pumps come in over budget. Four firms submitted bids to supply a new ambulance, each offering multiple options and prices depending on the chassis and connection with and passthrough to the patient ‘box.’ Bids ranged between $284,459 and $398,228. The town budgeted $250,000.

Interim Chief Craig Bouchard will review the bids and return with a recommendation. Vendors’ prices are only good for 30 days and build time may take 24 months, he cautioned. And how to cover costs beyond the budget, the board wondered: use the Undesignated Fund? ARPA funds? Decisions will await Bouchard’s recommendations and board review at an upcoming meeting.

Bids for heat pumps for the Meetinghouse and the Library also came in over budget. Dave’s World Heating and Cooling was the lower price at $29,721; Superior Energy Solutions bid $35,256. The amount budgeted was $25,000. Public Works Director Ted Shane hopes to work with the low bidder and will report back next meeting. Shane will also review sand and gravel bids received from three firms and return with recommendations.

Apparel Impact collection saves a ton. Chair Lauren Jordan of the Environmental Resources Committee got the board’s official blessing that Apparel Impact collection bins continue at the Transfer Station. Begun as a six-month trial, Apparel Impact recycles and repurposes worn and torn clothing, shoes and accessories. Jordan said some 2,512 pounds of material have already been collected and diverted from the hopper, with no issues reported by Apparent Impact or Transfer Station staff. “It’s a great thing to do,” member Tammy Donovan said. Board members agreed.

Maschinos’ right-of-way request awaits research. Duayne and Leslie Maschino of 5 Bantam Way (off Morse Road) are hoping to secure a right-of-way on an old road across a town-owned parcel (Map 4 Lot 11) for access to their back property (Map 4 Lot 10). Duayne Maschino explained that the right-of-way would save the family from having to put in a costly ravine and brook crossing. He thought the road in question leads to an old town pit.

Much of the ensuing discussion involved locating the areas in question on the face of the earth, as the old road doesn’t appear on town tax maps. Your board members with strong geographic and visual recall and open laptops could picture a gated road in the vicinity of the Morse Road railroad tracks. Wherever exactly it may be, what is its legal status, they wondered. Is it still a road? Was it abandoned or discontinued? Deputy Clerk Sharlene Myers will do the research and report back.

Revised By-Laws for Boards and Committees approved. The board unanimously approved revised By-Laws for Boards and Committees, pointing particularly to amended sections with more explicit attendance expectations and clarifications about membership and who may serve. The board is tackling separately the application and appointment process, starting at an upcoming August 22 workshop.

In short, there’s more to come.

To view video of the Select Board’s August 1 meeting, click here. To see the meeting agenda and related documents, click here.