TEMPLE — Townspeople gathered Thursday night for a special town meeting and appropriated $214,460 to run the town for the next six months.

Voters at the March town meeting turned down a proposal to change the fiscal year to July 1 to June 30. Most money articles on the warrant were half the amount needed.

A special town meeting was needed to raise funds to run the town for the rest of 2014, Selectman Jean Mitchell said. This puts the town back on a January to December fiscal year.

Voters set the next town meeting for March 9, 2015.

Nearly 30 voters unanimously passed 30 articles in less than an hour with little discussion.

Townspeople did amend a request to raise $30,000 to offset part of a shortfall from the previous year. The amount was amended to zero and passed unanimously.

At the March town meeting, $30,000 was raised to meet the approximately $75,000 shortage.

With school and county budgets going out of sight, Toni Andrews suggested spreading the amount raised over three years instead of two.

Voters approved a new article that raised $1,000 for the Temple Recreation Department.

The focus has been on baseball, which not every child in Temple plays, Megan Farmer said. The $1,000 would be seed money to include other activities and for the formation of a Recreation Committee.

Townspeople also approved an updated building permit ordinance designed by the Planning Board. Any construction that uses more than $1,000 worth of materials would need a permit. Fines for violations increased from $50 to $150, Mitchell said.

Residents also voted by ballot from 7 to 11 a.m. Thursday to clarify when and where liquor and wine could be sold.

Last year, a resident wanted to hold an event at the town hall and have it catered. When the caterer filed for a state liquor license, they were told Temple only allowed the sale of liquor for consumption on the premises on Sundays. Only private events where people bring their own beverage is allowed, she said.

The process to get to the vote has taken nearly a year, Town Clerk Lou Brackett said. No one is sure why or when the rules were implemented.

The change will help a store that wants to come to town and allow serving at events held by the Community Cafe, Mitchell said.

Voters approved six questions covering the sale of liquor, on and off the premises of licensed places.

By a vote of 24-3, the town authorized the state to permit licenses to sell liquor for consumption on the premises on days other than Sunday.

By a vote of 18-9, they authorized the state to permit agency liquor stores to sell alcohol, wine and malt liquor for consumption off the premises on days other than Sunday.

Licenses for liquor sales for consumption on Sundays on and off the premises were approved.

abryant@sunjournal.com