Lewiston City Council

March 6, 2018

Main Street turn

What happened: The City Council agreed unanimously with a recommendation from the Police Department to prohibit left turns from Main Street onto Mountain Avenue. 

What it means: Because of safety concerns from neighbors, police said the left turn will be prohibited to stop motorists from cutting through the residential neighborhood to avoid the left-turn traffic light at the intersections of Main and Russell streets. A left turn was also prohibited at the nearby Ware Street in 1993. 

“Often it’s difficult to come up with a solution that works for everyone, but I think we have,” Councilor Jim Lysen said during the meeting.

According to the city, Mountain Avenue is “a residential neighborhood and sees a lot of foot traffic with Bates students, faculty and neighborhood children.” 

What’s next: The city will post a “No Left Turn” sign at the intersection. 

City and Bates College utility project 

What happened: The City Council agreed to partner with Bates College to do additional utility work during an upcoming city-planned utility project on Frye and College streets. 

What it means: The city’s project, known as a combined sewer overflow separation and water main replacement, is scheduled for this summer. Bates College has requested that additional utility upgrades to some of the college’s privately owned systems be completed in tandem with the city project. 

According to the city, the additional work requested by Bates College will be paid for by Bates College but will eliminate scheduling headaches between separate contractors. 

What’s next: The construction project will begin this summer. The agreement is effective through July 2019. 

Tax-acquired properties

What happened: The City Council approved accepting eight more Lewiston properties as tax-acquired properties. 

What it means: All eight properties, mostly in the downtown, are vacant plots of land, which all incurred special taxes related to city demolition of hazardous structures. 

According to the city, after numerous attempts to contact the property owners through the normal collection and tax lien process, a letter was sent to the owners stating that “if amounts due to the city were not paid, the City Council would consider taking possession of the property.” 

Roughly $374,800 in taxes is owed on the eight properties combined. 

What’s next: The city will likely sell off the properties through the formal bid process.