Paris Board of Selectmen

March 26, 2018

Paris Town Office

Transfer Station permit

What happened: Norway-Paris Solid Waste Board member Bob Ripley presented selectmen a draft permit policy for the Brown Street Transfer Station  in Norway and selectmen voted to abide by it.

What it means: The policy would enforce the rule that permits are required to dump garbage at the Transfer Station for Paris and Norway, and must be displayed on a vehicle’s windshield. Permits are free and available at both Town Offices and the Transfer Station. Permits for commercial haulers bringing only waste from Norway and Paris residents would not be charged additional fees.

What’s next: The policy is slated to go into effect at the beginning of the fiscal year on July 1.

Billings Dam Bridge

What happened: Town Manager Vic Hodgkins highlighted some points about the roughly $2.1 million Billings Dam Bridge replacement project, after meeting with Department of Transportation officials last week.

What it means: Work will commence about July 15 on the underside of the East Main Street structure that spans the Little Androscoggin River. The work includes widening of the piers. There will be flaggers present and at times traffic will be down to one lane until the fall.

What’s next: Replacement of the bridge deck will begin in March 2019, with most of the work anticipated to be complete by mid-October 2019. “They will close the north side toward the dam … and work on that first,” Hodgkins said, adding there will be automated traffic lights to control the one lane of traffic during the second phase of the project.

Recall Election Ordinance

What happened: Selectmen voted to amend the town’s Recall Election Ordinance.

What it means: The issue was brought up by Selectman Gary Vaughn. The ordinance, as it stands, refers to any elected official in Paris – selectmen, SAD 17 directors and Paris Utility District board members. In the section on applicability, selectmen voted to delete the words, “with the exception of members of the board of directors of School Administrative District 17,” so it reads “Town of Paris elected officials.”

What’s next: A public hearing will be held Monday, April 9, after the special town meeting that begins at 6:30 p.m. The ordinance change will be on the June ballot.

Capital needs

What happened: Highway Director Jaime Hutchinson shared some of his department’s capital needs and selectmen approved fixing the 1999 street sweeper.

What it means: Selectmen approved Hutchinson spending up to $12,800 on the work and purchasing parts for the aging street sweeper. Some of the Highway Department’s immediate needs include replacing the screen for the gravel pit for roughly $60,000, replacing the sidewalk plow for $132,500, replacing the 1995 Ford F800 used for patching and some plowing, and replacing the street sweeper for $250,000.

What’s next: Hutchinson will do more research on a replacement street sweeper , including trade-in value, finding better parts for the current one and contracting for the service. In his initial research, Hutchinson received three quotes of $125 per hour for sweeping. It takes roughly 80 hours, which would cost roughly $10,000.

Audit

What happened: The town’s auditor, Bill Hall, gave a brief presentation on the annual audit.

What it means: The report is of June 30, 2017. He said town had “a very good year” for fiscal 2017. The fund balance grew by $586,000 to $2.2 million. This is due to roughly $300,000 in additional revenue not spending all of the capital money that was originally anticipated.

Resignation tabled

What happened: No action was taken on Jack Higgins’ resignation from the Parks and Recreation Committee.

What it means: In his resignation email, he said his concerns regarding trees to be planted in town were not addressed. Selectmen Gary Vaughn and Chris Summers said they were unaware of Higgins’ concerns. Summers said he will reach out to Higgins to discuss his concerns.

What’s next: Selectmen will revisit the resignation later.

Spirit of America

What happened: Selectmen voted to nominate Onni Raasumaa for the Spirit of America award.

What it means: The Spirit of America Foundation is an Augusta-based nonprofit that honors people for their volunteerism in the community.

What’s next: Sarah Glynn will write about Rasumaa for the award presentation.