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Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 146, No. 2
20 PAGES - 2 Sections
Bridgton, Maine
January 8, 2014
(USPS 065-020)
Weather . . . . . . . . . . . 4B
www.bridgton.com
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Selectmen ponder town land offers By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Bridgton Selectmen were a bit wary at their last meeting in dealing with four separate requests to buy small plots of town-owned land. The requests underscored the need to set a value for all land the town owns, no matter how seemingly small or insignificant any one parcel might seem. Only one of the four requests could easily be
decided without further investigation. Jane Starets of 100 Highland Road wanted the town to deed over a .08acre strip of land that abuts the road, but was never deeded over to her when the road was moved. The board agreed with her request, treating it much as a housekeeping matter. Under state law, if a town discontinues a roadway location, the discontinued portion reverts back to the adjoining prop-
erty owners. Town Meeting voters agreed in 2008 to allow selectmen “to execute all deeds and instruments” to convey to all property owners the land comprising the former location of Highland Road, which was discontinued by the town in 1936. But in Staret’s case, the deed was never formally executed. The other three land sale requests were from property owners who abut surplus back land the town owns near
Moose Pond. William and Beverly Warren were denied a setback variance to build a detached garage beside their home on Cedar Drive. They need 10 more feet to meet the setback rule for Shoreland Zoning, and it just so happened that the town owns the abutting land. Therefore, the Warrens want to buy a 10-foot-wide strip, and because the town also owns land in back, they
would in return give the town a permanent right-of-way over the land. The Warrens point out in their request that in 1985, the state gave the town authority to sell the land that their house sits on, and that the excess town land does not contain any shore frontage. Selectmen approved the request by a vote of 4-1, with Bob McHatton opposed. McHatton said he wasn’t against any one specific
Dam failure equals DEP fines
Group’s attempt to buy silence rebuffed By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer They want to buy silence. A group of Waterford neighbors, fed up after years of “ongoing gun noise invasion” from a local shooting range, is now offering to pay the Waterford Fish and Game Association to stay closed on a specified day or days. “What would it cost to buy the privilege to use our properties one, two, or three days a week without the constant anxiety of being “shot” (bombarded) with gunfire at any moment?” asks a Dec. 18 letter to the club from John Howe, spokesperson for the Waterford Noise Abatement Coalition. Howe said last week he has not received a response to the letter, which was sent to Club President Peter Pacent Sr. as well as the town of Waterford and Scott Cole, Oxford County Commissioner. The letter was resent on Dec. 27. Pacent said Wednesday the club does not plan to respond to the letter. He said the club has taken steps to abate the noise by building an extension to the roof over its rifle range, and has plans to construct a similar roof over one of its handgun ranges. The correspondence is the latest salvo by Howe, who has been fighting the gun club since 2007, when its facilities at 819 Norway Road (Route 118) were expanded to include a new clubhouse, two new pistol ranges and additional firing lines. In December 2013, the SILENCE, Page A
TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM — Sophie Fagone was the target of a cream pie Tuesday night as part of a fundraiser for the Lake Region varsity cheerleading squad. For $10, fans had a chance to pick out a cheerleader to plaster with whipped cream inside the cafeteria during halftime of the Lake RegionFryeburg Academy girls’ varsity basketball game. The cheerleading squad will appear this Saturday at the Western Maine Conference Championships to be held in Freeport. (Rivet Photos)
Request: 10 years to build homes By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — With four or five months left to put the item before the voters at the regular Town Meeting, the Casco Planning Board has been reviewing the renewal
Trees take on the power grid By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — In December, the lights on the Christmas tree might bump up the electric bill. In January, trees taken to the Casco-Naples Bulky Waste site will eventually make electricity. Those trees have a future as biomass fuel, according to Casco Town Manager Dave Morton. “They get ground up and recycled. The wood chips go to fire a boiler that generates power,” Morton said. He said he was uncertain of the tree’s end destination. “We contract with a company to come in and process it. They go out and find their market. They may be selling to SAPPI or some other enti-
proposal, but thought that a detailed study of all townowned land should be undertaken before taking action on any single proposal. Another request came from Glenn Browning at 38 Cedar Drive, who wanted the right of first refusal if the town decides to sell the land abutting his. The board opted to take no action on his request. Lastly, Sean Morgan of 21 LAND, Page 10A
ties,” he said. The holiday trees are not given any special treatment from the other natural yard debris in the pile at the bulky waste site. The stockpile just gets bigger and bigger since the recycling company picks up the load bi-annually. “They’ll come in a couple times a year to grind up the brush and limbs that people bring in,” Morton said. The task takes several days. The company’s employees set up their machinery and put the debris through the wood-chipper at the site. Morton said there was no way to record the number of trees or the weight of trees that are dropped off at the bulky waste facility. Judging by the number of TREES, Page A
of a contract zone agreement between the Town and Point Sebago Enterprises. The next planning board meeting will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 12. It starts at 7 p.m. at the Casco Community Center. Following this meeting, there will be a series of planning board meetings before the contract zone agreement lands on the agenda of the Casco Board of Selectmen. Also, as part of the process, there will be a joint meeting of the two boards. All meetings are open to the public as the renewed contract zone takes shape as a warrant item for the Town Meeting. On a Saturday in midDecember, members of the board took a site walk — or rather a site drive that covered the acres of land owned by Point Sebago, and set aside as seasonal resort cottages and 900-square-foot vacation homes that are intended for temporary residency. The following Wednesday, Dec. 17, the planning board convened and discussed aspects of the “site walk,” according to Chairman Lynne Potter. One of the issues the board talked about was that the temporary residency clause of the existing contract zone states
THESE 900-SQUARE-FOOT vacation homes are one the phases of development at Point Sebago. Currently, the Casco Planning Board is reviewing the renewal of a contract zone agreement between the Town and Point Sebago Enterprises. (De Busk Photo) that owners of the cottages and vacation homes can only reside there a certain number of months. There are concerns, rumors and mumblings from people in the community that this stipulation of the contract zone has been, and is being, violated, Potter said. She recapped some highlights of the December planning board meeting. “We primarily did a report of what we saw during the site walk. We saw the various neighborhoods and the water treatment plant,” she said. “One of our concerns is the fact that some people might
be staying there year-round, and ways we could monitor that,” Potter said. “One of the ways was to monitor it by the water output. That records the water output, but not who uses it. They could be staying there for a month. Then, someone HOMES, Page A
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — If the Pleasant Lake-Parker Pond dam continues to release too much water, resulting in lake levels that are below the state’s mandate, the towns of Casco and Otisfield could face hefty fines. Those fines would come from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which has already warned the town of that possibility, according to Casco Selectman Holly Hancock. So, the town of Casco will have to spend money not only to avoid fines, but also to maintain the water levels and water quality that is enjoyed by both residents and tourists. The next step in repairing the dam is two-prong: A hydrology study and a conceptual design based on the results of the study. A committee comprised of Casco and Otisfield representatives put the hydrology study and engineering out to bid. It received three bids for the job. Hiring a professional company to complete those tasks will cost $7,700. But first, this expenditure must be approved by Casco residents at a Special Town Meeting. Essentially, the dam project has delayed the Special Town Meeting, which was originally slated for midJanuary. On Tuesday, the Casco Board of Selectmen agreed on a new date for the Special Town Meeting: Thursday, Feb. 26. It will be held in the large meeting room of the Casco Community Center. “There has been some discussion, and we think pushing it forward would make sense,” Chairman Grant Plummer said. He said the later date for the Special Town Meeting would provide more time for the board to put together the language for the barking dog ordinance and also to gather the information regarding the Pleasant LakeParker Pond dam. “It is to give us more time to prepare and the public more time to ingest what we are doing,” Plummer said. Selectman Calvin Nutting DAM, Page 10A
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