Making headway Great strides are being made at the future home of the Rufus Porter Museum Page 2A
Cool waters
Inside News
Senior Rambles writer Allen Crabtree recounts hiking trip to Diana’s Bath
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Obituaries . . . . . . . . 12A Opinions . . . 7B-9B, 12B Police/Court . . . . . . . . 4A Sports . . . . . . . . . 1B-5B Student News . . 6B, 14B Games . . . . . . . . . . . 12B
Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 147, No. 20
28 PAGES - 2 Sections
Bridgton, Maine
May 19, 2016
(USPS 065-020)
Weather . . . . . . . . . . 12B
www.bridgton.com
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Education, not advocacy, Next Gen’s role By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer With only a month to go before the vote, some in Bridgton are concerned about the effectiveness of the public relations firm the town hired to explain the need for a new fee structure for sewer system users. “I’m really nervous about time, and where we’re at and what little time we have until Town Elections,” Selectman Greg Watkins said during selectmen’s concerns at the Board of Selectmen’s May 10
meeting. The proposed revisions to the sewer ordinance will appear as Question 1 on the Tuesday, June 14 Town Elections, with polls open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Town Hall. Wastewater Committee member Lucia Terry also was worried, not just about time but about the neutral stance being taken by Next Generation Strategies, a government lobbying service out of Hingham, Mass. She said she realizes that the main goal of the consulting firm, hired a month
ago at a cost of $10,000, is to educate likely voters about the revisions. But someone needs to take on an advocacy role, she said. “We need to be urging people to vote yes on this, and telling them why,” Terry said. “It’s our last chance to take more active steps, while we still have a month.” Revising the current method of sewer allocation will free up unused capacity in the Bridgton sewer system that serves the downtown, thereby allowing for new commer-
cial development and renovation of buildings now sitting vacant. The proposed new ordinance was rejected by voters last November because of fears that there would be a cost to taxpayers and that passage would inevitably lead to an expensive expansion to the system, both of which is not the case. Terry said the Wastewater Committee is drafting a statement of support and has been working hard for several years to explain why the current allocation-based system is flawed,
in that it doesn’t reflect the actual amount of capacity left in the system. Spreading operational costs to all users by an equivalent user-based system is a more equitable and more accurate way to pay for the system. Terry encouraged any resident with questions to contact a committee member or attend their meetings, which are open to the public. Selectman Paul Hoyt agreed, and said that members of both the board of selectmen and the committee should
write letters to the editor in The Bridgton News. “When it comes to election day, I think a lot of people do look to the newspaper,” Hoyt said. Watkins said any direct mailing about the sewer vote should include the message that the board recommends a yes vote. But Selectman Chairman Bernie King said advocacy is not the role of Next Generation Strategies. “They don’t recommend, all they do is do the SELECTMEN, Page 13A
Chairman criticized about her board service By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer DENMARK — A year after surviving a recall vote, Denmark Selectman Chairman Beverly Caparco is once again facing strong criticisms about her service on the board. At last week’s selectmen meeting, local contractor Roger LeGoff recited a list of what he saw as questionable actions taken by the board under Caparco’s watch, and suggested she should be replaced when voters go to the polls on June 3. His chief complaint centered on her handling of the suspension one year ago of Code Enforcement Officer Mike Lee by former Town Manager Dan Merhalski. But he also blamed Caparco for other transgressions, ranging from potentially leaking executive session conversations to failing to effectively negotiate the Perley Mills Community Forest acquisition. Caparco, who is facing a challenge from former Selectman Jay Transue, defended her tenure on the board in a later telephone interview. She also defended Merhalski’s handling of the Lee affair, saying he was “just doing what the board asked him to do.” Caparco said she had to be careful last
year about talking when she faced the recall, but “At this point it doesn’t do me any good not to open my mouth.” She said LeGoff is free to have his own opinion, but “A lot of this is just bunk, because he wants me to look bad” before the elections. LeGoff led off his comments by asking the board, during public participation, to clear up questions still lingering among residents over Lee’s suspension and the third-party investigation that followed. Lee returned to his job several months later, but rumors persist that Lee stole money from the town, LeGoff said. “If he has defrauded the town, why is he back in his job?” asked LeGoff. He also asked why Lee wasn’t given an explanation when the issue came up at a board meeting last September. All three board members said they couldn’t discuss a personnel issue with the public present, but that Lee was given a full explanation in private. “If he chooses to talk about it, that’s up to him,” Caparco said. “I am not, cannot and will not.” Selectman Richard Snow added that, “There is current things going on that the CRITICIZED, Page 14A
No tax for business equipment less than $2K
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — Casco Selectman MaryVienessa Fernandes has been talking to the town’s tax collector. Not only that, Fernandes has been studying the Maine Municipal Association (MMA) guidelines for personal property taxes, reviewing the assessed values of the recent inventories completed by Casco-based business owners, and considering the long list of overdue personal property tax owed to the town. About six months ago, Fernandes took on the task of drafting a personal property tax policy for the Town of Casco to adopt in order to more effectively collect the business equipment tax. The good news is that a few small business owners will be “off the hook” as of May 2017. Those people who were previously billed for business equipment assessed at values of more than $1,000 and less than $2,000 won’t be billed anymore. During the Casco Board of Selectmen meeting on May 10, the board voted on a cutoff of $2,000 worth of assessed value before
a bill is generated. Currently, the town had been applying the personal property tax to business equipment with an assessed value of at least $1,000. With the current mil rate, that amounts to a $14 personal property tax bill. Most of those are paid, and multiple $14 bills that are paid do add up to a nice revenue stream for the town, Fernandes said. However, on the flip side, when the bill is ignored, the cost of pursing that outstanding bill is more than what is owed. That is something board members discussed during their May 10 meeting. Also, the board voted unanimously to set a cap of $5,000 assessed value (or a $70 tax bill) when it comes to filing a Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) claim. Filing a UCC claim is a method for regulating liens against business equipment owned by a tax debtor. It costs about $35 to file the UCC claim. According to Casco Town Manager Dave Morton, what prompted the change is that the Town Assessor Renee Lachapelle would like to know at what point the town should be EQUIPMENT, Page 13A
HAYES TRUE VALUE in Bridgton is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Pictured are co-owners and brothers, Kerry (left) and Al Hayes. (Rivet Photo)
One on One with...
Al & Kerry Hayes
By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer When Al and Betty Hayes decided to fill a void left in town with the closure of Fitton Hardware (one of Bridgton’s longest continuous enterprises back in that era, 25 years) by opening a new store, a shovel cost under $1, gas was 32 cents and a first-class stamp was 5 cents. While the cost of a shovel, as well as most basic hardware essentials, has darted upward over the past 50 years, the same spirit and dedication to customer service and community involvement Al and Betty incorporated in their business venture still exists today through their sons, Al and Kerry. Hayes True Value celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Several special events will be held next month, including a Paint Contractor breakfast, Consumer Day, free popcorn, bounce house, Dunk-A-Hayes opportunity, and a bucket sale, with a certain percentage of sales being donated to
Bridgton Recreation Advancement Group (BRAG). The News went One on One with coowners Al and Kerry Hayes: BN. Celebrating 50 years, what have been the keys to success for Hayes True Value Hardware? Allen: I believe the keys to success to be the same as any business. Give the customer what they need with good service at a fair price and they will come back. Kerry: The keys to our success have been the friendly atmosphere, our community involvement, and the fact that we try to provide for customers and have earned their loyalty. BN. Talk about your early memories of your parents operating a hardware store? Allen: My parents let me rent bicycles on Sundays, as we were closed. I earned 50 cents for a single and $1 for a tandem bike. This was when the store was under the HAYES, Page 14A
Finally some action, town hall foundation laid By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — For the past two weeks, the earthmoving and construction that has been taking place near the Casco Fire Station on Meadow Road has piqued the curiosity of plenty of passersby. “We have got so many rubberneckers we will have to put up a snow fence to keep them out of certain areas for their own safety,” Casco Town Manager Dave Morton said. The first bucketful of earth was moved for the future Casco Town Hall on May 9, the Monday after Mother’s Day. Four days later, the con-
crete was placed for the footing, and the foundation began to take shape. That concrete placement was completed on Monday. Currently, work is at a standstill while the concrete dries. “They will let the foundation set for a couple of days. Then, they will begin the process of backfilling around it,” Morton said. R.N. Willey & Sons Excavation, Inc. is doing the earthwork, which started last Monday. Symonds Foundations, out of Windham, placed the footing on May 12 and placed the concrete foundation on Monday, Morton said.
For people who have taken a gander at what is standing on the land now, “the top of the wall will be the top of the floor,” he said. The actual building will be one level, he said. “That is so we can comply with” Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines, he said. “It is less costly to have everything on one level.” The next phases of the construction are being lined up. “Once it is backfilled and the gravel is placed in there, the plumber will put drainage in. The electrician will put the conduit for the wires under the slab. Then, we will put the insulation under the
slab,” Morton said. It is not necessary for the selectmen to vote on bids for the project. “The selectmen are legally able to make decisions on how they want to approach the project. The town wants to be the General Contractor (GC) so we will approach it like any contractor. We will solicit subcontractors qualified to do the work,” Morton said. “What we are doing is going out and getting multiple bids and multiple prices for each phase of the work.” “There is certainly less time involved. Also, we are able to negotiate through the process, instead of coming up with details for bids,” he said.
The Casco Board of Selectmen, after receiving the initial incredibly high cost estimates for building a town hall from the ground up, sought approaches that would be less costly for the taxpayers. “The whole issue of going through the bidding process and choosing the lowest bids, you don’t always get
the best job,” he said. “We are going out to subcontractors that we have confidence in.” Harley Johnson Plumbing Inc., of Otisfield, was selected for the plumbing work. Certified electrician Geof Whitely will be doing the electrical work. The town hall construcFOUNDATION, Page 14A
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