Distinguished Alum
Just Desserts
Roy Andrews is honored during Fryeburg Academy’s annual Reunion Weekend
Lake Region athletes honored as tops in their sports; receive special honors
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Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 145, No. 24
32 PAGES - 4 Sections
June 12, 2014
(USPS 065-020)
www.bridgton.com
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Save ‘Hall’ crowd prevails
Bridgton Results at a glance: Selectman, two threeyear terms Bernie King — 580 Paul Hoyt — 553 Planning Board, one three-year term Brian Thomas — 709 Planning Board Alternate, one three-year term Dee Miller — 3 (she has declined this position; and it remains open) Roxy Hagerman — 2 Thomas Harriman — 2 Peter Oberg — 2 Phyllis Roth — 2 SAD 61 Director, one one-year term Karla Swanson-Murphy — 558 Charles Peter Mortenson — 250 SAD 61 Director, one three-year term Cynthia LeBlanc — 447 Lee Martel-Bearse — 355 Bridgton Water District, one three-year term Barry Gilman — 716 Q. 1: Affordable Housing Yes — 535
Bridgton, Maine
Weather . . . . . . . . . . . 5D
No — 328 Q. 2: Fire Protection Yes — 438 No — 407 Q. 3: Alarm Systems Yes — 450 No — 364 Q. 4: Bear River Aquifer Yes — 559 No — 273 Q. 5: Sign Ordinance Yes — 442 No — 419 Q. 6: Site Plan Review Yes — 507 No — 295 Q. 7: Shoreland Zoning Yes — 481 No — 336 Q. 8: Willis Brook Aquifer Yes — 524 No — 291 Q. 9: Town Hall Yes — 380 No — 550 Q. 10: Cell Towers Yes — 644 No — 262
By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Bridgton’s “Vote No” crowd for Question 9 won the day Tuesday by defeating a citizen’s petition that would have put off repairs to Town Hall. The vote was not even close, with 550 against delaying repairs, and 380 in favor. All other referendum questions passed, although voting was close on the new Fire Protection Ordinance (438–407) and amendments to the Sign Ordinance (442– 419). A new Local Preference Housing Ordinance, once the subject of much controversy, passed easily by a 535–328 vote. In local elections, Cynthia LeBlanc bested Lee MartelBearse in a contest for a three-year seat on the SAD 61 Board of Directors, while Karla Swanson-Murphy beat out Charles Peter Mortenson for a one-year seat on the school board. Uncontested incumbent Selectmen Bernie King and Paul Hoyt were reelected by votes of 580 and 553, respectively. It remained to be seen as
HIGH TURNOUT — The keen interest in local referendum questions led to a high turnout of Bridgton voters on Primary Day Tuesday at Bridgton Town Hall. presstime what, if any, additional effort might be made by Town Hall petitioners at Wednesday night’s Town Meeting to put off the repairs, by reducing budgeted line items for the $325,000 stabilization project. The vote was a victory for the Jumpin’ Janes and other recreation supporters who campaigned under the
cry of “Save Town Hall,” even though petitioners argued they were only seeking a fiscally-responsible funding plan from selectmen. They didn’t think it was a good idea to use Community Development Block Grant funding for the project, and petitioners were also against the idea of borrowing $55,000 a year for five years from the
Moose Pond Trust Fund to pay off $225,000 in bonding. The Vote No crowd, however, argued that residents had already given selectmen their blessing to craft a funding package in a straw poll. Further study on the issue wasn’t needed, they said, because selectmen had already paid an engineer to TOWN HALL, Page A
School project Board: No to tower moratorium passes; elections FRYEBURG — The C.A. Snow School construction project passed by over 200 votes Tuesday, but the measure only carried in three of the district’s seven towns. A large turnout in Fryeburg carried the day as 451 voters supported the project, which would be built on the current middle school property. The measure also passed in Brownfield and just barely in Sweden. Brownfield: 162 Yes, 148 No Denmark: 66 Yes, 78 No Fryeburg: 451 Yes, 198 No Lovell: 83 Yes, 95 No Stoneham: 9 Yes, 20 No Stow: 22 Yes, 51 No Sweden: 30 Yes, 26 No ELECTION, Page A
Vendor ordinance changes okayed
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — The majority of the voting taxpayers in Naples opted to add new amendments to last year’s Street Vendor Ordinance — rather than fall back on a 1976 ordinance. In fact, most of the testimony showed that people thought it would be a disaster to vote down the amendments, or to repeal the 2013 ordinance, which was also a Warrant Article. During Naples Town Meeting, approximately threefourths of the 82 people present supported the revisions to the ordinance that governs the sale of products in public rights-of-way. About 15 people opposed the amendments. The most frequently-cited reason for business owners was the uncertainty of waivers to the ordinance — especially in the future, when there is a change of the people sitting on the Naples Board of Selectmen. Already during previous workshops, the amendments had been altered to waive street vendor fees for those people participating in festivals and town-sponsored events. Additionally, on a case-by-case basis, the board could waive or lower those fees as mentioned by Naples Selectman Kevin Rogers. “I wanted to point out to merchants that there is a waiver. You have the opportunity to get waivers. It’s not that you are high and dry,” Rogers said. The ordinance includes an annual fee to acquire the license to sell goods in the public rights-of-way; and, also there is a per item charge for outdoor dining. Over the past year, that was a concern for Naples business owners, and those fees were reduced as amendments took shape. The majority of the people who spoke prior to the vote backed the amendments to the ordinance. Former selectman Bob Caron Sr. spoke as an audience member. “I spent three years working on this ordinance. It would be disrespectful to not pass Article 45. He pointed out that the town should protect its investment. Naples has contributed $1 million to improvement on the Causeway, he said. “We need to keep this ordinance, and continue to make changes,” Caron said. Longtime-resident Sonny Burnham agreed. “To kill this new ordinance, and not let it go through VENDOR, Page A
By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Hopes held by Hio Ridge Road residents that the town of Bridgton would go to bat for them by enacting a moratorium on cell phone towers were dashed Tuesday. Town Manager Mitch Berkowitz read from a letter from Town Attorney Richard Spencer advising against the moratorium, saying it would likely run afoul of federal and state laws and be difficult to defend in court. “If the town adopts a retroactive moratorium on towers, any reviewing court is likely to deem such a moratorium — adopted a few weeks prior to the Planning Board’s decision deadline — as an unrea-
sonable delay in acting on the applicant’s request,” Spencer wrote June 5. It was April 1 when the Planning Board began their review of AT&T and American Towers’ cell phone tower application at 244 Hio Ridge Road. Under the town’s Tower Ordinance, the board has 90 days — or until June 30 — to render their decision. Spencer did acknowledge that there is no case law in Maine addressing Bridgton’s situation, but said high courts in other states have ruled against moratoriums that are applicable to pending applications. Even a brief 30-day moratorium would not be advised, he said, because of the likelihood that it would
be challenged. Berkowitz was apologetic to Hio Ridge Road residents “for being so bureaucratic” in the town’s approach to the issue, but he explained that the town attorney’s role is to try to assess the risk a town has in terms of whether its actions would result in a court fight. Spencer also pointed out the town’s weakness, legally speaking, in defending a moratorium on grounds that it is necessary because existing ordinances or other laws are inadequate to prevent public harm. Bridgton adopted a comprehensive tower ordinance, amended in 2009, that states that all towers must be set back from adjacent prop-
erty boundaries a distance equal to at least 125% of the tower height. “It would therefore be difficult to defend the necessity of a moratorium, given the existence of a comprehensive ordinance regulating tower siting and construction in the town,” Spencer wrote. Prior to Berkowitz’s reading of Spencer’s letter, resident Greg Jones was allowed to speak on the moratorium request under old business. There was debate over Jones’ right to speak, because selectmen recently made a change in their agenda format that only allows selectmen to discuss items under old business. But because the change TOWER, Page A
Keeping ‘Sonny’ thoughts
SOULFUL HUDDLE — Members of Sing Now! make a practice of centering themselves before a sing. Musical Director Jo Werther said the group has become very close friends as a result of their association with the hospice choir.
Finding comfort in song
By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer Members of Sing Now!, a community hospice choir, are inviting the public to join them for music and conversation next Tuesday, June 17, from 7 to 8:30 p.m., at The Noble House Inn, 81 Highland Road in Bridgton. The nondenominational singing group, begun in January of 2012, is still relatively new to the area, and members want to let the public know what they offer. Its membership currently consists of eight women and two men, and they invite anyone
who sings and might feel like they are called to such a group to attend. “Hospice choirs have been around for 10 or 15 years, but it is not a well-known phenomenon,” said founding member and Music Director Jo Werther, a social worker who works in long-care facilities in the region. They’ll give a brief presentation, then this soul-filled group will sing some of their songs of comfort, peace and love — to show the kinds of music they provide for people nearing the end of life. Sing Now! sings for
groups and for individuals at any point along their journey, including during the actual dying process. Whether in a facility or at home, anyone wishing for a visit from Sing Now! need only pick up the SONG, Page A
By Gail Geraghty Staff Writer It’s been several years, but tears still come to Melissa Berry’s eyes when she talks about losing her father, Howard “Sonny” Berry Jr., to cancer and heart failure. Her father worked for the town of Bridgton in multiple positions after retiring from the U.S. Navy Seabees in the mid 1960s. He was employed at the Bridgton Water District for many years, Pleasant Mountain, the Bridgton Library as a maintenance man for 25 years, while working for the Bridgton Public Works Department until his retirement in 2010. He left behind his wife Donna, four daughters: Tracy Berry, 48, Lisa Berry, 46, Dawn Reiman, 44, and Melissa, 39, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. “We miss him every day, SONNY, Page A
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