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Serving Bridgton and the surrounding towns of Western Maine since 1870. Vol. 150, No. 46
16 PAGES - 2 Sections
Bridgton, Maine
November 18, 2021
Legal Notices . . . . . . . 2B
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Sebago considers quarry moratorium
By Wayne E. Rivet Staff Writer SEBAGO — Barry Jordan sees too many problems and too many unknowns associated with developing a quarry some 1,000 feet from his home near the Sebago-Baldwin town line. Once he heard a proposal by Gorham Sand & Gravel to develop a 195-acre site off Route 11, Jordan started making phone calls and ulti-
mately collected 240 signatures to request Sebago selectmen to schedule a special town meeting to seek a moratorium to prohibit new mines, gravel pits and quarries within the Village District. Selectmen unanimously voted at their Nov. 2 meeting to call for the special town meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 23 at 6 p.m. at the Town Hall for a moratorium vote. The petition
also sought the creation of a Land Use Ordinance Committee to review regulations in the Village District. The group is to consist of a Board of Appeals, Board of Selectmen and Planning Board member, along with two citizens and Code Enforcement Officer Brandon Woolley. The group would serve in an “advisory” capacity, and all proposed ordinance changes would go to a town meeting
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — Eighty dollars out of $100 owed is better than nothing. The Casco Fire and Rescue Department is pairing up with a company to collect insurance money to reimburse the cost of responding to 911 calls that involve vehicular accidents, hazardous material spills, and even false alarms. The company — for its services — will receive 20 percent of what is collected from the insurance companies. Casco Fire Chief Brian Cole spoke to the Casco Board of Selectmen about the process of getting reimbursed for the fire department’s costs associated with emergency calls by having a company bill insurance companies. The rescue department has been using a contracted company to bill for ambulance services since 1988, he said. “Now, we are moving into billing for the fire department,” he said. There are numerous incidences that fall under the umbrella of what is
included in cost recovery: fire permit violations, hazardous materials spills, automobile collisions and automobile fires, building fires, false alarms and water rescues during the winter and summer. “There is always an insurance carrier associated with it in some shape or form,” Cole said. Whatever amount of money the town receives, the collection company will take 20 percent, Cole said. “If it was $100 bill and they take $20 of it, that is still $80 that we didn’t have,” he said. The collection company that Cole has been communicating with is Central Maine Cost Recovery. “There are about two dozens companies in the state that bill for cost recovery. The insurance companies know that these are coming,” he said. At the beginning of the discussion, Cole made it clear that Casco residents will not be billed. Only insurance companies will get the bills. “It’s extremely important to me to point out: This is not the Town of Casco
billing a resident of Casco for services,” he said. “If you are a resident of Casco, you will not receive a bill from the Town of Casco for fire services.” Residents pay property taxes to cover municipal services, he said. “It would be an insurance carrier that would receive the bill,” Cole said. Casco Town Manager Anthony “Tony” Ward added that residents will never be denied fire and/ or rescue services because of lack of insurance or any other reason. “There would never be a service denied due to inability to pay,” Ward said. Cole confirmed that. “It is another tool that towns can tap into,” he said. Next, the board had to review and approve the fees that the fire chief had suggested. “I didn’t go to the highest level of what municipalities are charging, but I didn’t go to the lowest level either,” he said. Selectman Scott Avery spoke. He compared this to EMS billing that has been SERVICES, Page 8A
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — Resident Eric Dibner used his nomination to the Casco Open Space Commission as a chance to speak about how the upcoming comprehensive plan could offer opportunities in conservation. On Tuesday, the Casco Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to nominate Dibner to the Open Space Commission. The comp plan “will call for participation by folks who will own the vision, the vision of what the town will look like, and how the town should act and behave,” Dibner said. “It will cover areas of economic growth, housing and conservation,” he said. The townspeople will have an opportunity to lead
the way in conservation and to address problems that the whole world is facing. “The community will not only be working on community issues but also global issues,” he said. He talked about making plastic recycling more efficient at the town’s transfer station. He talked about reducing the use of plastic through educational outreach. He mentioned the balance between establishing solar energy and maintaining land that has other valuable uses. “Working on renewable energy like solar energy is an important future for the Town of Casco,” he said. “We should protect the resource of our farm land. I wouldn’t want to cover beautiful farm land soil with
a solar array. We will need these farms. We can be more self-sufficient in terms of food. We could cut down on the cost of transporting food” by growing more produce locally, he said. “Finally, forests are so important. They are carbon. They capture carbon and keep it there. Every tree matters is helping to rebalance the climate,” Dibner said. What the town puts into action as part of the comp plan could be “not just protecting Casco but helping in the future of the whole world,” he said. In ending, he thanked the board for supporting Open Space and its goals. “Without you, we would not have the leadership and support to make these things happen,” he said.
Casco to bill insurance companies for fire services
Open space member envisions Comp Plan
Naples expands cemetery mowing to more sites
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — The Town of Naples determined that it is responsible for more gravesites than previously thought. A while back, the town trimmed back on the number of cemeteries on its maintenance list, going from six to three. The American Legion
Post 155 has dedicated members who make certain flags fly on the graves of veterans. A state law requires that the area around a veteran’s grave must be mowed from May through September, and that if the cemetery is not privately owned, the town shoulders that responsibility. “After last month’s dis-
cussion on cemeteries, I have investigated the level of municipal responsibility in those with no current owner,” according to Naples town Manager John Hawley. “In non-municipally owned cemeteries where a veteran has been buried, the municipality must ensure that the veteran’s gravesite CEMETERY, Page 2A
vote. “There are so many unknowns if a quarry is operated there from vibration, noise levels, dust, and effect on the landfill which is a half mile away, vibration could fracture the ledge base and then allow hazardous material to leach from the site, into the groundwater,” Jordan said. “It’s about the truck traffic; it’s the noise; it’s about drilling ledge all day, five days a
week; it’s about devaluing people’s properties.” Jordan recently spoke to O’Donnell Associates regarding the effect a quarry might have on nearby property values, saying he was told “the expectation would be there would be devalue.” “This would add tons of traffic to the village, by the school, by Long Beach. The traffic alone would be unbelievable — something we’re not meant for,” he said.
Jordan pointed out that Gorham Sand & Gravel (GSG) officials noted during a Planning Board meeting that the goal is to move 100,000 yards of aggregate each year. If 14-yard dump trucks are used, to reach that goal, it would require 7,000 trips Jordan calculated. “That’s one way,” he noted. “So, there’s another 7,000 entering the site.” Jordan didn’t learn about QUARRY, Page 3A
A GOOD QUESTION — Two members of Scout Troop #874 ask about the names on the ceiling of the American Legion Post 155. Commander Bill Stuart provides an answer prior to the Veterans Day ceremony at the Legion this past Thursday. (De Busk Photo)
Legion Post returns to indoor ceremony tradition
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer NAPLES — It might seem like a new way of doing things. Yet, it’s a return to tradition. On Veterans Day, the officers of the American Legion Post #155 decided to go back to the custom of holding the ceremony indoors. That is opposed to gathering outdoors by the Naples Veterans Monument, which overlooks Long Lake at the Naples Town Beach.
Giving a little back
By Dawn De Busk Staff Writer CASCO — Spending the morning plating up breakfast items for veterans is something that is close to Cynthia Cordeiro’s heart. “My father was an Army warrior decorated so many times with the Purple Heart he told his commander not to give him anymore. It worried his mom when she got the little yellow telegrams,” she said. Her father Dallas Ray Lynch, belonged to the 235th Army Engineers, and served in World War II. He returned home and spoke very little about his experiences. In fact, Cynthia was an adult when he received an award that allowed him to speak about the wartime occurrences. “He was awarded the Patriot of the Year by the Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH) in 2007 out of 40,000 votes. And, he stood before 300 warriors relaying the engagement their command they had been given to draw as SPECIAL, Page 3A
On Veterans Day, Legion Commander Willis “Bill” Stuart explained to a large crowd the shift in how the holiday will be celebrated in Naples. “Usually, we have this ceremony outside. In the past few years, with COVID and whatnot, we haven’t had any type of crowd,” he said. “This is a tradition that we have done 25 or 30 or 35 years ago. We always had this ceremony inside the building with food and stuff. We have always had
the scouts here,” Stuart said. Two wreaths were placed next to the podium during the brief ceremony. Those wreaths were later moved to honor area vets. “We’ll replace the one out front and another one on the monument to show appreciation to our fallen veterans,” Stuart said.“What Veterans Day is all about — it is a day of celebration. It is not a day of mourning. Don’t mourn today. Celebrate today and realize INDOORS, Page 3A
SOMETHING SWEET — Cynthia Cordeiro can think of no other way to honor her war veteran father Dallas Ray Lynch, who passed away on Veterans Day a few years ago, than to volunteer her time during the Veterans Day Breakfast in Casco. (De Busk Photo)
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