By Abigail W. Adams
From left: Alna Selectmen Jonathan Villeneuve, David Abbott, David Reingardt, and Assistant Fire Chief Roger Whitney attend the selectmen’s meeting Dec. 3. Fire Chief Michael Trask and Whitney submitted a letter of concern regarding the performance of the town’s new snowplowing contractor, Hagar Enterprises Inc., during a pre- Thanksgiving storm. (Abigail Adams photo) |
Alna Fire Chief Mike Trask and Assistant Chief Roger Whitney presented a letter expressing concerns about Hagar Enterprises Inc. snowplowing job during a pre-Thanksgiving storm
to the Alna Board of Selectmen Dec. 3.
The letter listed six areas of concern, including dirt roads that went unplowed, dry hydrants that were not shoveled out, lack of communication between the fire
department and the plowing contractor, and lack of plowing at the firehouse.
“I’m not going to discuss this with (Hagar Enterprises Inc. Vice President) Seth (Hagar),” Trask said to the selectmen. “That’s not my job. My job is to bring this
to the attention of you guys. I felt that the best way to handle it was to put it in writing and give them a sheet to go by.”
Alna’s plowing contract with Hagar Enterprises has been a hotly contested issue that had previously placed selectmen at odds with town voters and with Trask.
Hanley Construction Inc., of Bristol, had held Alna’s plowing contract for the previous five years. In 2013-2014, Hanley’s contract was $161,095. The contractor
requested a 3 percent increase for the contract in 2014-2015.
According to The Lincoln County News reports, Hanley Construction retracted its proposal when the selectmen asked representatives from the company to attend a
meeting to discuss the increase. Hanley Construction suggested they place the contract out to bid.
Hagar Enterprises, of Damariscotta, subsequently submitted the sole bid for the contract, bidding $191,371 for the first year. Alna selectmen agreed to contract with
Hagar Enterprises; however, the bid was $30,000 more than what voters had approved for snowplowing in 2014-2015.
Selectmen Jonathan Villeneuve and David Reingardt threatened to resign during an Aug. 25 special town meeting held to raise money to fund the contract.
During that meeting, Trask, acting as a private citizen, moved to amend the article that asked voters to approve an additional $20,000 for snowplowing for 2014-
2015. His amendment instructed the selectmen to accept a proposal from Hanley Construction for a three-year snowplowing contract that was $27,000 less than Hagar’s bid over the
course of the three year contract.
“A verbal agreement, which we made, if broken, could create a lawsuit for the town,” Reingardt said during the Aug. 25 meeting.
“This is monkey business. The savings in Hanley’s contract will be less than what it will cost the town in legal fees.”
Trask’s amendment was approved by voters by a 17-4 margin. However, Maine Municipal Association attorney Susanne Pilgrim later determined the amendment was not
valid. Alna entered into a one-year contract with Hagar Enterprises.
Its extension into a multi-year contract will depend on voter approval at the annual town meeting in March, due to the selectmen’s inability to award any contractor
a multi-year deal.
In the letter submitted to Alna selectmen Dec. 3, Trask and Whitney wrote, “the fire hydrants, which are critical to public safety, were not shoveled and plowed out
until the following day, after the storm was over, Nov. 28. This has always been a part of previous contracts.”
They went on to say, “the firehouse bay doors appeared to be plowed once but not the parking area until 10 a.m. Thursday. The entranceway needs to be shoveled out
also. This was always done promptly with previous contractors.”
“We knew there was going to be some apprehension from Chief Trask,” Seth Hagar said during a phone interview on Dec. 4. “This is not new news for us. We expected to
have some questions from him.”
“No board member has contacted us from Alna about being unhappy,” Hagar said. “We’ve found new obstacles to overcome and we’re doing it.” Familiarity with the roads
and turnarounds in Alna were some of the difficulties Hagar said his crew is addressing.
According to Hagar, the company just learned of the existence of a road previously unknown to it, the extension of Old Sheepscot Road, in Alna, that can only be
accessed through Wiscasset.
At the Nov. 19 selectmen’s meeting, RSU 12 board member Ralph Hilton expressed concern about the plowing of school bus routes and turnarounds.
According to Reingardt, those concerns were addressed. Hagar Enterprises has requested a map of all roads and turnarounds in Alna and is working on the development
of a quality-assurance manual.
“He did a good job once he knew about it,” Reingardt said. “It’s coming up to par but it’s taken a little bit of doing. They’re catching up on this. They’re getting
up to snuff.”
