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Boothbay’s proposal to create a new tax increment financing district would allow the town to capture property tax revenue from $26 million in improvements to the Boothbay Harbor Country Club. The revenue would go into a special fund, which the town would invest in public infrastructure and economic development. (J.W. Oliver photo) |
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By J.W. Oliver
Boothbay voters will decide whether to create a tax increment financing district and whether to give a town property to a land trust at annual town meeting Monday, May 5.
Voters will also consider several zoning changes, weigh in on the future of town meeting, and determine whether to allow horses to graze at the town landfill.
Boothbay Town Manager James Chaousis II points to referendum questions about the TIF district and the Cross River property as the marquee issues this year.
TIF district
A TIF district enables a town to take property tax revenue from new development in a certain geographic area and place it in a special fund for investment in infrastructure and economic development to serve the district.
The new district would include the Boothbay Harbor Country Club, the Boothbay Industrial Park, and a number of properties surrounding the club and the park.
The primary target of the district is the country club, which plans to invest about $26 million in a new clubhouse and an overhaul of the golf course, among other projects.
“Essentially, what we’re trying to do is capture the new value that’s coming into the golf course into the TIF fund, and then be able to redistribute some of the TIF revenues into infrastructure projects within the district,” Chaousis said.
The rise of total property value in a town as the result of a major development causes towns to pay more in county taxes and receive less in state revenue in the form of education subsidies and state-municipal revenue-sharing.
A TIF temporarily shelters new investment from these negative impacts and allows a town to harness all the new revenue for infrastructure and economic development.
A property owner in a TIF district continues to pay the same tax rate on their property. The tax payments at the pre-TIF value of the property go into the town’s general fund, while the tax payments for the new value of the property go into the TIF fund.
“The property taxpayer doesn’t really see any change to their tax bill,” Chaousis said.
TIF districts often include a “credit enhancement agreement” that effectively reduces the tax rate on new value. Towns use these agreements as a way to attract business with a tax break. The new TIF in Boothbay does not include any tax breaks, Chaousis said.
The TIF will expire after 30 years.
A previous TIF proposal failed in a November referendum. The original proposal would have invested TIF funds in a transportation project, including a roundabout in the village, Chaousis said.
The Boothbay Board of Selectmen removed the project from the original proposal, Chaousis said.
The new proposal does not commit TIF funds to a specific project. Instead, a future town meeting would decide how to spend the revenue. “There’s no shortage of infrastructure need or economic development need,” Chaousis said.
Cross River property
The next referendum question asks voters whether they want to give 19.8 acres of town property on the Cross River to the Boothbay Region Land Trust.
The nonprofit land trust would build nature trails and turn the property into a public recreation area, which was the original intent of the town. The organization also plans to relocate its headquarters to the site.
If voters approve the gift, the deed will give the land trust 15 years to build a nature center and trails. Should the land trust fail to fulfill these provisions, the town would be able to repurchase the property for $1.
Town meeting format
A third referendum will give voters an opportunity to provide the selectmen with guidance regarding the future of town meeting.
“The selectmen are interested to know what the public thinks about conducting town meeting by referendum,” Chaousis said.
Boothbay has always had a “hybrid” town meeting, Chaousis said. The hybrid meeting consists of a secret ballot to elect town officers and decide the occasional referendum, with a subsequent “open” meeting to vote on the budget and other town business.
Most Lincoln County towns conduct town meeting this way. Only Jefferson and Waldoboro conduct their entire town meeting via secret ballot. Wiscasset, which adopted referendum voting exclusively since 2005, has opted for a hybrid format this year.
The question centers on the value of voter participation versus the ability to debate and learn about important questions in the open format.
“We’ll have 350 to 500 people show up and vote on candidates and then 45 people show up and vote on the $2 million budget,” Chaousis said. “The selectmen just want to know, if they change from tradition, is this something that the people would want to do?”
Budget
The voters will have the final say on the municipal budget during the open town meeting. The $1.94 million budget is an increase of 0.68 percent.
“This year, like last year, the town’s operating budget is very flat,” Chaousis said.
Boothbay has a property tax rate of $8.40 per $1,000 of property value. Thus, someone who owns a $100,000 property in Boothbay would receive an $840 tax bill.
“We anticipate no change to the tax rate this year,” Chaousis said.
Zoning
Voters will consider 11 zoning changes, including an amendment to allow boat-building in residential areas.
The amendment regarding boat-building would “allow small boat-building operations the ability to operate in residential areas, as long as they conform to home-occupation-type standards,” Chaousis said, including limits on employees and size.
The proposal of the amendment follows the August 2012 shutdown of the River Road shipyard Stimson Marine. The decision to force the shipyard to stop work after some 30 years generated criticism from the business and many supporters.
Landfill
With the last question on the warrant, voters will decide whether to lease the town landfill to the Boothbay nonprofit Kickstart Stables for use as a horse pasture.
The landfill is next to the transfer station on Country Club Road. The town does not use the property, and environmental regulations limit its usefulness in the future.
Kickstart Stables will pay rent, purchase insurance and restore the property to its original condition at the end of the lease, Chaousis said.
The lease proposal presents a good opportunity to “use a property that doesn’t have a lot of useful traits,” Chaousis said.
Candidates
Boothbay Selectmen Douglas Burnham and Stephen Ham face challenges from Kenneth Chances and Michael Pander. Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Community School District Trustee Tyler Hodgdon faces a challenge from Jennifer Greenleaf.
Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Cemetery District Trustee Lorraine Hodgdon is the only candidate for her seat.
Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Superintending School Committee member Brian Blethen is the only candidate for his seat.
Chris Higgins is the only candidate for the Boothbay Region Water District trustees. Incumbent Mark Carter is not running for re-election.
Boothbay’s annual town meeting will take place Monday, May 5. The polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Boothbay town office for the election and referendums.
The open town meeting will start at 7:30 p.m. in the 1847 town hall at Boothbay Railway Village.
For more information about Boothbay’s annual town meeting, including TIF documents and zoning amendments, visit http://www.townofboothbay.org or visit the town office.
