DOT, Grant To Pay For Business Route 1 Repairs

Leftover grant funds and the state will pay for repairs to Bus. Rt. 1 in Damariscotta, in the area of the ongoing sidewalk construction project.

Damariscotta contractor Hagar Enterprises, the same contractor working on the sidewalk, will adjust the pitch of the roadway and repave it.

Damariscotta Superintendent of Roads, Buildings and Grounds Steve Reynolds said he asked the Department of Transportation to address the issue now in order to avoid tearing up the brand-new sidewalk later.

The existing pitch of the roadway causes problems with stormwater runoff, Reynolds said.

The work will correct a “super-elevated roadway” caused as the shoulders washed out and the road settled, he said.

Reynolds said Hagar Enterprises is ready to finish the sidewalk and the road as soon as it receives final approval from the state.

Political signs, write-in campaignsDamariscotta Town Manager Matt Lutkus, at a June 13 meeting of the Damariscotta Board of Selectmen, said residents have expressed concerns about the proliferation of political campaign signs and the rules for write-in campaigns for municipal office.

The residents suggested limiting signs to one per location and requiring write-in candidates to declare their intention to run at least 10 days prior to the election.

Selectman Josh Pinkham spoke against both requests. The selectmen did not take any action on the matters.

GoalsThe selectmen will revisit a list of goals adopted in March at Lutkus’ request.

The two-page document included “address downtown parking concerns” among the board’s goals.

At a June 6 meeting, however, Josh Pinkham and Vicki Pinkham voted against a two-month trial lease of a parking lot for employees of downtown businesses, an action intended to address those same concerns.

“It is not typical for an elected body to adopt a goal in March and three months later have two members vote against the specific implementation of that goal without explaining the reasons,” Lutkus wrote in his request to revisit the goals.

“In order to avoid awkwardness in the future, I am asking that the board review the changes that they would like to see in the March goal statement,” he wrote.

The selectmen will discuss their goals at their July 11 meeting.

Town office to close June 29The Damariscotta town office will be closed Fri., June 29 as office staff completes the “end-of-the-year close-out” on the last business day of the fiscal year, Town Clerk Cheryl Pinkham said.