The broken tractor at the Edgecomb Eddy School remains a source of disagreement following a vote by the Edgecomb Board of Selectmen to transfer the tractor to the Edgecomb Fire Department.
On Monday, Nov. 17, the Edgecomb selectmen approved the transfer of the tractor to the fire department on the assumption that it was town property and the transfer was within their authority.
The Edgecomb School Committee disagreed. According to Chairman Sarah Clifford, the school committee is legally responsible for disposing of school equipment.
“There was a misunderstanding about who is in charge of selling school property,” Clifford said. “We have some conflicting opinions about that.”
The old Edgecomb Eddy School tractor was determined to be unfixable by the AOS 98 facilities maintenance director due to a rusted front loader and hydraulic system. The school committee approved a $20,577 five-year loan to purchase a new John Deere tractor this past spring.
That purchase, however, was made without a required townwide vote, which did not take place until Oct. 20. Approval for the loan was squeaked out in a 14-12 vote. Options for the old tractor included putting it out to bid or finding another use for it in town.
Edgecomb Fire Chief Roy Potter, a diesel mechanic with the Army for 20 years, offered to try to repair the old tractor so it could be utilized by the fire department. The Edgecomb selectmen approved the request.
The school committee, however, had intended to sell the old tractor to reduce the amount spent on the new one.
“We asked to meet with them because we feel that we should all be working together on this,” Clifford said. “It doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily going to change the outcome.”
Clifford and school committee members plan to attend the next Edgecomb selectmen’s meeting so the school committee and the selectmen can determine the old tractor’s fate together.