Edgecomb voters will be asked to consider three closely linked items at the upcoming town meeting including whether to build a new, $675,000 fire station, if they will pay for the station with Tax Increment Financing funds (TIF), and if the TIF District should be amended to include the Fire Station acreage on Rt. 27.
Edgecomb’s annual town meeting will take place Sat., May 22 at 10 a.m. at the Edgecomb Eddy School
According to assessments in recent years by a structural engineer as well as the Maine Department of Labor, the cramped and literally crumbling fire station presents a danger to firefighters.
Edgecomb Fire Chief Roy Potter called the new station “long overdue” Monday, but he maintains a sense of humor about the current building.
“It’s good driver training. If the guys can put the trucks away, he knows they can maneuver around just about any obstacle,” he said.
Size constraints require drivers to fold side mirrors before backing into the station.
At a public hearing on the TIF amendment Monday, Potter said the proposed station “is something that’s going to benefit every citizen in the town.”
“I question whether we’re going to make it through the winter. Without a fire station, we’re all in jeopardy,” he said.
Potter supports the use of TIF to pay for the station. At the hearing, he called TIF “an opportunity to help keep the property taxes down.”
Elsewhere on the warrant, voters must choose whether to keep Edgecomb’s current, three-member Board of Selectmen or to expand to a five-member board.
Present selectmen John Johnson and Jack Sarmanian oppose the change.
“We don’t provide enough services,” Sarmanian said.
He pointed out that, of the eight candidates for various positions on the ballot, not one will run opposed. He, too, ran unopposed. “Why do you need five selectmen?” he asked.
Among the candidates, Jessica Chubbuck figures to replace the outgoing Johnson on the Select Board. Chubbuck, an unopposed candidate and a resident of Edgecomb since 2000, said she “loves her town” and looks forward to serving.
The Town Meeting will also ask voters if they want to create the Edgecomb Utility District. Currently, Wiscasset services public utilities in Edgecomb.
A $2000 line item for the Wiscasset Public Library may provoke discussion. According to Johnson, the $2,000 voters will consider is only a fraction of the $9000 the library requested.
Due to the ongoing school consolidation attempt, the school budget will not appear on the warrant, postponing availability of final budget figures. Selectman Jack Sarmanian said he expects about a four to five percent total increase.
