During a public hearing regarding a Tuesday, June 10 referendum question, some Newcastle residents voiced concerns with how the town is handling its capital roads program.
“A lot of people are struggling right now and at what point does this town be responsible enough to tap our brakes and say, ‘Whoa, maybe we need to hold off on some of these capital projects and stuff,’ just until we see what the world is going to do out there,” said resident Wanda Wilcox.
Less than a dozen residents gathered in the Clayton V. Huntley Jr. Fire Station the evening of Tuesday, May 27 to discuss a proposed bond for capital road projects, which will appear on the ballot on June 10.
If authorized by voters at the polls, the bond, which is not to exceed $900,000, would pay for the town’s capital road projects, such as work on Hopkins Hill Road, Academy Hill Road, and River Road.
Resident Roger Wilcox said he believes the town’s capital roads program is “way too aggressive” in regard to the scheduling of projects, and that the bond is not necessary.
In Newcastle, capital road project funding is typically included in the municipal budget and raised by taxpayers. For the 2026 fiscal year budget, the proposed funding for the capital road project reserve account is $900,000.
“I think we need to slow that progression down and live within our means,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned, I don’t think any of these projects need to be done now.”
The bond question was placed on the ballot as a potential solution to reduce the tax burden for residents and to grapple with possible revenue shortfalls in the town’s 2026 fiscal year budget due to funding issues at the state level.
In April, Town Manager Kevin Sutherland brought a state level-issue to the attention of the Newcastle Select Board.
L.D. 609, “An Act Making Certain Appropriations and Allocations and Changing Certain Provisions of Law Necessary to the Proper Operations of State Government,” a two-year $11.3 billion spending plan, was approved in March by a Democratic majority in both the Maine House of Representatives and Maine Senate.
On March 26, Rep. Gary Drinkwater, R-Milford, filed an application for a people’s veto referendum, seeking to stop the budget that was passed, which would halt most state government operations and programs, including new and ongoing state funding for cities, towns, and schools.
Supporters of the effort have until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 18 to submit at least 67,682 valid signatures of Maine voters to the Maine Secretary of State’s office to put the issue on the November ballot.
Sutherland said if the state referendum question receives enough support, the town of Newcastle would face a roughly $900,000 revenue shortfall in the next fiscal year.
Select board members discussed multiple scenarios that could play out, with one being that the board, with voter approval, could move the $900,000 currently proposed for the capital road project reserve account to other areas of the municipal budget to deal with the shortfall in revenue, in the event that the people’s veto referendum question is supported. Meanwhile, the bond would be used to pay for capital road projects.
Select board members said the town would not consider taking out a bond on any of its capital road projects until the result of the people’s veto of the state budget is known.
“It’s a crazy year, but we’re trying to come up with some kind of mechanism to address the craziness, and this is kind of the tools we came up with to put in the shed,” select board member Tor Glendinning said. “We’re not necessarily saying that (the bond is) going to happen, but it’s there if we need it.”
Sutherland said if the bond is approved, voters can discuss ways they would like to proceed with the $900,000 proposed for the capital road project reserve account at the open portion of the town’s annual meeting on Monday, June 16.
Voters will consider the bond referendum question at the polls from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, June 10 at the Clayton V. Huntley Jr. Fire Station, at 86 River Road. The open portion of the town’s annual meeting is at 6 p.m. on Monday, June 16 at Lincoln Academy, at 81 Academy Hill Road.
The next meeting of the Newcastle Select Board is at 7 p.m. on Monday, June 9 at the Clayton V. Huntley Jr. Fire Station.
