The Damariscotta and Newcastle boards of selectmen have agreed to continue working toward an extension of the interlocal agreement between the towns for public works.
The announcement follows joint meetings of the boards Wednesday and Thursday, April 8 and 9.
Damariscotta-Newcastle Superintendent of Roads, Buildings, and Grounds Steve Reynolds will continue in his position, according to a press release from Damariscotta Board of Selectmen Chairman Ronn Orenstein.
Last week, Damariscotta Town Manager Matt Lutkus said he would not reappoint Reynolds and criticized his job performance. “I have changed my mind and will be reappointing Steve as road commissioner for the coming year,” Lutkus said in an email Monday, April 13.
A subcommittee of two selectmen each from the two towns will work on a new “management structure” and finalize a draft of a new one-year interlocal agreement, according to the press release.
Damariscotta and Newcastle voters would have the final say about any extension of the interlocal agreement at their respective annual town meetings in June.
Newcastle officials have consistently supported joint public works.
Three of Damariscotta’s four selectmen also expressed support for joint public works during Wednesday and Thursday’s meetings, while Selectman Jim Cosgrove and Lutkus appeared ready to move on.
“After last night’s meeting, I, personally, am convinced that the interlocal agreement isn’t right for our two towns,” Cosgrove said at the outset of Thursday’s meeting.
The towns have different needs, Cosgrove said. Damariscotta is a service center with a busy downtown and Newcastle has a more rural character.
“We need a public works department that’s very responsive, very available, very under the control of our town manager, quite frankly,” Cosgrove said.
Newcastle Board of Selectmen Chairman Brian Foote defended the agreement.
“I’m really in favor of this and I think it does work for both of our towns,” Foote said. “I don’t think we’re as different as you think we are.”
“As far as the need for the department, I think both towns do need it and I think, affordability-wise, it’s the only way we can both afford it,” Foote said.
Lutkus said he thinks Damariscotta could have a “dynamite” public works program for the same amount of money or less than what it spends now.
Orenstein and fellow Damariscotta Selectmen Robin Mayer and George Parker spoke in favor of the interlocal agreement.
Damariscotta voters approved the original agreement in 2011 and a three-year renewal in 2012, and “it’s our obligation to make it work,” Mayer said.
“So far, the only part of that experiment that I’ve seen that we’ve had trouble with is between personnel,” Parker said. “The rest of it seems to have worked fine, so I’m on board to try to make it work.”
“I have not heard any complaints from any citizen about the way our interlocal arrangement is working, but I have heard many compliments about the way it’s working, so to stop it, that’s kind of, to me, counterintuitive,” Mayer said.
Newcastle Selectmen Ben Frey and Pat Hudson also spoke favorably of the department. Newcastle Selectmen Chris Doherty and Carolyn Hatch did not address the issue, but Foote has said the entire Newcastle board supports continuing the interlocal agreement.
Foote proposed a public works oversight committee and a 50-50 split of expenses during Wednesday’s meeting.
The Twin Villages Department of Public Works Oversight Committee would likely consist of Damariscotta’s town manager, Newcastle’s town administrator, and the chairmen of both boards, according to the discussions.
The committee would meet once a month, according to Foote’s proposal. Its responsibilities would include oversight of department employees and personnel decisions, to include “hiring and firing.”
The committee would also prepare the department’s operations budget.
Tie votes of the committee would go to a joint meeting of the full boards of selectmen. The boards would also hold an annual joint meeting and other joint meetings as necessary.
Another key facet of the proposal would be a return to a 50-50 split of public works expenses. The towns currently track employee hours by town and reconcile labor expenses on a monthly basis.
A 50-50 split would make budgets more predictable, Foote said.
Parker agreed. “It would be nice to have enough records of what was done each week to have some clue of how it all worked out, but certainly to do it 50-50 is probably the only rational way to do it,” Parker said.
The expenses tend to balance out anyway, according to Newcastle Town Administrator Lynn Maloney.
“I think, over the long range, you’re going to find there will be a year that Damariscotta might have more, a year that we might have more, but I don’t think it’s that substantial,” Maloney said.
The boards met in public session both Wednesday and Thursday before clearing the room for private sessions to discuss a personnel matter with Reynolds.
Town officials will continue to discuss public works this week.
The public works subcommittee will meet at the Damariscotta town office at 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 14. Doherty, Foote, Mayer, and Orenstein sit on the subcommittee.
The Damariscotta Board of Selectmen will meet at the Damariscotta town office at 5 p.m., Wednesday, April 15.
