The Westport Island Board of Selectmen have rejected a proposal to allow Island residents to register cars and boats at the Wiscasset town office
Wiscasset’s proposal offered the service on an emergency only basis. Wiscasset proposed to keep revenue from the collection of excise taxes.
The arrangement would have provided an emergency alternative for Westport Island residents if Excise Tax Collector Dedee Greenleaf is ill or on vacation. Alna offers a similar service, but returns revenue to Westport Island.
Westport Island relies on excise tax revenues to replenish the town’s roads and bridges account. The selectmen unanimously rejected Wiscasset’s proposal at their Aug. 23 meeting.
At present, residents can register vehicles on Tuesday from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Town employees Pam Frenier and Sue Partelow will undergo training next month which will allow residents to register vehicles five days a week. Residents can also register vehicles online at www.maine.gov, Partelow said.
In other business, the board received a notice from The First, which owns the town’s loan for the Wright property. The loan has an adjustable rate, and, as of Aug. 10, the rate dropped from 3.95 to 1.45 percent.
The town will continue to make the same payments on the loan. The savings from the lower interest rate will allow those payments to reduce the principal of the loan. The balance of the loan, as of Aug. 10, is $282,762.92.
The town originally borrowed $567,000 to purchase the Wright property, the Ferry Road property home to Wright Landing and the Wright House.
The selectmen unanimously voted to send a letter to E. Davies Allan to instruct Allan to reapply for abatement. According to a letter from Eugene Huskins, the Assessors Agent for Westport Island, Allan’s original application did not contain his full name, full address, tax year, location, tax map, lot number or “actual assessed valuation of the parcel.”
Allan requested abatement for the property where he lives and operates his business, Chesterfield Associates. The current assessment of the shorefront property on West Shore Road is $1,661,090.
Recently, Allan completed an addition onto his house, Selectman Jerry Bodmer said. The selectmen and Huskins visited the property to assess the new structure, but Allan told the men to leave his property, Bodmer said.
Forbidden entrance to the addition, Huskins and the selectmen estimated the value from the outside, Bodmer said. “You do assess them high,” Bodmer said. “That’s the standard that’s used.”
To assess the building at a lower value without knowledge of what’s inside would be unfair to other taxpayers, Bodmer explained.
On Aug. 24, Allan said the assessment of his property rose $350,000 this year. Allan said the 16′ by 18′ addition might add another $100,000 in value, but “It’s tiny… it certainly is not worth another [$350,000].”
Allan said he was in Brunswick when he received a call from Chairman George Richardson informing him that the men were at his home to assess the addition. Allan said he told Richardson “You can see everything you need to see from the outside.”
Allan said he believes the selectmen raised his assessment because Richardson was offended that Allan wouldn’t allow him to enter his house.
Allan said he would welcome Bodmer, Huskins and Selectman Ross Norton inside his house. “It’s not necessary” for Richardson to join them, he said.
Selectmen also agreed to send a letter to Carol Dibello of the Department of Conservation to clear up confusion about the identity of the town’s representatives for the Back River jetty project.
Selectmen designated themselves and Harbormaster Bud Gallagher as the town’s owner representatives for the project at their Aug. 9 meeting. Richard DeVries, however, an abutter of Wright Landing and a member of the Ad Hoc Committee for Wright House and Non-Easement/Easement Property, sent a letter to Dibello on Aug. 21.
“As an engineer with over 50 years of experience I have offered to be the Owner’s Representative at no cost to the town,” DeVries wrote.
According to the selectmen’s letter, “We appreciate Mr. DeVries’ original donation of $3900 that enabled the town to obtain the original grant for the engineering design for the project.”
“We will always accept any productive suggestions from Mr. DeVries,” the letter stated, before identifying the representatives as the selectmen and Gallagher.
DeVries and selectmen previously clashed over the ownership of a large amount of soil stored on DeVries’ property by contractors at work on Wright Landing.
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) accepted the town’s application for a permit for the project Aug. 10.
Applications for Wright Landing launch permits for boats over 26 feet in length are now available at the town office. Owners of such boats, or of the large trailers necessary to transport the boats, must station a flagman at the top of the hill on Rt. 144 near Ferry Road to stop northbound traffic while the driver enters or exits the road.
