The Westport Island Select Bard presented the town’s Emergency Management Agency Director Jason Kates with a Spirit of America Award during the annual town meeting, Saturday, June 22. Shown from left: Select Board Chair Donna Curry, Kates, select board members Lisa Jonassen and Jeff Tarbox. (Charlotte Boynton photo)
Over the course of more five hours including occasional moments of fiery debate, Westport Island voters passed all but one article on their annual town meeting warrant Saturday, June 22.
The one article to fail, article 48, which proposed a new nuisance ordinance, prompted some of the most spirited discussion of the day. The stated purpose of the article was to regulate and eliminate public health and safety hazards and public nuisances in order to promote health and safety within the town.
Ultimately the article’s fate was decided by two votes via a written ballot: 37 opposed, 35 in favor.
During the discussion, several residents said they saw the proposed ordinance as a way for the town to tell property owners what they would be allowed to do on their land. Others argued the ordinance was a tool for the town to use to protect property owners from their land being affected by hazardous materials and other health issues.
After a lengthy discussion, as moderator Chris Cooper was about to call for a vote on a motion to move the question, resident John Wallace said his hand had been up and alleged he had been ignored several times. Cooper said several hands had been raised, but there was a motion to move the question, approval of which would stop debate.
“If you do not want to stop debate, vote the motion down,” Cooper said.
The motion to move the question failed. Another resident asked for a ballot vote on the article. Cooper told the resident he would get a ballot vote, but discussion on the article would continue. Cooper called on Wallace, who came to the front of the room to speak,
Wallace indicated the proposed ordinance was directed at him.
“Just let us be” he said. “It is my property. Let me do what I want with it. If you have a problem, talk to me about it. We are not hurting anyone.”
Resident Chris Wormwood also told the voters he was the reason for the proposed ordinance. He said he stores pallets on his land, and sometimes he burns them. Some of his projects take two years.
“I work to better the island,” Wormwood said.
Select board member Lisa Jonassen said the ordinance review committee held two public hearings on the proposed ordinance and received very little import from the public.
“If you don’t like it vote it down,” she said.
Planning board member John Henderson told the voters there were nine drafts done and at least 100 hours invested into developing the ordinance with the purpose being the protection of public health and safety, not policing the neighbors’ property.
At the conclusion of debate on the article, the meeting was briefly recessed during the counting of the ballots.
Article 47, the Westport Island Increased Housing Ordinance was approved, after over a half hour of questions and debate. With the adoption of this ordinance, the town is in compliance with L.D. 2003, the state law adopted in 2023 intended to encourage more housing in Maine. The state law mandates changes in local zoning ordinances to increase housing density under certain circumstances.
Some voters expressed concerns regarding water supply on the island in light of more housing being built on the island. It was pointed out the ordinance requires an applicant to demonstrate the lot has well water and the system must be verified by the local plumbing inspector.
Among the financial articles, voters quickly approved four articles related to the Westport Volunteer Fire Department following a presentation by Fire Chief Stacey Hutchinson.
In short order, voters approved raising and appropriating $99, 000 to cover operating expenses and increase stipends for the firefighters; $13,000 for Maine Municipal Association Workers Compensation, and Liability Insurance; $35,000 for the fire department’s capital reserve fund and $1,500 for the subscription to the Starlink internet service.
The approval of these four articles reflects a total of $148,500, an increase in the fire department budget of $35,683 or 31.6% over last year’s budget.
Highway, bridges and snow removal articles passed with little discussion. Voters approved spending $1,500 for salt and sand operation and maintenance; $166,239 for snow plowing services for one year, an increase of $7,614 or 5.8%; approved the transfer of $37,000 from the state highway fund for the procurement of sand and salt, a decrease of $8,000 or 17.7%; approved $130,000 for the maintenance of town’s road and bridges, a decrease of $50,000 or 27.7%; and $25,000 for paving recommendations by the road commissioner.
Accepting the recommendation of the select board and Road Commissioner James Cromwell, voters approved expending $650,000 to fund Phase 3 of the town’s long term paving program. As stated in the article, the program would be funded by raising and appropriating $125,000, appropriating $200,000 from excise tax collected in 2023-2024, and borrowing up to $325,000 on a line of credit for the total. The appropriation is a $30,000 or 10.1% increase from the current fiscal year.
According to the warrant article, the third phase includes culvert replacement, ditch work, and paving of Lower West Shore Road from Main Road to Red Gate Lane and Main Road starting at Lower West Shore Road to the end of hot top at Harriman’s Point Road.
Voters approved $121,870 for the town’s share of the Wiscasset Transfer Station operating cost, an increase of $13,211 or 12.1%, and $27,441 for Wiscasset Ambulance Service, an increase of $3,040 or 12.4%.
Article 3, the first article on the warrant brought before the voters was the approval to appropriate $237,348.86 in fiscal year 2024 revenue to be used to reduce the amount to be raised in taxation, was approved without discussion.
Article 4, seeking approval to expend $240,898 on compensation, health insurance and payroll taxes for the town employees and officials was approved following over a half hour of discussion and an amendment to reduce the amount of $100,000.
Select board member Jeff Tarbox motioned to amend the article to raise and appropriate $240.348.86 instead of “expend.” After Tarbox’s motion was seconded, Westport Island resident Ken Shepherd moved to amend the article further decreasing the amount by $100,000. Select board Chair Donna Curry said Shepherd’s amendment would negatively impact town office employees.
“By decreasing this amount you are removing the funds for the health insurance of the employees, and this would be a bad decision,” Curry said.
Residents speaking in favor of the amendment to decrease the amount argued the town staff is part-time employees and the public has limited access to the town office and their services. Others said, at the very least, the employees should be contributing to their health insurance, and it is not the town’s expense to provide health insurance for the employee and their family.
The members of the select board recommended the article as printed including the funds for health insurance. Curry pointed out other towns in the area are giving their staff paid health insurance because people do not want to work without it being offered by the employer. Other residents spoke against the amendment, saying the staff put in more hours than just when the office is open.
One resident said when he went by the office one night, after 11 p.m. they were in their working.
Ultimately, after more than a half hour’s discussion, a successful motion to move the question ended debate. The amendment failed and the article passed as written.
Article 9, seeking to raise and appropriate $10,000 to replace the current ramp at the town hall was amended to specify the ramp would be replaced by volunteers and funded by grants, at no expense to the town. After a brief debate the amendment failed, and the article passed as written.
Article 10, seeking to raise and appropriate $20,000 for an Americans with Disability Act compliant bathroom in the town hall was amended to raise and appropriate $50,000. Voters expressed concerns $20,000 was not enough for the project.
“If it isn’t enough money I will donate $5,000,” E. Davis Allan said.
Cooper said, in jest to Allan, ‘You alternate from being grumpy to being helpful,” bringing laugher from the voters.
The amendment failed, and the article passed as written. Westport Island resident Jason Kates asked if a shower was included in the project. Receiving a “No” from the select board, Kates suggested they give it some thought.
In other actions taken at the annual town meeting, the voters approved a municipal budget of $1,322,686.14, an increase of $179,363.73 or 15.6%. Combined with the town’s educational assessment of $975,518.96; the county tax of $395,911.00, Westport Island’s total 2024-2025 budget is $2,694,116.10, an increase of $213,382.16 or 8.6%.
The first three articles were decided on June 11, with the election of Kim Lynch as select person, Barbara Cray to the RSU 12 Board of Directors, and the validation of the $26.4 million RSU 12 budget.
Before the meeting was adjourned June 22, former select board member George Richardson took to his feet for the first time to speak during the meeting, thanking Cooper for the fine job he did moderating the town meeting. A loud round of applause followed Richardson’s remarks.
