To the Editor:
Recently the voters of Waldoboro decided to not approve some department’s budgets in an effort to trim the tax burden of homeowners. Nobody likes to pay taxes but the problem with this vote is it was up or down for each department with no compromise on the dollar figure.
I’m particularly concerned with the Recreation Department and its effect on a fairly large constituency in this town and the surrounding communities. The seeds of the plan were planted in 1996 and a director was finally hired in 2005, after many meetings by more than a few committees trying to hash out the best route Waldoboro could take.
Since the hiring, the town has seen successful programs in cheerleading, soccer, swimming lessons, Senior bus trips, Celtics games, summer recreation and adult co-ed softball to name a few. Along with this come the responsibilities of maintaining the new baseball fields and being a vital conduit to the Little League. Volunteers cannot do all of this. Even with a director it is extremely difficult to find help.
The operating cost of the Recreation Department, as I understand it, is around $85,000 per year with $35,000 of that covered by user fees; leaving a $50,000 bill to the taxpayer. That means each taxpaying household pays roughly $6.65 a year for a program that affects so many, especially our youngsters.
Our Little League is currently in its All-Star season and when we host games it is invariably mentioned to me how other towns wish they had such nice fields as the Sukeforth/Begley Fields. I can’t help but wonder if we’ll have them next year.
Waldoboro is holding a special town meeting on Sat., July 9 at 9 a.m. in the MVHS gym to determine the fate of this valuable asset; an asset not only to the participants and their fans but to the attractiveness of this town.
Shepard Brown, Waldoboro
