Corinna voters approve all articles at annual town meeting

CORINNA – Sixty-nine voters braved the snow on Saturday morning to pass every article at their annual town meeting, approving a $371,000 municipal budget in just under two hours.

David Dow was the moderator. Town Clerk Michelle Dumoulin noted, “There was a lot of positive discussion from our residents.”

Three new officials were sworn in after Friday’s elections. David Sharpe was re-elected to the SAD 48 board of directors, while Marvin Lister and Roger Whitney were elected as selectmen.

“The voting was very close,” Dumoulin said on Saturday. Whitney got 166 votes; Lister, 165; Carl Smith, 141; and Darlene Sharpe, 42.

Veteran Selectmen Galen McKenney and James Emerson declined to seek re-election.

In Saturday’s action, voters approved funds to bring the Levi Stewart Free Library into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, funded a new roof on the public works building and approved spending $30,000 to finish paving a road to a Penquis CAP construction project at the former Eastland Mill Superfund site. The project will provide a community center and 20 units of housing for senior citizens and already has a waiting list.

The budget is not expected to affect Corinna’s mill rate of $19.70 per $1,000 of property value.