Perry group seeks LNG storage tanks

PERRY – Some residents who have resurrected the Perry Improvement Association have set their sights on a very ambitious project – luring storage tanks for a liquefied natural gas facility to this Washington County town.

An Oklahoma developer who is pressing to locate a proposed $210 million project in next-door Robbinston said Monday that his company has no firm commitment to build in Robbinston.

He is willing to listen to other towns in the area who want the tanks sited elsewhere for their tax-relief value, he said.

Brian Smith, project manager for Quoddy Bay LLC, will meet later this week with the renewed association, which lists 13 members on its letterhead.

“Our focus all along has been putting the tanks in Robbinston,” Smith said. “But we have also said all along that we might consider other towns. We would have to study safety and security, environmental and economic impacts of any other sites.”

David Turner, the association’s president, said in a press release that Perry is “desperate” for “some form of economic development in our community.”

“We have squandered away too many opportunities,” Turner said in the statement. “I don’t want to see this one pass us by. An LNG storage facility would provide jobs, a real tax base and most important – tax relief.”

The chairman of Perry’s planning board until he left the position abruptly at its January meeting, Turner has maintained a deep interest in town affairs. An $11 million rise in Perry’s valuation this year – to $52 million – has Turner and his association colleagues fearing rising taxes ahead, yet again.

“The town is not addressing the spending issues at hand,” he said Monday. “And whatever economic development there is in the area, isn’t coming here [to Perry]. I haven’t seen anyone knocking at our door.”

With 844 year-round residents, the town voted to raise $800,130 at its annual meeting in March. The mill rate increased by about one mill, or $1,000 per every $100,000 of property value.

The increase largely was due to Washington County’s tax increase, said Selectman Jeanne Guisinger.

“These problems face every town in Maine,” Guisinger said. “The solution is to look to our legislators. We see what they can do for us, and what we can do for them. Do we need to show up by the busloads in Augusta? We will, if we need to.

“The tax problem is not unique to Perry. If anyone is going to be hurt this year, it’s all of those who will struggle with fuel expenses.”

Two other town issues will be addressed in the near future. Selectmen already are talking about calling for a property revaluation, which has not been done since 1990. Also, the town’s comprehensive plan – untouched since its approval in 1993 – will be brought up to date to reflect the wishes of town residents.

The Perry Improvement Association has historical ties to the town, partly as a “protector” of the little-known park for the 45th Parallel, which passes through Perry. The association disbanded about 20 years ago, Turner said, leaving its leftover money to the town’s parks and recreation department.

The 13 members of the renewed association are Charlie Curtis, Doug DeWitt, Harry Grose, Betty Johnson, Scott MacNichol, Stanley MacNichol, Maynard Morrison, Rita Morrison, Linda Newcomb, Darlington Ricker, Frank Seeley, Norman Small and Turner.

The group held its first meeting Oct. 2. The next day they sent a letter to Quoddy Bay, asking the company to consider putting the three proposed storage tanks in Perry. Smith responded last Thursday.

“While we are likely to continue in the development of the storage facility in Robbinston, we are happy to discuss the possibility of an alternative LNG storage facility in Perry,” Smith wrote.

Turner wants residents to vote on whether to invite LNG storage tanks into the town.

In March, Perry residents voted down any involvement with an LNG facility, 279-214, when Quoddy Bay was proposing an import terminal for Gleason’s Cove, land that the Passamaquoddy Tribe annexed from the town in 1986.

If another vote were taken today, Turner said, “the vote would not be the same. It’s an educated group of voters this time.

“Sometimes the first guy out front gets holes shot in him.”