Town meetings

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Nobleboro

It might be addressing an unlikely possibility but, at least for now, there will be no big-box stores built in the Lincoln County town of Nobleboro.

At the annual town meeting Saturday, Nobleboro voters approved a six-month moratorium on commercial buildings larger than 35,000 square feet.

“It’s just a Band-Aid measure,” Nobleboro Selectman Allan Jones said. “We’re just putting it aside for a while until we can write up whatever we need to have.”

The vote was the first of three in Lincoln County towns that could determine whether a Wal-Mart Supercenter is built in the area. Wal-Mart announced last fall that it wanted to build a 186,000-square-foot store on the outskirts of Damariscotta.

Nobleboro Town Clerk Mary Ellen Anderson said 282 people showed up for the town meeting Saturday, about double the typical turnout. An update of the town’s comprehensive plan is expected to go to a vote in November.

Town meeting attendees Saturday also voted to halve a proposed contribution of $30,000 to upgrade facilities at Lincoln Academy in Newcastle, where most Nobleboro students attend high school.

Cushing

Besides voting on a 2006 budget Tuesday, townspeople will consider some new ordinances.

A tally of budget articles in the town report shows the municipal budget will be $565,865, compared with last year’s $610,080. The budget has taken a dip because of no major capital purchases, Selectman Alton Grover said Sunday.

Money in an old dump account was moved to the new account, saving $30,000 in this year’s budget

Cushing Community Center costs will increase $45,000 over last year to replace the west wall of the building, which is riddled with rot holes, and to install a vault, Grover said.

Residents go to the polls at the fire station from 2 to 8 p.m. today to elect town officers, including two three-year selectmen and one three-year SAD 50 directors.

Incumbent Selectmen David Glidden and Peter Haviland are running unopposed. Former SAD 50 Director David Cobey is running unopposed for John Webster’s seat. Webster is moving out of town, Grover said.

Assessor Dan Remian is seeking re-election to a three-year seat with no opposition; Treasurer Fred Berg is unopposed for a one-year term, and Frank Muddle will run alone for a five-year planning board seat now held by Mike Roberts, who is not running.

Residents also will vote at the polls by secret ballot on a new ordinance to regulate automobile graveyards, automobile recycling businesses and junkyards.

Voters will reconsider enacting a building permit ordinance. Last year, building permit regulations were rejected. Town meeting voters also will decide on enacting a flood plain management ordinance.

The annual meeting will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 21, at the Cushing Community Center.

South Thomaston

Townspeople will gather March 28 to vote on a 2006 budget that is significantly smaller than last year’s version and to elect town officers from the floor.

The proposed gross municipal budget is $874,027, down 12.5 percent from last year’s $983,660, according to administrative assistant Barbara Black. In 2005, the town spent $93,000 for a revaluation, which accounts for much of the decrease this year.

The amount to be raised by property taxes is $410,916, which is less than a 1 percent decrease from the previous year’s figure of $414,934.

The Knox County and SAD 5 assessments for 2006 are not yet available, so the 2006 tax rate is unknown.

The current tax rate is $8.75 per $1,000 of assessed property values.

At the annual gathering, town officers will be elected from the floor, Black said, noting Selectman John Spear will run unopposed for a three-year seat. There are no SAD 5 director positions open, she said.

If voters support a contract with Rockland for emergency medical services, the town’s ambulance department would be discontinued. The contract calls for the town to pay up to $80,000 to Rockland in the first year. The agreement could be for up to five years.

Voters also will decide whether to allow residents and former residents to buy lots in the Village Cemetery. The existing rules allow the purchase of lots by “residents and persons who were born in South Thomaston only.”

Residents will consider amendments to the town’s Fire Department ordinance.

The annual town meeting will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 28, at Gilford Butler School on Route 73.

Washington

When annual town meeting voters gather Saturday, they will consider changing the town treasurer position to an appointed, one-year job.

Taxpayers also will consider a proposed $1,034,403 budget for 2006, given the figures in the town warrant, which includes the Knox County assessment of $104,850 and the county communications dispatch fee of $21,767.

Town Clerk Cyndie Bourgeois said the 2006 tax rate will not be known until the SAD 40 and municipal budgets are approved. The current tax rate is $15 per $1,000 of assessed property value, she said.

At the polls Friday, Selectman Donald Grinnell will run unopposed for a three-year seat. Incumbent treasurer Beth Connor will seek re-election to a one-year post without opposition.

A three-year SAD 40 director’s position is open, but there are no candidates on the ballot.

The polls are open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the Bryant Room at the town office.

Also on the ballot are several amendments to the land use ordinance, several of which pertain to farm ponds.

The annual town meeting will be at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 25, at Prescott Memorial School.

– From Staff and Wire Reports