Town meetings

Corinna

Saturday’s annual town meeting approved a zoning change that will allow senior housing and create senior housing standards.

Voters also agreed to raise $100,000 for paving, half of what the budget committee proposed, and defeated a move to carry some funds forward from 2006.

The budget accepted is about $50,000 higher than the $1.15 million spent in 2006. Due to increased valuations, the tax rate is expected to remain stable.

Palmyra

Voters played it conservatively at their annual town meeting Saturday, cutting almost $80,000 from the proposed budget. At the same time, they agreed to borrow funding to repair town roads, and defeated for a second time a proposed dog park.

The final budget came in just less than $600,000, which represents a $73,000 increase from 2006. Voters approved taking $300,000 from surplus funds to help lower taxes.

The town also was able to save more than $11,000 in insurance costs because the new town clerk, Denise Butler, will not be taking town health insurance.

For the second time, voters turned down the dog park proposal, which would have provided a lease for the For Love of Dogs Club on a small parcel on Route 2 by the town’s public works garage and ball park.

Voters also approved a five-year road improvement plan, which will rebuild about 14 miles of dirt roads. The plan will cost more than $800,000 over the five years, and $226,000 will be taken from surplus to begin ditching projects this year. The goal is to raise the standards of dirt roads so they eventually can be paved.

Also approved were improvements to a former portable classroom behind the town hall that will be used as a town office once a septic system, bathroom facilities and safe are installed.

Selectman Daniel Sprague was re-elected in Friday’s voting, and Vondell Dunphy was elected to fill the seat of veteran selectman and former chairwoman Sheila Later, who did not run for re-election.

Athens

Athens voters approved making the burning of construction and demolition debris illegal in voting Friday.

Athens selectmen had installed a moratorium banning the burning of construction and demolition debris last year as they fought the location of a biomass plant in their community. In January, a second six-month extension was approved and on Friday, the moratorium became permanent law.

The ordinance does not affect burning wood waste, brush, stumps, bark or wood chips. It would not affect a proposed pellet plant that expects to be constructed where the biomass plant was going to be built.

On Saturday, at their annual town meeting, Athens voters approved a $365,378 budget, which represents a decrease from last year’s expenditures.

First Selectman Bruce Clavette was re-elected. Charles Rotondi was elected second selectman, and Guy Anton was chosen third selectman.