Frenchville elects four to boards, increases budget

FRENCHVILLE – Residents elected four officials at the annual elections Tuesday and then approved a slightly increased budget Tuesday night.

Percy Thibeault gathered the most votes, 97, to get one of two three-year seats on the Frenchville Board of Selectmen. Andrew McQuarrie, an incumbent, took the second seat with 81 votes.

Incumbent Clarence Roy lost his re-election bid with 76 votes, and newcomer Yvan Dube came in fourth with 29 votes.

Rose McQuarrie and Betsy Raymond were both re-elected to the SAD 33 School Board. They had no opposition. McQuarrie was the only name on the ballot and she picked up 126 votes. Raymond, whose name was not on the ballot, was re-elected with 14 write-in votes.

On Tuesday night, 35 residents attended the annual town meeting that lasted 90 minutes. Paul Bernier was moderator of the session.

Residents approved $769,074 in expenditures. Local property taxes will pay $291,874 of that amount. That is an increase of $3,504 from property taxes raised for municipal expenditures in 2006.

Residents agreed to allow the town to increase its property tax levy limit by $10,667. The vote is needed to override the state-mandated levy.

Town Manager Philip Levesque said residents were generally in favor of the town increasing the valuations of property. Over the years, the town has fallen into the 70 percent range in local property valuations when compared to the town’s state valuation.

Levesque said the Board of Selectmen is looking at an across-the-board increase of 30 to 35 percent. That is all property values within the town would increase by the approved percentage.

Selectmen will decide on the percentage amount at a future meeting, Levesque said.

According to Levesque, the move could give the town a few more years time before a townwide revaluation is done. A revaluation could cost $60,000 to $75,000, according to Levesque.

Levesque said the action would increase property values and decrease the town’s mill rate.

He said the move could bring the town to within 95 percent of the state valuation.

“We have a problem,” Levesque said. “Right now we cannot afford a revaluation.

“This could buy us a few years,” he said. “Maybe then the town could afford the revaluation.”

He said most residents, at Tuesday’s meeting and at a meeting on the situation held a few weeks ago are in favor of the proposal. A few are not.

Levesque said the town has to do something because the town’s valuation is so far out of line with the state.

Residents also approved money for the summer construction of a box culvert on Church Road. The culvert at the site is too small. Last summer two storms caused major damage in the area when the rain-swollen brook overran the road and several properties in the area.

Thousands of dollars in damage was caused.

The $102,000 project could be funded with state aid money for roads, about $87,000 accumulated over a few years, and $15,000 from a surplus fund.

Levesque said the town is also looking for grant money to help with the project.