HERMON – The Town Council voted to withhold funds from the town’s snowplowing contractor for substandard performance over the past winter.

Councilors voted 4-1 last week in favor of withholding about $500 from the snowplow contractor’s final payment for the fiscal year.

The town manager and residents testified during last week’s council meeting that some town roads remained unplowed 24 hours after a storm hit. At least one driveway was torn up by a plow, causing an estimated $2,000 in damage, according to Town Manager Clint Deschene.

The snowplow contractor, Louis “Buzzy” LaChance, was present last Thursday night and denied the allegations of poor performance.

“For the years our present contractor has been plowing in town, you would think he could instruct his drivers to be a little careful,” Councilor Donald Shepley said during the meeting.

LaChance has held the plowing contract since 1996. The town renewed the contract in 2003, and it expires on May 15, 2008. LaChance receives approximately $190,000 a year to plow 61 miles of town roads.

LaChance, a former councilor, sued the town in 2006 in attempts to maintain his snowplow contract and position on the council. A town charter amendment, which went into effect in July 2006, prohibits a councilor and his or her immediate family from holding a town contract. The town and LaChance settled the suit and he resigned from the council in November.

Some residents and Councilor Larry Davis spoke out Thursday, expressing their satisfaction with LaChance’s services and noting the difficulty of plowing roads in Maine.

“I’ve never had an issue with the plowing,” resident Ed Marsh said. “But I have to say that I’m terribly disappointed in the council. If you have a contract and it isn’t being followed, you should do something about it.”

Gary Gallop, a resident of Hillcrest Drive, said his lawn was plastered with chunks of asphalt after the last storm and the end of his driveway needed repair. Two town employees spent three hours cleaning up Gallop’s lawn and patching the driveway, Deschene said.

LaChance agreed to fix Gallop’s driveway, even after the councilors voted to deduct money from his next payment.

“If the majority of the council agrees that I should fix it, then I will,” LaChance said. “I’ll do it as long as this is all over and I don’t have to listen to it anymore.”

Also at the meeting, LaChance presented a petition drafted to amend the town charter and the town’s expenditure of funds. The petition, which was signed by 247 registered voters, calls for 80 percent of the town’s excess funds to go toward reducing the next year’s taxes. Under the draft, the remaining 20 percent would be placed in an escrow fund and used only for emergencies.

A petition requires 416 signatures to affect the charter, Deschene said.

At present, if the fund balance exceeds 25 percent of the audited expenditures of the previous year, the additional funds should be placed in reserve accounts.

“It could be a very good way of handling the town funds, and I’d like to see it pursued,” Councilor Ralph Carr said.

The councilors asked Deschene to find a list of consultants who could review the history of town finances and compare the outcomes with the present policy and the one proposed.