EAST MILLINOCKET – Concerned about the impact of a cold winter and high utility rates upon seniors and low-income residents, East Millinocket, Medway and Millinocket leaders will meet Oct. 22 to discuss possibly creating warming centers in their towns, officials said Tuesday.
The idea, said Mark Scally, chairman of the East Millinocket Board of Selectmen, is to have places where people stay warm with their home thermostats turned way down.
“They would be places where people could socialize, maybe play cards and relax,” Scally said Tuesday. “It will help them save a little money.
“We just want people to know that we have their interests in mind and that there are options,” he added. “We are not talking about the soup kitchens of the Depression yet, but that’s not a bad idea either.”
The Joint Elected Officials Board will discuss the idea, and several others, when it meets in East Millinocket’s Town Office at 6 p.m. Oct. 22. Residents are invited to attend.
Pastor Reggie Adams, one of the first proponents of the idea, offered his Calvary Temple Assembly church as a possible warming site, and Millinocket Town Councilor James Mingo and Millinocket Town Manager Eugene Conlogue said they plan to discuss the idea with the council when it meets Thursday.
East Millinocket and Medway’s boards have discussed the idea briefly.
Ideally, East Millinocket Administrative Assistant Shirley Tapley said, a warming center would be available to residents of the three towns several days a week. East Millinocket already has one in the basement of its town office one day a week that is hosted by Recreation Department Director Frank Clukey, she said.
But the idea is far from a done deal. Finding those sites, possibly arranging transportation to and from them, and finding money to help fund the heating of them are among challenges local administrators face, said Kathy Lee, Medway’s administrative assistant.
The DAV hall in Medway is the site Medway’s leaders have chosen, Lee said.
Getting residents through what might be a long and difficult winter is among local leaders’ biggest concerns. Since July 1, Lincoln’s town officials have received $5,476 in donations – including $5,000 the town donated – for its Fuel Assistance Program for Lincoln residents who need help paying heating bills and who cannot qualify for other home-heating efforts.
Anyone interested in making donations to that effort can mail checks or money orders to Town of Lincoln, 63 Main St., Lincoln 04457.
nsambides@bangordailynews.net
794-8215
Comments
comments for this post are closed