NEWPORT – A small group of residents from the six towns of SAD 48 expressed concerns Tuesday night about a coming consolidation vote.

But they weren’t as worried about how their district would vote as they were with what might happen in SAD 38, their proposed consolidation partner.

The informational meeting was called to explain the school consolidation vote on the ballot for Nov. 4, as well as a companion vote on improvements to district schools.

But after it was explained that the Department of Education would forgive 70 percent of the $1.28 million loan for the improvements and that many of the changes are for handicapped access or heating units, there were few questions.

What residents really wanted to know was what was happening with the consolidation vote in SAD 38. Superintendent William Braun explained that both districts would have to approve the consolidation or SAD 48 would face losing more than $340,000 in state funding and SAD 38 would lose $62,000.

“Anything could happen,” Braun said, referring to a small movement in SAD 38 that is lobbying to defeat the consolidation vote.

A group calling itself “Friends of the Etna-Dixmont School” recently mailed a flier to every resident in SAD 38. It quoted from a recent facilities assessment, the McCormick Report, that “SAD 48 is not spending enough money to keep its facilities operating efficiently, safely and to standards.”

Using figures in the report, the Etna-Dixmont group stated that more than $60 million in repairs and renovations would be required in SAD 48 over the next 20 years. The flier further stated that such repairs would cost every person in the consolidated district $2,066.

But Braun said the information is being misused and misrepresented. “They are making it sound like these buildings are falling down around us,” he said.

He further said the real issue behind the group’s objection is school choice.

The current contract between SADs 38 and 48, which has most students attending Nokomis Regional High School in Newport, allows for high school choice. If a family from an SAD 38 member town chooses an alternative school, the newly formed district will pay only the state tuition rate of $7,050. Bangor now charges $8,400 and John Bapst, $8,800, Braun used as examples, and parents would be responsible for the costs above state tuition.

The objection being raised by about six Etna families, he said, focuses on the new contract that would take effect under consolidation, which eliminates choice after four years.

He pointed out that alternative school arrangements are often made on a case-by-case basis and can still be approved by the superintendent.

The flier also states that “there is no reason to believe that the Etna-Dixmont school will stay open …” Braun said he would never transport children from near the Winterport town line to Newport, and he also has no room in the existing schools. “We’re already up by 72 students over last year,” he said. “We are one of the few districts that are growing in numbers.”

A public hearing on the consolidation for SAD 38 will be held at 6:30 tonight at the Etna-Dixmont School.