Boothbay Harbor passes warrant, Article 25 dismissed
Boothbay Harbor voters passed nearly all of the May 7 warrant which included a $5,149,910 budget. The budget did not include Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Community School District or Lincoln County portions and Article 25 was dismissed with no opposition.
Secret ballot elections May 6 brought six unopposed incumbents back to their seats and one new Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Cemetery District trustee. Town Clerk Michelle Farnham said Selectboard Chair Mike Tomko and Selectman Alyssa Allen were reelected with 119 and 138 votes respectively; there were 79 blanks; Ronnie Campbell, BB-BBH Community School District trustee, 156 votes, 12 blanks; Peggy Splaine, CSD School Committee, 137 votes, 31 blanks; Patty Minerich, BB-BBH Cemetery District trustee, 123 votes, 45 blank; Merritt Blakeslee, BB-BBH Water District trustee, 147 votes, 21 blanks; and Daryl Kipp, Boothbay Harbor Sewer District trustee, 160 votes, six blanks. Tomko, Allen, Minerich and Blakeslee were sworn in at the meeting.
Articles 3-14 accepted alewife fishing rights, established tax due dates of Sept. 20 and March 20, and approved general authorizations. Article 15 appropriated $1,312,631 in estimated revenues to reduce the property tax commitment. Article 16 raised and appropriated a $3,200,709 budget; Article 17, $1,341,190, street lighting, hydrant services, Boothbay Region Refuse Disposal District, Bayville and Isle of Springs, and fireworks; and Article 18, $608,011, support organizations. Article 19 appropriated $220,631.78 in American Rescue Plan Act funds for municipal building infrastructure upgrades.
Articles 20-31, save for Article 25 which was dismissed, amended town code sections dealing with fees, fines, code enforcement and subdivision preapplication procedures.
Resident Lee Corbin made an amendment to suspend Article 23 for further review. Article 23 strikes "notification by certified mail" as the preferred method of communication for the code enforcement officer to issue notices of violations; it also alters the CEO's powers of issuing fines from mandatory action to discretionary action.
Corbin said removing certified mail makes language more confusing by not having a specific method of communication. CEO Geoff Smith said certified mail is no longer reliable because notices are routinely ignored or otherwise do not make it to the subject. Corbin's amendment was voted down. Resident Jenny Mitchell made an amendment to reinsert "certified mail" adding in "or by any other means possible." The amendment was accepted with a count of hands and three opposed.
Article 24 requires selectmen to have a majority of the full board for votes even in a quorum except wharves and weirs hearing’s which can be ruled with a quorum's majority. Resident Wendy Wolf made an amendment to change language from "Chairman and Vice Chairman" to "Chair and Vice Chair" in keeping with gender-neutral terms. Wolf's amendment passed with three in opposition; the amended article passed.
Read more about the budget and ordinance changes here:
https://boothbayregister.com/article/boothbay-harbor-annual-meeting-warrant-31-articles
https://boothbayregister.com/article/ordinance-changes-set-march-28-hearing
https://boothbayregister.com/article/selectmen-advance-ordinance-changes-get-footbridge-update
Read more about Article 25:
https://boothbayregister.com/article/boothbay-harbor-ceo-responds-article-25-concerns
