It’s going to take time and money for Boothbay to recover from back-to-back January storms. The town has already begun cleaning up Shore Road, King Phillips Trail, Samoset Trail and Grimes Cove. These locations were among the peninsula’s hardest hit, with damages Town Manager Dan Bryer estimated at $3.2 million. Boothbay has the time, but it doesn’t have the money for repairs. Bryer told selectmen Feb. 28 he expects federal and state aid to take eight to 12 months. 

In the meantime, Boothbay will seek a loan to pay for road repairs in anticipation of Maine Emergency Management and Federal Emergency Management agencies’ funding. “We don’t have time to wait. There is a safety issue involved,” he said. The public works crew has begun cleanup, and Bryer is looking to hire contractors to assist in the road reconstruction. Boothbay is using municipal paving funds to begin reconstruction. 

While the town waits for disaster assistance, the town is asking residents to approve a $3.2 million loan to cover short-term costs. Selectmen approved a March 27 special town meeting to seek voter authorization for the loan. A second warrant question was added regarding Boothbay Region Development Corporation’s affordable housing project on Butler Road. Last spring, voters approved a $1.5 million bond paid with Tax Increment Funds to finance the project. Instead, a new repayment plan has emerged. The municipal TIF account has enough cash to cover the $1.5 million project. So, selectmen are seeking town approval to bypass the bond and pay the water and sewer project with funds directly from the TIF. 

Bryer told selectmen this would save “hundreds of thousands of dollars.” The special town meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 27, prior to that night’s selectmen’s meeting. 

In other action, selectmen finalized the proposed $2,442,741 annual budget. Municipal spending would increase by 6.53% if approved. Selectmen made a couple minor changes to the warrant.  The ballot was trimmed from 33 to 32 articles after eliminating question No. 30 which sought voter approval to raise and appropriate $4,000 for Boothbay Lights. Instead, selectmen will contribute up to $4,000 from their Joint Economic Development Committee for the donation. 

The “up to” language will be included in several warrant articles which seek contributions from both Boothbay and Boothbay Harbor. Last month, selectmen asked multiple outside organizations’ representatives why they asked for a smaller donation or none at all from Boothbay Harbor. This will give selectmen an option to reduce final payment if Boothbay Harbor contributes less to an outside organization.