Boothbay Harbor Sewer District trustees are reviewing a proposed $1.88 million annual budget which is an estimated 4 percent increase. The proposed increase is based on projected debt financing for the Route 96 upgrade project. On Oct. 7, trustees held the first of three scheduled workshops for reviewing the first draft.

In May, district ratepayers approved the $681,386 project to replace an undersized and deteriorating sewer line between the trailer park and the Townsend Avenue intersection. The district received a $254,000 federal Rural Development Grant and loan guarantee with an interest rate set no higher than 2.75 percent to fund the rest. The district will seek a 40-year bond once work is completed, according to District Superintendent Chris Higgins

“Right now, ratepayers are looking at about a 4 percent increase. Debt service on the Route 96 project accounts for the biggest part of the increase,” Higgins said. 

T-Bucks of Turner is the contractor. Higgins expects work to begin the last week of November and be done in late May. The second workshop is at 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 21. The third is at 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4 which is followed by ratepayers voting on the proposed budget.