Words from Town Manager
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To read these "journals" click on down arrow and highlight the date you would like to read...... They are now in PDF format Dear Citizens, Facilities and buildings have been the major focus for our elected officials in this fiscal year. Every effort has been made to hold costs down on repairs; keeping focused on long-range capital improvement needs. There has been activity around every municipal-owned structure in this fiscal year. The Council voted to sell the Ambulance (1999 Ford) with equipment to Mayo Regional Hospital in May, 2006. We continue to lease the 74 Grove Street building to HAD#4 to house the Ambulance. We have a short-term lease, at this time, since Mayo has informed us that they intend to pursue their own building to serve the Region. Once the sale of the 1999 vehicle is complete and Mayo constructs their own building, taxpayer costs for the service will be significantly reduced. At that time a decision will be made on whether to use or sell the property. We will report more on that in Fiscal Year 2006/07. Airport Dexter Regional Airport received a $150,000 grant to fund the DOT study of our Airport runway. The actual reconstruction of the runway 16/34 is a long term project; not expected to be completed until 2009/2010. Beach Bathhouse will be opened with hopes that the vandalism will not continue. If vandals continue to destroy the building, it will be closed immediately. The resignation of William Murphy as Code Enforcement Officer brought about discussions of whether to continue the CEO as a full time position. It was determined that David Pearson would take on the part time duty of CEO with an assistant for twenty (20) hours per week. This arrangement seems to be giving David the assistance he needs. Both hats have been a challenge that David has taken on well! The CEO Office is open 8:00 a.m. to Noon. Please call 924-7620 or stop by the office if you have questions about any construction within Town. We consolidated the Facilities/Parks/Cemetery duties during this fiscal year. Facilities (buildings) have two full time people, supervised by the Public Works Director and the Cemeteries and Parks (groundskeepers) will be supervised by the Cemetery Sexton. This change has proven to be a much more efficient way to maintain the buildings and grounds. Golf Course – We were fortunate to have the Charleston Correctional Facility workers replace windows in the club house last October : Jim Costedio report the following membership statistics: Membership at the Course was 145. The breakdown was as follows: Resident (including seasonal) 60% and Non-Resident 40%, The average daily use was seven at 50-50. During the year the Council discussed selling the Course. Research produced the following information: In 1980 the Town used Land & Water Conservation Funds (SWCF) for the Golf Course. In doing so restrictions were put on the property with regards to a "sale" anytime in the future. There was a requirement to provide boundary lines for the project (the existing 9-hole course) and any future transfer of the land, within those boundaries, could only go to those eligible LWCF (Public Outdoor Recreation Facilities); or the Town could sell to another only if we provide "replacement" land of equal fair market and recreational value. This would essentially transfer the boundary and restriction to another equal piece of property in perpetuity. The Council then held a public hearing and the public was strong (unanimous at that meeting) that the Town should not continue discussions about the sale of the property. In late 2006 Council will begin negotiations with Jim Costedio to renew his existing contract to run the Course. In November, 2005 the Town sold the High Street property known as the Hewitt Building (Map 10/Lot 98A) to Mayo Regional Hospital for $20,000 (plus shared closing costs). HAD #4 required the Town to paint the building and complete some repairs prior to the sale and they assumed the costs of the major needed repairs. After the repairs and the sale of the building, the Capital Reserve Accounts for the Hewitt Building were closed to establish a General Facilities Reserve Account. Lake Wassookeag Stakeholders group was assembled in this year. This group consists of representatives of the Town, Utility District, Lake Association, Maine Rural Water and the Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife. The Stakeholders serve in an advisory capacity to the Town Council. They were very active during the dam assessment and the development of a lake and dam management plan in this fiscal year. The Stakeholders will continue to work with our engineer, Myron Petrovsky of MBP Consulting, as we plan for the necessary repairs to Lake Wassookeag Dam. Lakeshore Lunch Lease: Glen and Danielle Burgoine sold their business to Chris and Juli Libby who signed a long-term lease with the Town to continue with business as usual at their business at the Beach.. Due to the concern that mold may be present in the lower level of the Library, the Trustees hired an engineer to do an assessment of the building. We were pleased to learn that there is no mold but there is rotting and other repairs that will need to be made in the near future. Librarian, Liz Breault has expressed concern for the archives. The Trustees have agreed to work with the Town to correct the identified problems (drainage/moisture and climate control) in a timely manner. The Charleston Correctional facility workers installed six new windows in the first floor of the Morrison Building. This action made a lot of difference in the warmth of the offices. We expect to continue to budget for new windows each year until all have been replaced. Beginning Ballroom, Waltz, Foxtrot and Swing Dancing lessons has become a popular Recreation program. This is a six to eight week program and will continue as long as there is sufficient interest. Residents are encouraged to contact Andy Conway (924-3438) with suggestions of other programs the Department could sponsor. When Department Heads do there Spring and Fall cleaning, they often find equipment that is in need or repair or is no longer used. We have developed a process to allow Taxpayers (whose funds purchased the equipment) to bid on the surplus property at a Silent Auction. Watch for our notices and feel free to come and bid on whatever item you find that may be of use to you. We raised several hundred dollars on the last sale and those funds will be used for future purchases. Safety Committee was established in early 2006. The Committee meets monthly to review town policies and procedures and make recommendations to the Manager and Council to maintain employee workplace safety. Skating Rink/Basketball Court received a major facelift this year! Andy Conway, Recreation Director organized Citizen Volunteers to supervise on weekends and school vacations. The weather did not allow the implementation of that program in the winter of 2005/2006. Weather permitting, the Recreation Department and Volunteers will reorganize and make this program happen in 2006/2007. The rink was transformed by the Public Works and Facilities crews into an active basketball court in the summer. At a Public Hearing in December, 2005, Citizens showed strong support to apply to the Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) for a Public Facilities Grant to renovate the Town Hall. In April, 2006, we were invited to the State House (Hall of Flags) to accept a check in the amount of $165,000 to bring the building into ADA compliance. The Town Council voted to match the CDBG funds with $41,500 from local reserves to make it a $206,500 project. An elevator will be installed, some escape areas will be fixed and the front entrance (door and ramp) will be replaced. The 2006/2007 fiscal year will see the project completed and we can resume voting and other community activities in the beautiful old building! Special thanks go to the Council for allowing this project to happen! Winterfest 2006 was great fun, despite the lack of snow! The Snow Sculpture competition was cancelled but the classes at Dexter Regional High School held a banner competition and cash prizes were awarded to each class. The snowmobile parade was transformed into a "flat bed parade" and creative Businesses and Families braved the bitter cold to provide a "Wacky Circus" along Main Street, up Grove Street to Motor Supply. We all hope for snow in 2007 so the parade can go back on the Four Seasons Trail (Old Railroad Bed). The Town has a very impressive website at www.dextermaine.org. Please check it often for the latest "what's going on in town". You can get department email addresses on the site if you wish to express your comments or concerns to us. I appreciate the opportunity to become a member of the "Dexter Team". Together we can face the challenges of 2007, maintain our quality of life and strengthen our fragile economy. My door is always open; please come by and introduce yourself and give me your opinion. I often walk around town and I hope you will accept that as an invitation to stop me and express your questions, comments or concerns. Sincerely, Judith A. Doore Read Town of Dexter's Annual report:
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