November 6, 2007
Fryeburg Local Election Referendum Questions
Nov 6th ResultsQUESTION 1-WASHINGTON COUNTY RACINO--YES- 355 NO- 417 BLANK- 8QUESTION 2 - ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BOND ISSUEYES-356 NO-409 BLANK-15QUESTION 3 - BOND ISSUES--UNIVERSITY FUNDINGYES- 365 NO-401 BLANK-14QUESTION 4 -BOND ISSUE -CONSERVATION FUNDSYES-484 NO-285 BLANK-11LOCAL QUESTIONSQUESTION 1- WATER PROCESSING AND TRANSPORTATION MORATORIUM'YES-467 NO-304 BLANK-0QUESTION 2- PUBLIC SAFETY BUILDING FUNDINGYES-204 NO-564 BLANK-0Information Provided by the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Fryeburg
On November 6, 2007 two local referendum questions will appear on the warrant as written or “secret” ballots that will need to be cast at the designated polling place, The American Legion Building on Bradley Street between the hours of 9:00 A.M. and 8:00 P.M. In addition to the these two local questions voters will be asked to ballots on five state referendum questions. Your participation in this election is a privilege and a duty and the board hopes that you exercise your right to vote in that spirit.
Background on Question 1, “ Shall the town adopt a moratorium pursuant to 30 MRSA Sub-Section 4356 on activities which involve the processing or bulk transportation of water through the town of Fryeburg?”
As many of you are aware the town passed a moratorium on September 29, 2005 on the “issuance of permits for the establishment of activities which involve the extraction (the removal of more than 10,000 gallons per day from the town of Fryeburg aquifers, excluding agricultural uses) for commercial purposes in the town of Fryeburg for a period of six (6) months”. This moratorium was extended on October 12, 2006 and April 5, 2007 and will be again this month. This moratorium prohibits the extraction of water from “town of Fryeburg aquifers”, but does not address the issue of water brought into Fryeburg and subsequently processed and transported.
The Rationale for Question Number 1.
Question 1 attempts to address the perceived gap between establishing activities that take bulk water from Fryeburg’s aquifers and the establishment of activities that “ which involve the processing or bulk transportation of water through the town of Fryeburg”. So, Question 1 addresses this perceived gap between extracting bulk water from Fryeburg and processing and transporting of bulk water through Fryeburg. This question also applies a “retroactivity clause”, that is passage of this question will make it applicable to any application that is pending within the town from January 1, 2005.
Conclusions Regarding Question 1. The board feels that the citizens of our town deserve the opportunity to vote on the particular issues of “processing or bulk transportation of water” through the Town of Fryeburg. Lastly, passage of this moratorium obligates the town to undertake a process to address the shortfalls of our town’s comprehensive plan, land use ordinance, and other applicable laws related to processing or bulk transportation of water that create the conditions under which this moratorium is presented to you.
Background on Question 2, “Shall the town increase its bond indebtedness by .319% to .701% of the town’s assessed valuation of $376,209,399.00 in order to approve a Capital Improvement Project consisting of an addition to the Fryeburg Rescue Building in an appropriate sum not to exceed $809,000.00…?”. This question seeks to raise $809,000 to build a space for the Fryeburg Police Department and other town officials onto the Rescue Barn.
Rationale for Question 2 . Over the past years there have been many proposals to address the space needs of both the town office and the police department. The bottom line is that Rescue needs the space they designed and built their building for, and therefore the Police Department requires a place to safely and efficiently conduct the business the citizens of Fryeburg have charged them with.
Conclusions. By approving this bond the town would still be under 1% debt to valuation ratio. The interest (based on 5% from the Maine Bond Bank) on a 20-year note will be $422,786 and the total debt service associated with this proposal will be $1.232 million. The Public Safety Building Committee has explored many options and ultimately presented the board with this particular recommendation. The board accepted the committee’s recommendation on this proposal. Under state statute an article that creates the need to use a tax appropriation requires the selectmen and the budget committee to make a recommendation on the article. In this case the Selectmen voted against passage of the question 2-1 and the budget committee voted against passage of the question 3-0. There is little doubt that the need for additional space exists and the citizens of Fryeburg deserve the right to determine whether this is the manner in which to address this need.
Additional Information.
- To see the warrant and the questions in their entirety please see below . Posted copies are also available at the town office.
- Links to the state referendum questions can also be found on the town’s website or visit www.maine.gov.
- Questions or comments to the board of selectmen about these or any issues may be directed to fryeburgtown@roadrunner.com with the subject heading “Selectmen” or feel free to call us.
- Absentee ballots are available at the town office during normal business hours for both the local and state referendum questions.
Referendum Questions on Ballot
Referendum Question 1.
Moratorium on Activities Which Involve the Processing or Bulk Transportation of Water Through the Town of Fryeburg. The question to be voted upon is as follows:
SHALL THE TOWN ADOPT A MORATORIUM PURSUANT TO 30-A M.R.S.A. §4356 ON ACTIVITIES WHICH INVOLVE THE PROCESSING OR BULK TRANSPORTATION OF WATER THROUGH THE TOWN OF FRYEBURG?
A moratorium pursuant to 30-A M.R.S.A. §4356 on the issuance of permits for the establishment of activities which involve the processing or bulk transportation of water through the town of Fryeburg or for any operations under any such permits unless substantial activities have commenced under such permits.
This moratorium is necessary due the recent increase in demand for permits for the pumping and transport of Fryeburg’s groundwater, and for permits to transport water through Fryeburg pumped from other locations. This moratorium is necessary to prevent an overburdening of public facilities that would otherwise occur during the effective period of the moratorium or that is reasonably foreseeable as a result of any proposed or anticipated development, and also because the application of existing comprehensive plans, land use ordinances and other applicable laws are inadequate to prevent serious public harm from commercial or industrial development in the affected geographic area. The Town of Fryeburg is currently revising its bulk water ordinances in order to address concerns regarding the adequacy of municipal regulation of this precious natural resource.
It is to be noted by the voters and all persons concerned that, notwithstanding the provisions of 1 M.R.S.A. §302, this moratorium shall apply to any pending proceedings regarding the issuance of any new permit for bulk water transportation operations for which an application was or has been pending before any officer, board, or agency of the Town of Fryeburg on or any time after January 1, 2005. In addition, this moratorium shall apply retroactively to any such application regardless of whether the Town has issued a permit for such activities, unless the applicant has commenced substantial activities under the issued permit. Substantial activities shall be defined as completion of 50% or more of the construction of the proposed transportation or processing facility. This section applies to all private, public, and municipal water extraction and bulk water transportation operations within the Town of Fryeburg.
This moratorium shall be in force for a period of six (6) months. The Selectmen may extend the moratorium for additional 180 day periods, after notice and hearing, if the Selectmen find that the problem giving rise to the need for the moratorium still exists, and that reasonable progress is being made to alleviate the problem giving rise to the need for the moratorium.
Referendum Question 2.
Shall the Town increase its bond indebtedness by .319% to .701% of the town’s assessed valuation of $376,209,399.00 in order to approve a Capital Improvement Project Consisting of an addition to the existing Fryeburg Rescue building located on Route 302 in an appropriate sum not to exceed $809,900.00 for the cost of this project and fund this appropriation, authorize the Treasurer and Chairman of the Board of Selectmen to issue General Obligation Securities of the Town of Fryeburg, Maine (including temporary Notes in anticipation of the sale thereof) in an aggregate principle amount not to exceed $809,900.00, and hereby delegate to the Treasurer and the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen the discretion to fix the date(s) thematurity (ies), interest rate(s), call(s) for redemption, place(s) of payment, form, and other details of said securities on behalf of the Town of Fryeburg including execution and delivery of said securities on behalf of the Town, and to provide for the sale thereof?
The Selectmen do not recommend the adoption of this Article (2-1).
The Budget Committee does not recommend adoption of this article.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT
Total Town Indebtedness
Bonds outstanding and unpaid $1,436,500.33
Bonds authorized and unissued $ 0
Bonds to be issued if the Article is adopted $ 809,900.00Costs
At an estimated maximum annual interest rate of 5% for 20 year maturity, the estimated costs of this bond will be:
Principal: $ 809,900.00
Interest: $ 422,786.00
Total Debt Service: $1,232,686.00Validity: The validity of the bond and the voters’ ratification of the bond may not be affected by any errors in the above estimates. If the actual amount of the total debt service for the bond issue varies from the estimate, the ratification by the electors is nevertheless conclusive and the validity of the bond issue is not affected by reason of the variance.
Ella Cressy, Town Treasurer
Notes on Financial Statement calculations:
Total bond indebtedness currently: $1,436,500.33 equal to .382% of total town valuation base of $376,209,399.00
Total proposed bond indebtedness - $2,669,186.33 equal to .701% of the total town valuation base of $376,209,399.00
A True Copy: Constable Town Clerk
Selectmen Town of Fryeburg
David Knapp, Chairman , Edward Wilkey, Clifford Hall
James Dutton - 168School Board Director - 2 Seats*Beth Westerberg Griffin - 218*Anne Trumbull- 195
Marie Struven - 177School Board Director (Alternate)* Billie L'Heureux- 294
* elected
Back to Home Page
