Select Board Meeting ~ July 28, 2026

2026-07-28 · Select Board · 52:19 · watch on YouTube →

The select board met on 28 July 2026 with Joe Roy excused and the vice chair presiding. It appointed Bryce Hamilton to the new economic development committee, approved buying a replacement public works truck from O'Connor Motor for $76,000 including outfitting against $94,000 budgeted, and voted to delay the start of the town's purple trash bag scheme by a month because the bags are not yet stocked at most retailers. Sitting as the board of assessors it granted a $54 abatement on the Quaker Ridge subdivision common area. The town manager reported which shops now sell the bags, that they are not available online, and that the town office is down one employee for perhaps one to three months. Members also discussed truck traffic and road safety, a letter from the county sheriff's office about what it can and cannot do, and whether to ask residents again about contracted law enforcement, agreeing to take that and a possible survey on moving the budget vote to the goal-setting session on 25 August.

No written minutes could be matched to this meeting. The transcript records that the speaker changed but never who was speaking, so any name attached to a statement below is inferred from context and is marked (?).

What was discussed

1. 0:47
   Agenda amendment and minutes

   The meeting started at 6.33 with Joe Roy excused. The board voted to amend the agenda to add a discussion of the new trash bags and of delaying their implementation by a month, and accepted the minutes of the 14 July meeting.

2. 0:47
   Economic development committee applications

   Only one application had come in from the public, from Bryce Hamilton, by the deadline of 5.00 on Monday the 27th. The planning board had emailed to say Juliet would be its representative and Brian its alternate. One member suggested waiting for more applicants and appointing a slate, but once it was established the deadline had passed the board moved to appoint him, noting his real estate background and that the committee is waiting on the appointments to start work.

3. 6:02
   Committee composition

   Members clarified the public seats are two at large members and one alternate, and that the select board's own representative and alternate had already been settled, with Josh as the alternate.

4. 6:02
   Public works truck purchase

   Calvin (?) explained the truck and the loader were both in last year's plan, the loader was bought but the truck was not before the shift from a calendar year to a July fiscal year. Three bids came in: one at $89,997, Bell Dodge GMC at about $79,000 all in with the trade, and O'Connor at about $70,000 all in with the trade including the rack body and plow. He recommended the lowest and asked for a further $6,000 for radio, lights, decals and a toolbox.

5. 11:04
   The truck being replaced

   The vehicle is a 2015 with an inspection list long enough that the garage has warned each year it may not pass again, and a transfer case leaking for the second time after an expensive replacement. Calvin (?) said it was among the first with the current after-treatment system and had been a guinea pig. The board approved buying a 2026 GMC Sierra 3500 from O'Connor Motor with $76,000 allocated, against $94,000 in the budget, and members noted that deferring a year had saved money as prices came down and supply improved.

6. 11:04
   Problems getting the new trash bags

   The vice chair said the board had been receiving emails and seeing posts about where the bags can be bought, that the Get and Go had sold out for the second time, and that some stores will not have them until 1 August, which is when the scheme was due to start. He said he had asked at the Hannaford in Brunswick the previous night and they did not have them. He had spoken to the absent member, who agreed the start should be pushed back.

7. 16:24
   Cost of the delay

   Asked for numbers, the town manager said the revenue estimate was $125,000, roughly $10,000 to $12,000 a month, and that there is no data yet to draw on, but that starting in September is a reasonable consideration. One member said he would vote for the delay while noting the budget will be about $9,000 to $11,000 short and that the contingency may already be committed, having read that a large part of it is going to a change to full family health coverage costing around $32,000.

8. 21:36
   Vote to delay the bags

   The board voted to delay implementation by one month, so that the bags come into use the week of 30 August with the first collection under the scheme on 2 September. Members stressed the need to publicise the change widely so nobody puts out a purple bag early and asks for their money back.

9. 21:36
   Getting the message out

   Members said the change has been on the town Facebook page, in the news blast, in text messages, on the town website and in videos, that mailing 2,000 homes is not in the budget, and that at some point residents have to take the initiative to look. Several praised the website as the best single source, with the retailer list kept updated, and asked residents to remember that All Things Durham is a community page, not the town's, and to call the town office with questions.

10. 21:36
    Abatement for Quaker Ridge common area

    The board amended the agenda to take the abatement out of the consent agenda, moved into session as the board of assessors, and granted the abatement sought by the assessor Donna Hayes on land that should have been exempt as subdivision common area. The amount for the tax year of 1 April 2025 is $54, and the motion was amended to name map 3, lot 45J. The board then moved back out of the board of assessors.

11. 27:29
    Where the bags can be bought

    The town manager said Waste Zero sets up accounts with each chain's head office and it is then for individual store managers to order, which is taking time given the number of retailers the board asked for. Currently available at the Get and Go, Food City, Market Basket and Tops; both Brunswick Hannaford stores are close to ready; Hannaford in Auburn and Lewiston are not interested and will be dropped from the list; Bow Street and Haven Market in Freeport are uncertain. He warned shelf space is valuable and retailers make nothing on the bags, so the list will keep changing for perhaps six months. He also confirmed the bags are not sold online, contrary to an impression given at an earlier meeting.

12. 27:29
    Town office short-staffed

    The town manager said the office is down one employee and expects to be for perhaps one to three months, that he has himself been out and is not back to full strength, and asked residents to be patient. He would not give details, citing medical privacy.

13. 27:29
    Gravel pits and truck traffic

    The town manager said there has been a great deal of comment about gravel pits and truck traffic, that all the pits have to be treated the same way under the land use ordinance, that the attorney is involved and staff are working through compliance, and that a workshop with the board will probably be needed when the time is right.

14. 32:46
    Road safety and the state agencies

    The vice chair asked the town manager to raise the town's concerns with Maine DOT and the state police commercial vehicle division about truck traffic and speeds, and to establish what can be done about the roads, whether rerouting traffic off Rabbit Road would make other roads more dangerous, and what the safest option is for the town as a whole before the board makes decisions on emotion.

15. 32:46
    Band stand progress

    Deb (?) reported that she and another had met Adam Daley, who is putting together a material list and a written strategy for the work. She will then meet the road commissioner and town manager on the detail before bringing a plan to the board, and is acting as liaison between the town and the group, with Tia and Emily leading it and the historical society publicising it.

16. 38:06
    Spending the band stand money

    Members confirmed town meeting approved $30,000 and that the board must still authorise the spending. The purchasing policy as it currently reads requires open bids for any expenditure over $5,000, which is why the detail is being worked through with the town manager first.

17. 38:06
    RSU 5 early childhood task force

    Rebecca Dunn (?) reported that the task force she sat on last autumn is being reconvened, with free appropriate public education for three-year-olds planned for the 2027-28 school year. She will attend three meetings in September and report back.

18. 38:06
    Letter from the county sheriff's office

    John (?) raised a well-written letter from Major Cornelio (?) of the Androscoggin County Sheriff's Office setting out what the department can and cannot do, apparently in response to a question raised at town meeting, and suggested circulating it. Members agreed to publish the response but not the original question without permission, and the vice chair proposed instead inviting the sheriff, the deputy and Major Cornelio (?) to a meeting with a light agenda.

19. 43:56
    Whether to revisit contracted law enforcement

    The town manager reminded the board that residents were asked about contracting more sheriff coverage with grant money covering about 75 percent of the first year and 50 percent of the second, and voted it down overwhelmingly, which he said is unusual for a town approaching 5,000 people. One member said residents had been voting on misinformation and believed it was coming straight out of their pockets, and that with the current concerns it should be put again. Another (?) replied that North Yarmouth is larger and has no police force, and that more patrols would not necessarily make the town safer.

20. 43:56
    Goal setting and a possible survey

    The vice chair said he wants the law enforcement question, approaches to the state police and sheriff about truck traffic and speed enforcement, and a possible survey on moving the budget vote to a general election, all taken at the goal-setting session, which members corrected to the meeting on the 25th rather than the next one. Members were asked to bring survey question ideas.

21. 49:06
    Consent agenda and upcoming meetings

    The consent agenda was approved with the abatement removed, including the resolution establishing the interim economic development committee. A member noted the code enforcement report appears to show only one building permit for all of 2026, which the town manager said is wrong and will be corrected. Upcoming dates given were a board meeting on 5 August at the fire station, the solid waste committee on 10 August at the Eureka Center, the next select board meeting on 11 August, and the agriculture committee on 12 August at the Eureka Center.

What was decided

• 0:47
  Amend the agenda to add a discussion of the new trash bags and delaying their implementation by one month; 4 to nothingpassed
• 0:47
  Accept the minutes of the 14 July meetingpassed
• 6:02
  Appoint Bryce Hamilton as a member of the economic development committeepassed
• 11:04
  Purchase a 2026 GMC Sierra 3500 from O'Connor Motor and allocate $76,000, covering the truck at about $70,000 all in with the trade plus about $6,000 for radio, lights, decals and a toolboxpassed
• 21:36
  Delay the start of the town trash bag scheme by one month, so the bags come into use the week of 30 August with the first collection on 2 Septemberpassed
• 21:36
  Amend the agenda to remove the abatement from the consent agenda, and move into session as the board of assessorspassed
• 21:36
  Grant an abatement of $54 for the tax year of 1 April 2025 on the Quaker Ridge subdivision common area, map 3 lot 45J, which should have been exemptpassed
• 21:36
  Move out of the board of assessorspassed
• 49:06
  Approve the consent agenda, items A, C and D, including the resolution establishing the interim economic development committee; 4 to nothingpassed
• 49:06
  Adjournpassed

An outcome reads "unclear" where the recording does not state it plainly. The recogniser drops short words, and "the motion does not carry" is one missing word from its opposite.

Worth knowing

• 21:36
  The purple trash bags do not have to be used until the week of 30 August, with the first collection under the scheme on 2 September rather than 1 August.
• 27:29
  The bags are currently sold at the Get and Go, Food City, Market Basket and Tops. Both Brunswick Hannaford stores are close to stocking them; the Auburn and Lewiston Hannafords have declined and will be dropped from the town's list. They are not sold online, contrary to what was said at an earlier meeting.
• 16:24
  Delaying the bags leaves the budget roughly $9,000 to $11,000 short against a revenue estimate of $125,000. A member noted the contingency may already be committed, having read that a large part of it is going to a change to full family health coverage costing around $32,000.
• 43:56
  Members disagreed about whether to put contracted sheriff coverage to residents again. The town manager pointed out it was voted down overwhelmingly even with a grant covering about 75 percent of the first year; one member said residents had been voting on misinformation and it should be asked again, another that more patrols would not necessarily make the town safer.

Motion language found in the transcript

Located by pattern matching, with no model involved: "I move that", "I'll second", "all those in favour". This is an independent check on the summary above: 8 passages of motion language, against 10 decisions summarised.

Elsewhere

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