CARIBOU, Maine — City councilors shared their priorities for 2019 during a Jan. 14 council meeting, with the majority dealing with safety and economic development.
Mayor Mark Goughan asked each councilor to share one or two goals for the new year during this meeting, after which he shared some of his own.
Deputy Mayor Nicole Cote said her number one priority is safety, and suggested a proposal or opportunity to ensure that city sidewalks are kept clean for pedestrians.
“I’ve seen a lot of negative buzz in the community,” she said. “We need to be proactive; I would hate for someone to be injured because they were walking in the road because the sidewalks aren’t clean.”
Her second priority was economic development. She pointed out that City Manager Dennis Marker, Marketing and Events Coordinator Christina Kane-Gibson, and Zoning Administrator Ken Murchison “all have experience in economic development” and that she would like to see the development of a plan by which city officials could focus on moving the city’s economy forward.
Councilor Hugh Kirkpatrick said he would like to revisit the “master plan from 2014,” and determine whether or not the economic development goals laid out then are still necessary. If some of those goals are not being followed, either because “It’s not a good idea or we just haven’t started yet,” he suggested revising and resetting those objectives.
Thomas Ayer said he agreed with Cote and Kirkpatrick, particularly in terms of risk assessment, which he said is a critical aspect of his agricultural background.
“People used to say I’m crazy for driving three or four times around the farm,” he said, “but I was doing that to assess potential risks and hazards. We need to do that with the city as well.”
Ayer said his second goal was more of a request: to meet with RSU 39 Superintendent Tim Doak to receive monthly updates on the schools and their budgets.
Councilor Jody Smith suggested taking another look at the city’s 10 year conceptual plan, and determining which goals are achievable.
“Things can change in ten years,” he said. “We could look at some goals again, or revise the plan for more short term goals.”
Councilor Dave Martin said he would like to see the city manager “visit at least one local business a month by appointment,” and to present a monthly economic development report in which that visit is mentioned.
Councilor Joan Theriault agreed with fellow councilors that safety is a crucial priority, adding that along with sidewalks, she would like the city either complete or make significant progress in converting street lights to LED bulbs.
Theriault said that with a new school coming in 2020 and potentially attracting incoming families, she would like to see the city look its absolute best.
“I really believe the new school is going to bring in some people,” she said, “so I think making Caribou the best we can and offering the best services will only make it that much more attractive.”
Mayor Goughan said he shared many of the council’s goals, but that he had a unique goal that wasn’t mentioned — educating the public about municipal government.
“I’d like to see our government more informative to citizens as to how it works,” he said. “I don’t know if citizens know about all the hats we have,” adding that councilors also could spend a small amount of time describing where they are in terms of the budget throughout the year.
In addition to informing the public, Goughan said he’d like to see more open communication among city officials.
“My last goal would be information,” he said. “Information not only from the manager to the council, but from the council to the manager — an open forum. Everyone knowing what everyone is saying. Information from our manager to our department heads, and information from our department heads to the city manager, so we can all understand where we are on the flow chart.”
