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| Aroostook Republican photo/Natalie Bazinet By the third vote by secret ballot in setting a budget for the New Sweden School, the sorting and counting process had been pretty streamlined. Shown above sorting the pink ballots were, from left, meeting moderator Kathy Mazzuchelli, Selectmen Douglas Anderson and Michael Stotler, and New Sweden Administrative Assistant Kathy Lousier. |
By Natalie Bazinet
Staff Writer
NEW SWEDEN — Moderator of New Sweden’s annual Town Meeting Kathy Mazzuchelli prefaced discussion on the meeting’s 48 articles with a small speech on the importance of participating in the democratic process, placing emphasis on respecting differences in opinion, casting an informed vote and becoming part of the solution; “Tonight, you are about to embark on the purest form of democracy,” she said, adding that the voters themselves were the only ones who would determine the meeting’s outcome.
Whether or not they were inspired by Mazzuchelli’s words, 67 of the town’s registered voters none-the-less exercised their democratic rights to the fullest during the June19 meeting to the tune of three votes by secret ballot, three and a half hours of deliberation and dozens of conflicting opinions.
The most contested article of the evening was easily the school budget, which warranted three votes by secret ballot. Voters expressed their concerns on the cost of education — $13,915 per student, if the $404,000 budget recommended by the school committee was passed.
Interim superintendent of School Union 122 (New Sweden, Woodland and Westmanland) Roland Caron explained that the New Sweden School could not be operated as-is for significantly less money.
“I will tell you, as your interim superintendent, that my number-one concern is the kids,” he said. “I can tell you, you have a great school here, you’ve got a great staff, you’ve got great programs … but they’re not Cadillac programs.”
Caron was adamant in advocating for the school and its students and asked voters not to think about him, a teacher or school board member they didn’t like when they voted.
“When you vote … think about the kids who go here. Because you are representing the kids and the future of this community,” he said.
“People are proud of the heritage here, and they darn well should be,” Caron added.
The first vote on article 38 was to allocate $337,612, as recommended by the budget committee; it failed 39-13.
The second vote was to allocate $267,612, the minimum amount the townspeople could allocate and still receive state funds to run the school; it was also defeated, 35-29.
The final vote was to appropriate $404,000, as recommended by the school committee; it passed, 35-29.
While 64 votes total were cast to decide the fate of the school department, only 26 votes were cast for the last article of the evening — which was the only article the townspeople voted down. Had Article 48 passed, it would have allowed the selectmen to make decisions on closing roads for the winter.
Road closures had been discussed during multiple articles throughout the evening, particularly those pertaining to the public works department. While arguments had been made both for and against granting the selectmen the authority to close roads for the winter during the first portion of the meeting, the article was voted down, 18 to 8.
Three other articles were approved at lower amounts than recommended by the selectmen, which pertained to the highway equipment reserve fund, salaries for personnel and the town’s contribution to the Soil and Water Conservation District.
The town appropriated $10,000 for the highway equipment capital reserve fund, $25,000 less than the selectmen recommendation; $150,000 for salaries and other personnel costs incurred by the town, $6,177 less than recommended by the selectmen and appropriated $200 for the Soil and Water Conservation District, which was $300 less than recommended by the selectmen.
While the Soil and Water Conservation District had requested the town appropriate $500, one voter adamantly stated that services provided by the district wouldn’t be decreased if the town only appropriated $200.
The majority of articles were met with discussion and, as Mazzuchelli mentioned at the beginning of the meeting, each voter asked questions necessary to cast an informed vote.
One voter asked “I would like to know why, each year, we give this money to [the New Sweden Museum] that is a private entity, [that is not owned by the town],” she said, describing how families and private entities have to pay their own bills.
“Well I guess you’d have to have roots here to appreciate the museum and the historical significance of this town and the people in it,” said selectperson Douglas Anderson.
