FORT KENT, Maine – Fort Kent Town Council will hold a public hearing on Monday, April 28 in which residents can weigh in on proposed changes to the town’s charter.
Town Manager Suzie Paradis discussed some of these changes during an April 14 council meeting. The first change would be to move the annual town meeting to the third Tuesday of March.
Town Council meetings would also occur monthly instead of biweekly on Mondays. The new changes would place every council meeting on the third Tuesday of each month.
A minimum of three votes would be required by the council to approve any actions. And special meetings can be called either by the chair or by a majority of the council.
Notices of special meetings would be mailed and/or emailed at least 24 hours before the meeting. Paradis said this change includes email as a valid form of notice, since that is how most communication now takes place.
Former councilor Jacob Robichaud asked for clarification on the new time for council meetings under these changes.
Paradis said that after discussion among town officials, everybody has agreed that 5 p.m. would be better than the current time of 4 pm.
Councilor Christan Thorsnes noted that a time is not included in the charter and council chair Corey Pelletier and Paradis said that while the new date is in the charter revision, the specific time does not need to be included.
The public hearing would occur during the Town Council’s next regularly scheduled meeting on April 28 at 4 p.m.
After this, Paradis said the town would need to wait 30 days for any additional comments or questions. The changes would then be up for a referendum vote by residents during the June 10 election.
