FORT KENT, Maine — Three changes to the town charter will go to voters as a referendum question during the June 10 election. After a brief public hearing on Monday, the Town Council moved toward putting the items on the ballot.
The amendments include a change to section one of the charter, which would move the annual town meeting to the third Tuesday of March each year.
There are two changes to section five of the charter. The first is that the council would hold its regular meetings monthly on the third Tuesday of each month, as opposed to twice a month on every other Monday. The second change to section five adds email as a valid method of notifying council members and the town manager about a special meeting.
The April 28 public hearing, held at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, was brief, with only one question from Fort Kent resident and Planning Board Chair Daniel Nicholas. He asked whether or not the town should have given residents a 30-day notice for the hearing.
Town Manager Suzie Paradis said that, for the public hearing, Fort Kent posted a physical notice at seven places in the community and included a notice in the local newspaper. She said that, after the Monday public hearing, the town would have the amendments posted for 30 days prior to the referendum at the school.
Town officials also discussed the need for a revaluation, and Paradis shared that the town received a quote for between $300,000 and $500,000 for a total reval. The town has about $200,000 currently set aside for this purpose.
She said the bidder indicated that they would work with the town on pricing, and that the revaluation would involve physically going out to each parcel of land, and that it would take roughly two years.
Councilors also voted to accept a $6,400 bid for a 1990 ladder truck that is no longer usable by the fire department while also agreeing to look into how much it could be worth if it were scrapped.
Paradis also updated the board that the town’s public works department is taking on an extra 35 miles of road, and as a result one of its trucks will need a new salt distribution system. This will cost roughly $19,343 and Paradis said payments will be broken into eight installments of $2,417.88. The town manager said the town will be able to use leftover funds in a line item for a snow contract instead of funding the purchase with reserve account funds.
The town also accepted a $4.1 million bid for a water line project along Route 1 from Trombley Construction.
