Selectmen split on road bond issue

NORWAY — The Board of Selectmen rejected a request by the Roads Committee on Monday night to ask voters to approve a $1 million road bond.

Selectmen Irene Millett, Russ Newcomb and Warren Sessions failed to support a motion by Chairman Bruce Cook, seconded by Bill Damon, to hold a town meeting as soon as possible to authorize the board to borrow $1,004,600 for the road bond package. Normally large bond issues are voted at annual town meeting.

"People need to see the budget process through," said Newcomb of the upcoming fiscal year 2010-11 budget, which begins July 1. Millet said she was concerned about the early voting process because of the large amount of money involved and because generally many more people attend an annual town meeting than a special town meeting.

Cook said he thought the action should be done as soon as possible so that work does not fall behind on the roads. By voting early to access the money, the work could be started much earlier in the year, he said.

The road work is expected to include Winter, Green and Cottage streets and a long list of other roads in town.

Town Manager David Holt said that because the current five-year road bond is about to be paid up and another 10-year bond is almost paid, there would be no new tax increase with the $1 million bond.

Newcomb argued that even so, without knowing what the upcoming town budget will end up being, he simply couldn't favor the move.

A special town meeting is expected to be set in about two weeks to address a land issue with the Gingerbread House and to accept a grant for a community kitchen that is being proposed by the Progress Center.

Holt said he will look into the possibility that the road work could go out to bid without any later special town meeting or annual town meeting action in June, as a way to have all of the hiring and paperwork ready to go if the bond is approved later this year.

ldixon@sunjournal.com