POLAND – Selectmen gave final approval Tuesday for a lease agreement with Union 29 for the adult education program to occupy the second floor of the old town hall while the municipal building in Mechanic Falls is being renovated.

Town Manager Richard Chick explained that the program, which serves adults from Poland, Mechanic Falls and Minot, will pay approximately $1,200 to install electrical outlets in the portion of the building it will occupy.

Union 29 will pay Poland $200 per month rent. “It’s a real nominal lease. Basically what they’ll do is they’ll cover the cost of the power. We’re trying to cover our out-of-pocket costs,” Chick said. “The lease is seven months and we can extend it if the project in Mechanics Falls takes longer than anticipated.”

On May 6, the selectmen voted to lease the second floor of the old town hall to Union 29 after several members of the Poland Historical Society objected to a proposal to lease the one-room schoolhouse to the adult education program.

The position of the Historical Society was that the school building belongs to Poland and that the adult education program, which serves residents of three towns, could find other quarters. The schoolhouse is located on the grounds where the current town office building and the old town hall are located.

The board in March discussed housing the program in the old schoolhouse. The original request by Union 29 was for use of space in the old town hall building including the stage area. Due to questions about safety and accessibility in the stage area, it was decided to use the schoolhouse.

In other business, the selectmen approved a change of hours for the bulky waste area at the solid waste transfer station. It is the area where wood, tires, scrap metal and construction debris are deposited. The new hours beginning July 1 will be one half hour later and one half hour earlier than the current hours. The new hours will be from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.