SABATTUS – Selectmen on Tuesday discussed complaints over the residency of one candidate in the March 5 election.

John Hyde, an employee of the Sabattus Highway Department and a resident of Bowdoin, is running for road commissioner. Two selectmen said numerous residents contacted them objecting to the town allowing a nonresident to run for office.

Selectmen Chairman William Luce explained that Sabattus has no charter and no ordinance prohibiting nonresidents from seeking that office. Nonresidents cannot run for the Board of Selectmen.

An ordinance requiring residency for candidates for all municipal offices would have to be enacted by voters at a town meeting, a process that could take a year, Town Administrator Tracy Fabrizio said.

The board also discussed public apathy, including lack of attendance by the public at selectmen’s meetings and other boards and a lack of interest to serve on boards.

“We don’t get a whole lot of participation from the community. I don’t know if you call that voter apathy or happy with the status quo,” Luce said. He cited the annual budget process for Oak Hill High School where a small number of Sabattus residents vote on a budget of several million dollars.

In other business, Fire Chief Bob Scott and Assistant Chief Don Therrien discussed enforcement of requirements for apartment buildings to have hard-wired smoke detectors. Therrien said some landlords have not installed them. The Fire Department was seeking direction on whether the town’s code enforcement officer or the state fire marshal would have jurisdiction.

In another matter, Therrien commended the Sabattus Fire Department for doing an outstanding job at a structure fire on Feb. 13.