The Board of Selectmen will choose the person to fill the position.
By Samantha C. DePoy
Staff Writer

CHESTERVILLE – Participants at the town meeting Monday voted 22 to 18 with a show of hands in favor of changing the treasurer position from an elected one to an appointed one.

By accepting the new appointment ordinance, the town turns over its authority to choose the treasurer to the three-person Board of Selectmen.

Other provisions of the ordinance include that no former selectmen – for a period of one year after the end of their terms, nor spouses of any current municipal officer shall be appointed.

The current treasurer, Ruth Archer, is the daughter-in-law of selectmen David Archer, which is permitted according to the ordinance, Chesterville Town Clerk Patricia Gordon confirmed.

The ordinance takes 90 days to go into effect, but Ruth Archer’s three-year term does not run out until next year.

She has served in that position since 1992.

Gordon said there were several reasons for the ordinance, including that the treasurer won’t have to deal with the hassle of filing papers and running each term.

It’s also a safety measure, Gordon said and ensures that someone can’t just walk off the street, run for the position and win without being qualified.

All of the 53 articles were approved at the meeting, which lasted under two hours and was attended by around 50 townspeople.

The total amount to be raised by taxes for the municipal budget is $325,381, an increase of around $15,000 from last year’s approved amount of $310,751.

Meanwhile, $145,000 will be raised from excise tax and help pay for summer road work, code enforcement, insurance protection and town officers’ salaries.

Gordon says most likely attendance was down because there were no major issues.

“There were lots of questions but not a lot of controversy. It was pretty ho-hum,” she said. “And that’s great.”

sdepoy@sunjournal.com

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