AUBURN – City voters could have a say on the next municipal parking garage, according to a draft charter.
Commissioners lowered the trigger for sending city borrowing to the ballot Monday night during a nearly four-hour review of their work. That change in the borrowing limit was the biggest one they made Monday.
The new charter would require a public vote before the city can borrow more than 9 percent of the current budget for new buildings and land purchases – about $5.5 million this year. That’s one of the biggest changes in city rules. Councilors currently have final say in all borrowing.
Commissioners lowered the limit, however. They had originally proposed a 10 percent trigger, about $6.1 million. They were told that number was too high.
“I think this requirement was tied to the cost of building a new parking garage, in most people’s minds,” said commission member Ed Desgrosseilliers. “I think 10 percent is too high to do that.”
Most of his colleagues agreed.
“This is aimed at big issues, like money for building new fire stations or city halls,” said member Chip Morrison. “When you’re talking about something like that, I don’t have a problem putting it on the ballot.”
Late
Commission discussion touched on virtually every section of the rewritten document. Chairman John Cleveland noted that the members were getting tired at about 10:30 p.m. and suggested the group reconvene sometime in the next few days.
The group has until early September to finish its work. The City Council is scheduled to review the charter at its Sept. 19 meeting and send it to the ballot. The new charter will become the law next year if voters approve it at the polls in November.
Commissioners have restructured the entire document, making it easier to read. They’ve gotten rid of most legal jargon, modernized the language and summarized the entire document in a simple preamble.
It also moves the city’s general election from even-numbered to odd-numbered years and requires city councilors to work with the school committee on financial audits, capital projects budgeting and adopting a new purchasing policy.
The proposed charter is available on the city’s Web site at www.auburnmaine.org/html/Charter_Commission.htm. Copies are also available in the city clerk’s office in Auburn Hall.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.