WEST PARIS – Selectmen last Thursday unanimously authorized closing the town office on Thursday, Nov. 17, to allow Town Manager Donald Woodbury and his staff to attend a tax collectors and treasurers workshop on current state rules.
According to Woodbury, the workshop is required by the state to guarantee all town office staffs are up to date on recent changes by the state.
“Holly Packard (deputy town clerk) and I need to attend to make sure we know what we’re doing,” he said, “and we need to close the office for that day in order for us to attend.”
Selectmen Chairman Jim Johnston said, “I don’t have a problem with closing the office for that day. We need to make sure our office staff is up to date on changes in state regulations, and the workshops the state offers are excellent.”
In other business, the board voted to assist Animal Control Officer Dannie Paine with heating his Moose Pond Kennel for the rest of the year by giving him $50 a month for November and December. They did, however, hold up on Paine’s request for $400 for 2006 until they have a chance to study the issue further.
“I think we need to research this further and make a decision by the end of the year,” Selectman Bill Birney said.
The rest of the board agreed and authorized the town manager to look into factors that might affect adding the extra money to the town’s 2006 budget.
Woodbury did say, however, that there is enough money in the animal control account to cover the extra cost if the selectmen decide to approve the request.
Woodbury was authorized to pay the Oxford County commissioners $54,929 to cover the town’s county tax for fiscal year 2005-2006.
He said the county tax is $569 less than last year’s $55,498, which was a bit of a surprise, “as the county tax has been going up most years for the past several years.”
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