PARIS – Selectmen tabled a motion to appoint Ray Garnett as an alternate member of the Oxford County Regional Solid Waste board of directors Monday. They want to determine if the position might pose a conflict of interest for him.
Garnett, who currently serves as president of the Norway/Paris Solid Waste board of directors, said that there have been people who served on both boards concurrently in the past.
However, since he’s president of the Norway/Paris board, he asked that Paris Town Manager Sharon Jackson get a legal opinion before selectmen consider appointing him to the regional board. Jackson agreed to contact the Maine Municipal Association for a free legal opinion.
Norway/Paris Solid Waste operates the transfer station on Brown Street in Norway, as well as the Frost Hill Landfill, also in Norway. The regional solid waste group collects material for recycling from 21 member communities, including Norway and Paris, at its site on Brown Street, next to the transfer station. In the past, Garnett said, the two boards have often been in negotiation, including when the regional board recently made an offer to buy a building from the Norway/Paris board.
The motion to appoint Garnett as an alternate came after selectmen accepted George Coffren’s resignation from that board. Sonny Norton, who’d held the alternate seat, was appointed as a full member. If appointed, Garnett would fill Norton’s former seat.
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