RUMFORD – Selectmen on Thursday arranged for a public meeting to gather resident input on a proposal to build a new Med-Care Ambulance Service facility.

At the same meeting, they also set a series of goals for Town Manager Jim Doar.

Dean Milligan, director of the regional ambulance service, asked that the board decide whether to write a letter of support for the proposed $2.4 building planned for construction in Mexico adjacent to the Region 9 School of Applied Technology.

He said letters from the 11 member towns should be provided within a few weeks so that the organization can apply for a loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, at 4.25 percent interest for 40 years.

The Med-Care board voted last week, with one abstention, to go ahead with its plans. The abstention was from one of Rumford’s representatives, Cheryl Dickson.

Dickson told the board that she had just recently been appointed and had not had a chance to consult with selectmen before voting.

“My opinion is we should go into this open-minded. This is now, not yesteryear. You have to look at every aspect,” she said.

Selectmen decided to give residents a chance to ask questions and provide comment on the project that would cost Rumford about $47,000 more each year than the town now pays, for 40 years.

The informational meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Oct. 4 at the American Legion hall.

Milligan said the Med-Care board has tentatively set a public hearing on the proposal for Oct. 9.

Some on Thursday, including resident Tom Fallon, objected to the proposed site for the new facility.

“You are moving away from the densest population. That’s my concern. Time is of the essence,” he said.

Milligan said the proposed new site is 1.2 miles east of the service’s site at a former Dairy Queen, which is also in Mexico.

The list of goals outlined by selectmen for Doar was topped by a request to devote more time to economic development.

“Jim is excited and looking forward to getting involved with economic development,” said board Chairman Greg Buccina. “But we’ve got to get him time to do that. He’s doing a commendable job, but I want him to work more with the growth council and other economic development.”

Much of Doar’s time, said Buccina, is spent responding to comments and complaints from residents.

“Maybe we (selectmen) need to be more open to complaints to allow him time to do the things we pay him to do,” he said.

Other goals included finding ways to remove some of the town’s unsightly, dilapidated buildings, develop budgets, and manage town employees.

Doar said he will work toward finding a greater balance in his position.

Selectmen will evaluate his work for the first time in December, which will be the six-month mark since he became town manager, then again after the board’s reorganization meeting in June 2008. Doar was given a one-year probationary position when he began work this past June.