FARMINGTON – Voters at Tuesday’s special town meeting amended the sign ordinance to prohibit campaign and election signs in the traffic island where High Street meets Farmington Falls Road.

Some in the small turnout of voters, including state Sen. Walter Gooley, R-Farmington, spoke in favor of the amendment. Gooley said he removed his own campaign signs from the traffic island after reading about concern that the signs could be a traffic hazard.

“It’s a problem statewide. Most candidates believe the more signs they have the better off they are … but saturation neutralizes the effect when there are 200 signs,” Gooley said.

A suggestion to limit the signs to one per candidate was passed over in favor of prohibiting the signs on the traffic island, effective Nov. 12.

Voters authorized selectmen to give KNK Properties LLC a permanent easement to extend a water line across a parking lot to its property at 153 Main St. The line is needed for a sprinkler system.

Voters also approved giving Judith and Kevin Vining the old Temple Stream pump station lot as compensation for land the Vinings are giving the town for the new Temple Stream pump station.

Before the special town meeting, selectmen began their regular meeting with a request for an appeal of sewer connection penalty fees from Bonnie Chapman and William and Melissa Lovejoy.

Property at 109 Lake Ave. owned by the Lovejoys and properties at 395 High St. unit and 117 Wilton Road owned by Chapman are subject to penalties. Bedrooms were added to the units, but the owners neglected to apply for sewer connections or pay the fees. According to the town’s sewer ordinance, the penalty is double the connection fee, said Steve Kaiser, code enforcement officer.

Kaiser told the board that he had spoken with Chapman several times about additions but the subject of sewer connections was not raised.

Melissa Lovejoy told selectmen she didn’t know about the need to apply and pay a connection fee for the addition at her property. If she had, she would have paid it, she said.

Bedrooms added to the property bought in 2005 created a need to pay a $50 sewer application fee and a $1,875 connection fee. The penalty would be another $1,875.

The town’s wastewater clerk told Kaiser she had tried to make contact with Chapman several times, but Lovejoy said she had not received any letters, bills or calls. Chapman is William Lovejoy’s mother and has an interest in the property. She did not attend the meeting.

Without documentation that Lovejoy had been notified, Selectman Dennis Pike felt the board should waive the penalty, causing other selectmen to question the fairness and the precedent being set for people who claim ignorance of the ordinance and ask for waivers.

After a lengthy discussion, selectmen voted 3-1 with one absent to waive the penalty fee for the 109 Lake Ave. property only.