Board: Minot selectmen

Met: Monday

College scholarships

Issue: Each January selectmen award scholarships from the Arthur Harris Scholarship, the Roland and Noela Hemond Scholarship and the Leonard Simion and Elsa Simion Fortin Scholarship funds.

The scoop: Usually the scholarships are keenly sought after, thus selectmen are perplexed that to date no Minot college students have taken out applications for this year’s round of scholarships. As criteria for the selection of scholarship winners vary, interested students should contact the town office at 345-3305 for more details and applications.

Up next: Jan. 9 is the deadline for the return of completed scholarship applications.

Winter parking

Issue: Cars parked along roads during snowstorms make road plowing difficult.

The scoop: Road Manager Arlan Saunders reported that some residents of Mountain View Drive and Sunset Drive are parking their vehicles along the road possibly with the intent of being in a better position to head out to work in the morning, but with the effect that it is quite a struggle for the plows to go around.

Up next: Selectmen agreed that Saunders should send letters to residents in the affected areas asking that they not park along the road.

Expensive storms

The scoop: Saunders reported that his crews have been out every day for the past two weeks and that the town sand pile is diminishing at an alarming rate since he has turned to sand rather than to salt as the preferred way of treating roads. Saunders noted that to treat 5 miles of road, it now costs $80 with salt but only $50 with sand.

Food for plow men

The scoop: Saunders said that a number of residents have been bringing food to the town garage during storms, and that the winter road crew wants it known that they are most thankful for the kindness.

Impact fee hearing

Issue: The town’s development impact fee program to receive annual review

The scoop: To mitigate the affects that new housing developments place on town services, the town has for the past four years imposed an impact fee of about $2,800 that it collects when issuing building permits. The money collected is being held for future recreation, public safety and school building projects.

Up next: The impact fee committee will hold a public hearing at the town office at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 6, before the Planning Board. The impact fee committee will meet again Thursday, Jan. 22, to receive comments on the Jan. 6 public hearing and prepare its recommendations to take to voters at March town meeting.

– Win Durgin