NEW GLOUCESTER — Voters at the annual town meeting Monday night passed all but one of 34 articles on the warrant.

They defeated a request to use $40,000 from capital reserve for a playground at the New Gloucester Fairgrounds. The vote was 57-60.

The $2.68 million municipal budget is roughly 1.6 percent more than the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.

The Woodman Road reconstruction project was approved at $285,000 from capital reserve funds.

After hearing the pros and cons about emergency medical services, voters agreed to fund ambulance transportation beginning Oct. 1.

The town has relied on first responders, with United Ambulance in Lewiston transporting patients.

Resident Beverly Cadigan argued that the town could not afford transportation now and needed more information.

New Gloucester Fire and Rescue Chief Gary Sacco said the town would bill for transportation services, with the reimbursement revenue for the first nine months of operations estimated at $89,000.

Voters agreed to fund $90,000 from capital reserves to replace Rescue I, an ambulance that cannot be used for transport, which was provided by United Ambulance several years ago.

Several amendments failed to receive support by voters. One was to fund $12,000 in tax abatements; another was to not raise and appropriate $225,000 in taxes collected from Pineland Farms that goes into a fund managed by selectmen.

Residents complained of a lack of public input in managing the fund.

The Pineland TIF account totals $647,584.

Two years ago, roughly $1 million of it was used to pay for reconstruction of a section of Morse Road.

Voters agreed to put $5,000 toward the New Gloucester Community Fair.

Voters also passed a zoning amendment change to the village district and the historic resource overlay districts by a vote of 49-34.