MINOT — Town Administrator Arlan Saunders told selectmen Monday night that negotiations with cable TV service provider Spectrum will begin soon.

“The first priority is getting maps,” he said. That will show where coverage should be extended in Minot “to get the most bang for our dollars spent.”

He told board members that some communities have a cable TV ordinance, while others, including Minot, do not. He asked members to notify him if they wish to have an ordinance prepared for consideration.

When maps are received, Saunders said public meetings can be scheduled on where service extension might take place.

In the Highway Department report, selectmen were told ditching is complete on Bradbury Hill. Fine grading on Death Valley Road will be done this week and paving is scheduled to begin Tuesday, Aug. 22.

It also was reported that use of a roadside mower is scheduled for the first weeks of September.

Saunders said a legal opinion from the Maine Municipal Association indicates that expenditure of stumpage money from a timber harvest needs to be approved at a town meeting. However, he said, the MMA communication advised that selectmen could approve spending the money now because of scheduling considerations in connection with a grant. Saunders said it would be necessary to present an article at town meeting to approve the spending after the fact.

In other business, selectman and head tax assessor Eda Tripp presented three scenarios for the town’s tax commitment. The board voted unanimously to set the tax rate at $15.4o per $1,000 of assessed property value, the same amount as last year.

The sum of $580,000 from excise taxes and $125,000 from fund balances was used, Saunders’ report said. This includes $35,599 for overlay.

Saunders said the actual commitment will be signed at the next meeting of selectmen and the tax bills will be mailed after that.

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