Buckfield Board of Selectmen
Aug. 15, 2017
Buckfield Town Office
Paving delay
What happened: Selectmen and Interim Town Manager Brad Plante agreed to delay the North Hill Road paving project due to an upcoming bridge replacement by the state Department of Transportation, according to Plante.
What it means: The DOT is scheduled to replace the narrow Hall Bridge on Route 117 next year or in 2019 and could detour traffic onto North Hill Road. Plante said they agreed it didn’t make sense to pave the road if a major detour would travel over it.
What’s next: Plante will contact the DOT project manager about the bridge replacement. Paving for Whitman School and Bear Pond roads, which are part of this year’s road projects, should get underway soon.
Governance analysis
What happened: Selectmen voted and directed Plante to examine the current bylaws of the Library Committee and make this part of the governance analysis project a priority.
What it means: “(Selectmen) have some concerns about how they operate or what their mission is,” Plante said about Library Committee members. “There is some gray area over who’s doing what or who should be doing what.” Selectboard Chairman Maida DeMers-Dobson has previously stated concern over the committee and its members’ authority. After the town accepted the Zadoc Long Free Library at a 2015 town meeting and made it a full-fledged department, the trustees were dissolved and the advisory Library Committee was formed.
What’s next: Plante will present his findings to selectmen, which will be discussed at a future meeting.
Speed study
What happened: Selectmen directed Plante to inform the DOT that they want a speed study conducted on Route 140 in front of the Transfer Station after three people were injured in a July accident in front of the station.
What it means: Plante received an email from DOT officials, informing him the department would install turning traffic warning sides on both approaches to the Transfer Station. They requested whether or not the town wanted a speed study to possibly lower the speed limit in that area, to which selectmen agreed.
What’s next: Plante will share the findings of the study with selectmen once it’s complete.
Electrical issues
What happened: Plante reported there are more electrical issues with the compactor at the Transfer Station, along with an engine problem with the 2007 Highway Department pickup truck.
What it means: He planned on visiting the Transfer Station on Wednesday to look into the compactor issue further. Repairs were made to the compactor earlier this year, but it is not working again.
What’s next: Plante will report back to selectmen on both issues once he conducts more research.
Census
What happened: Selectmen tabled the Local Update of Census Addresses Operation topic until Plante could look into the matter further.
What it means: Plante advised selectmen to opt out of participating, as he feels the federal government is trying to get local towns to do the census work. He said other towns have opted out due to lack of resources, but selectmen wanted more information.
What’s next: Plante will find out more information and present it to selectmen at their Tuesday, Sept. 5, meeting.
Appointments
What happened: Selectmen made a number of appointments, including Colleen Halse to the Budget Committee and Justin Vining, Thomas Zinclinski and Bridget Culleton to the Recreation Committee, all for one-year terms.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
