BUCKFIELD — Voters were not interested in spending money this fiscal year, rejecting 11 spending articles during Tuesday’s budget and referendum election.
Residents voted against purchasing nearly every proposed piece of equipment and rejected the budget requests for administration, rescue, Zadoc Long Free Library and the Old Church on the Hill.
Voters faced a multi-page ballot with 54 articles. Election clerks did not finish counting the 287 ballots until after 6 a.m. Wednesday, Town Clerk Cindy Dunn said.
Voters approved increasing the size of the Select Board from three members to five. The proposal was first discussed a couple of years ago and discussion on the topic had recently rekindled, former Town Manager Joe Roach said last month. The Select Board added the question to this year’s warrants, which passed 210-75. The change becomes effective July 1, 2021.
Faced with a $1.9 million budget, voters opposed four articles that asked to purchase new or used equipment for rescue and public works. They voted against purchasing a used ambulance 122-156, two self-loading stretchers 112-169; multiuse sidewalk machine, 114-160; and a plow truck, 115-158.
Residents also opposed spending more money on the sand/salt stabilization project and the new building construction project, 118-157.
The one equipment request that passed was $10,550 for two air packs and two masks for the Fire Department.
Department budgets that went down to defeat included administration, 115-172; rescue, 136-143; library, 118-16; and Old Church on the Hill, 112-164.
Voters did like the ability to vote by secret ballot rather than at a public town meeting, passing an article to vote by ballot again on 2021 by a margin of 198-85.
Select Board Chairman Tina Brooks won another three-year term, narrowly defeating write-in candidate Cameron Hinkley, 139-119. Brooks was also elected as assessor by a more comfortable 168-66 cushion over Hinkley.
With no candidates on the ballot for Regional School Unit 10, Director Jerald Wiley finished first with 68 votes, followed by John Guy with 44 and Alison Long with 29.
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