OXFORD — Several local organizations are joining forces to bring some Halloween cheer to town.

The Police, Fire and Recreation departments, the Oxford Historical Society and American Legion Post 112 are sponsoring a parade and trick-or-trunk festival Sunday, Oct. 31, Historical Society President Patricia Larrivee told selectmen at their Thursday night meeting.

The parade along Route 121 starts at 2:30 p.m. at the Municipal Center and proceeds to the Legion Hall parking lot. ATV riders are invited to participate.

The trick-or-trunk celebration will follow immediately. One lane of the highway will be closed during the parade, which the Maine Department of Transportation has approved, according to Town Manager Adam Garland.

Larrivee hopes to make it an annual event.

In other business, Garland said he has confirmed that the Maine Public Employees Retirement System will allow towns to choose whether to allow municipal employees to enroll in the state pension system at future town meetings. The system recently adjusted the enrollment policy to allow workers to join either at hire or after five years, with a deadline of Nov. 1 for towns to opt-in to the change. However, an amendment to the policy allows voters to consider the issue at annual or special town meetings after Nov. 1.

Garland asked the board for guidance on listing lots at the town business park on Park Street, where a new Sewer Department dewatering facility will be built. He suggested that he schedule a joint meeting between selectmen and Oxford’s Economic Development Committee to review the committee’s plans and set expectations for managing the listing process. The board approved.

In his report, Garland said he has met with department heads in preparation for developing the 2022-23 budget. He has instructed managers to prepare capital expenditure plans and strategic goals for the next five years.

Budget planning will begin at the start of 2022.

In regards to the Municipal Center, which has been listed for sale since last month, Garland will schedule workshops to review plans to build a new office and include staff input, which has not been part of the process until now.

With voters rejecting a proposal this year that would have moved administrative employees from the mildewed and deteriorating building at 85 Pleasant St. to temporary space at Oxford Plaza, selectmen were left to once again attempt to patch up unsafe conditions with cleaning and mold remediation.

Immediately after the June 5 annual town meeting, Garland reached out to SERVPRO for recommendations on how to proceed. The building has undergone attempts at remediation and sanitization cleaning at least three times in recent years but conditions have continued to worsen.

Voters decided at the June 5 Annual Town Meeting to sell the building, which served as the town high school for decades.

The proposal selectmen shared with voters at the Annual Town Meeting indicates that requests for proposals to design a new building are scheduled be sent in November.

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