MECHANIC FALLS — Town councilors Monday night authorized Town Manager Vic Hodgkins to look into possibly saving money on testing the groundwater at the landfill and converting streetlights to LEDs.
Hodgkins said the current three-year contract for water testing is $21,000, compared to the company’s proposal for the next three years, starting in 2022, for $49,600.
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection requires the testing at the landfill, which is behind the transfer station at 41 Austin Road.
Hodgkins said he would like to research other options, either with the same company or another, if necessary.
He will also find out if it would be more cost effective to have Central Maine Power replace the roughly 100 streetlights with LEDs at no cost if the town agrees to a 15-year contract, or use RealTerm Energy, which specializes in converting municipal streetlights with energy-efficient ones.
In other matters, the council will hold a special session with the Planning Board at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 22, to discuss and possibly decide on modifying marijuana ordinances and adopting solar farm zoning ordinances.
The Planning Board has been drawing up solar farm ordinances to govern sizes and locations since the council voted down a six-month moratorium on developing alternative energy facilities in August.
The Planning Board will also look into separating the recycling ordinance from the junkyard ordinance.
Dave Griffiths was appointed to the Planning Board and Janie Ferri was welcomed as town clerk, succeeding Julie Ward, who resigned last month.
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