The Bethel Rotary Club painted pickleball lines on the town’s basketball courts so residents could play pickleball on a marked court. Julie Reiff photo

BETHEL — The Select Board devoted a fair amount of discussion to use of the Pathway Basketball Court off Mayville Road during Monday’s regular board meeting.

Maine Adaptive Sports & Recreation and a local pickleball group had each reserved standing court times with the Bethel Recreation Department, but a sign reporting incorrect hours was circulated on social media, prompting complaints that there wasn’t enough time reserved for basketball. To resolve the issue, resident Tabaitha Steward requested the topic of the courts be an agenda item.

“Maybe both sides can talk it out and an agreement can be made,” she posted on the Team Bethel Facebook page. “This court was put here for the kids to play basketball, a place they can go. Bethel doesn’t have much for them. I think the court should be left alone and have no reserved times posted. It should be first come first to play.”

Lucy Abbott, a member of the Rec Committee as well as Rotary, which helped support the construction of the courts, said the department is looking at activities for everybody in Bethel. “I know people don’t want to restrict times,” she said, “but if you have an activity with a lot of people you need to set a time so people can schedule. Anyone wanting to play basketball should approach the committee. Pickleball is growing extraordinarily fast and, although it has a ridiculous name, it is a fun sport. So show up and bring your kids; anyone, any age is welcome.”

The courts are reserved for pickleball are Sunday to Wednesday from 5 to 7 p.m. and Monday to Thursday from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. Friday mornings are reserved for Maine Adaptive. There will also be a youth pickleball, learn to play, event on May 7 and May 14 from 9 to 10:30 a.m.

“The courts were being underutilized,” Bethel Recreation Director Mary Scanlon told the Bethel Citizen. “We went to the court frequently. These times it seems like no one was there.” During pickleball hours, she noted last year, there were usually at least eight people playing, often with several others waiting. There is actually a great variety of ages, she said. “We’re very excited. We did a test run with the youth program last fall. The group was very helpful, and it went great. We had so many parents come back and say that their kids loved it and they’re excited for their kids to carry on. I love that young and old can play, It’s just great.”

Advertisement

“It’s nearly impossible to get a group going unless they can count on regular times,” says Dirk MacKnight, one of the pickleball organizers. That strategy has clearly worked as the group, which began last June, now has more than 90 members.

Linda Linehan, who is also a pickleball player, spoke on behalf of the group. “We’re not trying to take away time from the kids. When we started this, we set up the times on an app called TeamReach. There were only two instances last year when kids wanted to play basketball. We have 90 people trying to play on two courts. The fastest growing age group (for pickleball nationally) is 24 and under. This could be a great opportunity for the community.”

“I feel bad that there’s such negativity for this great new sport,” Scanlon said. “It should be the other way around. [Pickleball] is getting so many people out to play it should be embraced. There has to be a way to comfortably schedule it on that court and have basketball too, but we just don’t really have that much rec space. Right now, lacrosse is in the softball/baseball field rotation, because there isn’t anywhere to play.”

In other business, the board:

Approved catering and liquor licenses for Gourmet in a Pinch and Sunday River Brewing, respectively. Ben Allen was appointed to the Ordinance Review Committee.

Jeff Warden, Wastewater Treatment Plant superintendent, provided a detailed explanation of the changes in this year’s proposed budget for the plant. “Our flows have been up this year,” he explained. “We get charged by the state for our waste. It’s more than we had budgeted, and don’t think our flow is going to go down anytime soon.”

Advertisement

The department had budgeted $10,500 for heating fuel but is already at $12,200. He noted that the garage is heated with propane and that the garage doors are not insulated. He would like to look at insulated doors, but noted that those would probably cost $40,000 or more and are not reflected in this budget.

“We don’t have a plan for replacing, upgrading, or upkeep on equipment,” Warden said, noting that they are still paying off a loan for the 1999 upgrade, and those pumps have already been replaced. “Norway has a 2 percent rate increase every year, because nothing gets cheaper. We’re just crossing our fingers trying not to panic. I hate to say it, but there should be an increase every year. It’s tough on ratepayers, but that’s better than one big jump every few years.”

The Planning Board requested a change to the Site Plan Review to separate the part about subdivisions “which is very confusing when applicants come in,” Powers explained. last fall, the town’s attorney removed the phrase “adversely affect,” which is too open to interpretation. The board approved it for review at the public hearing on May 16 at 5:30 p.m.

Powers reported that Cassella was the only company to submit a bid for the solid waste contract, although EcoMaine asked if it could bid only on recycling. The current contract with Cassella expires in June. Charges to haul have increased from $390 to $415 per trip and the per ton cost has gone up as well. Board Member Neil Scanlon thought the increases seemed reasonable. Powers said there was some discussion of moving to a single location in Greenwood, which might be better for more people.

There was also a question of how to deal with construction debris and whether the town should set price controls. Scott Cole, who helped write the RFP, thought the bid was fair, but questioned the allocation between the three towns and whether Newry is paying its fair share. Some kind of accounting could be put into the contract, he suggested.

Tony Donovan, seeking permits for the Bethel Station project, came before the board to approve SSDC fees and the required Performance Bond, to make sure that public improvements, roads, power, sidewalks, etc., are done. Donovan reported that all were completed before they acquired the property, but agreed to the bond. CEO Randy Thurston calculated the SSDC fee of $60,803 for the building at the bottom of Cross Street.

Advertisement

Scott Cole noted that the town ordinance dictates the formula for these fees and that he did not believe the CEO or the select board had the discretion to decide what is reasonable. Warden agreed, but did not have the charts with him to calculate the fee. The motion was tabled until the calculation could be verified based solely on the ordinance.

The Department of Transportation notified the town that it will pave Parkway this summer. Town Clerk Christen Mason reported that the ballots will be in this week along with the rented machine. She will issue absentee ballots beginning May 16.

Upcoming meetings:

Broadband update on Monday, May 23 at 6 p.m. at Telstar. Select Board meeting on June 6. Elections are June 14, followed by the Town Meeting on June 15. Both are at 6 p.m. There will be a household hazardous waste event at the Bethel Transfer Station on Aug. 27.

Comments are not available on this story.

filed under: