OXFORD — With disposal fees heading in a northerly direction, Oxford Transfer Station Manager Ed Knightly appeared before the Select Board during their meeting last Thursday to discuss measures to keep pace with vendor charges.

“When we did our budget, we planned on demolition fees costing us $135 a ton,” Knightly told selectmen. “Then Auburn kept changing the price. Finally, on July 1 they settled on $165 a ton for demo and $25 per mattress. But they also charge per weight so they’re double-dipping us.

“We’re charging $5 each to take mattresses and box springs. It’s at the point where if we don’t do anything we’ll end up over budget.”

Knightly proposed increasing Oxford’s demo fee to $400 a ton and mattresses to $25 each. For comparison, he said that Norway & Paris Solid Waste has increased their demolition fee from $200 a ton to $600 a ton.

“We’re at $200 now,” he said. “I have a suspicion we’re going to start seeing people sneaking in demo from other towns.”

Selectmen balked at raising transfer station fees too much.

“Increasing fees is like increasing taxes,” Selectman Caldwell Jackson said. “Property taxes are going up this year. And now we’re increasing fees for people to get rid of their rubbish?”

Knightly clarified that household trash fees will not change, but that when residents tear down things like decks the cost should not be shared by other townspeople.

Vice-Chair Dana Dillingham surmised that an increase to fees translates to more mattresses and other materials being left on back roads, which not only takes revenue from the transfer station but creates work for the Highway Department to clean up the waste.

The board settled on a middle-of-the-road compromise for the time being, setting the charge to take mattresses and box springs at $12.50 each and notching demo fees up to $300 a ton.

Town Manager Adam Garland proposed that the transfer station’s old front end loader, which has been replaced by one previously used by the highway department, be listed on the government surplus auction website Municibid. It would list July 22 and the board could review bids after three weeks and determine whether to accept the highest offer during its August 15 business meeting. Garland’s proposal was unanimously approved with no discussion.

In other business, Garland and Police Chief Rickie Jack updated selectmen that they have not been able to complete one item continued from the previous meeting, collecting information and estimates on installing heat pumps in Oxford’s Public Safety Building. All the dealer/installers Jack has spoken with have said the building is not configured for pump heating and cooling flows and declined to provide quotes.

With no viable solution to use heat pumps to replace the public safety building’s failing HVAC system, the board approved an HVAC repair quote of $22,742 provided by Nason Mechanical Systems. Half of the building has had no air conditioning since late spring, requiring portable window units be used offices and sleeping quarters of the fire department.

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