NEW VINEYARD — The resignations of the town clerk and deputy town clerk last week have left the Board of Selectmen scrambling to maintain services ahead of the annual town meeting at the end of the month.

Michelle Beedy, the town clerk, and Candy Hamel, the deputy town clerk, submitted their resignations by email late last week, effective March 13. Because both also served as the town’s treasurers, tax collectors and registrars of voters, their departures temporarily left New Vineyard unable to collect or spend money.

The brief email Beedy sent to the board did not state a specific reason for the resignations.

At their meeting Monday, selectmen said tensions in local politics and several negative interactions with members of the public appeared to have prompted the resignations. Board members added that Hamel had also been expected to retire soon.

Telephone messages left for Beedy were not returned.

The board has contacted the Maine Municipal Association for guidance and has asked residents for patience as it works through the resignations.

Selectmen have found an interim clerk, Maria Johnson, of Strong, who is a treasurer and tax collector. That will allow the town to collect and spend money. Selectmen hope to open the town office on Saturdays and Mondays, but specific hours of operation are still being determined.

“We need someone with some experience,” Chair Jeff Allen said, adding that the ideal interim town clerk would get the office open again and running smoothly, and help train a couple of hires expected to stay for the long term.

Selectmen also said they hope to hire two part-time employees to cover the Town Office’s hours, which typically run Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Allen suggested having one clerk and one treasurer, with each employee also serving as the other’s deputy.

Residents can access some services traditionally handled by the town clerk online, including licenses issued by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the reregistration of trailers and certain vehicles.

New vehicles cannot be registered online, however, because the state has already picked up the license plates and other materials from the Town Office. Selectmen are working to restore that functionality, as well as other services, such as processing vital records.

The timing of the resignations creates additional complications because New Vineyard’s town meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, March 28, at Smith Hall. Voters approved moving the meeting from June back to March at last year’s town meeting.

One of the town clerk’s many duties is to open the proceedings and run the election for the meeting’s moderator. State law, however, allows a member of the Board of Selectmen to open the meeting if the clerk is absent.

While Beedy and Hamel also served as the town’s registrars of voters, New Vineyard still has two ballot clerks: Selectman Lexi Daggett and Jill Bates. The town also retains its voter registration cards, meaning residents will be able to register to vote at the meeting. The town meeting warrant will be posted at the post office and Our Village Market. Town reports are expected back from the printer soon.

Voters will also elect a new selectman, a three-year position that in New Vineyard also carries the titles of assessor and overseer of the poor. Allen, whose dozen years on the board roughly mirror Beedy’s tenure, has said he is not running again.

Residents will nominate candidates from the floor for the selectman seat, the six-month road commissioner position and two two-year terms on the Planning Board.

The 29-article warrant includes the town’s July-June fiscal year appropriations: $341,285 for the road department; $159,244 for the administrative account; $66,285 for municipal services; $65,345 for the transfer station; $61,321 for the Fire Department; $24,040 for insurances; $21,967 for boards and committees; $8,291 for maintaining Smith Hall; $7,400 for cemeteries; $5,347 for animal control; and $1,710 for recreation.

Three articles deal with building permits and requirements. Article 24 would establish a 10‑foot setback from property lines, while Article 25 would remove an exemption for building alterations of less than 200 square feet.

Article 26 would move approval of some building permits from the Planning Board to the code enforcement officer to streamline the process. The board would still review Shoreland Zoning and commercial building applications.

Two other articles would change how the transfer station operates. Residents would buy permits to use the station at the Town Office for $50 a year. The station’s hours would shift from Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons to eight hours Saturday and three hours Wednesday.

According to the explanation accompanying the articles, the changes are intended to help the town keep the dump open despite decreasing prices for scrap metal and increasing hauling fees.

This story was originally published by The Maine Monitor, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. To get regular coverage from The Monitor, sign up for a free Monitor newsletter here.

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