2013 Town Meetings

March 16

Former Burnham Village School to house Town Office

By Kaitlin Schroeder kschroeder@centralmaine.com
Staff Writer

BURNHAM -- Voters decided to move the Town Office to the old Village School building and further decrease the proposed municipal budget at the annual Town Meeting.

The question of whether to move the office to the Village School or renovate the current building has been a hotly contested issue that has split residents on the eastern and western sides of town.

To accommodate the office, the former school building will need more than $100,000 in renovations. If voters had chosen to stay with the current building, it would have needed more than $100,000 in repairs.

Selectman Stuart Huff said the 60 residents who turned out for the 4 1/2 -hour meeting decided to decrease the proposed budget, which was already smaller than this year's.

Voters decided to decrease the cemetery and general assistance budget, further decreasing the budget. Selectmen already had recommended a 3.8 percent decrease in the budget, proposing a $510,600 total, or $20,000 less than this year's.

Huff said residents amended the cemetery budget, allocating $5,000 less than the amount requested. They also cut the general assistance budget to $5,000.

In elections Friday, Anne Goodblood beat George Robison in the contest for a selectman's seat. Roger W. Huff beat R. Charlie King for the highway commissioner's post.

The current property tax rate is $16.25 per $1,000 of assessed value.

Kaitlin Schroeder-- 861-9252
kschroeder@mainetoday.com

 

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