REPORT OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE GORHAM TOWN COUNCIL December 5, 2006
Chairman Justice opened the meeting at 7:00 pm.
Prior to the beginning of the regular Town Council Meeting, the Town Council met as Trustees of the Huston-Waterman Trust Fund.
Roll Call of Trustees: Present: Trustees Justice, Phinney, Loveitt, Willett, Dugas, Caldwell, & Moulton, the Town Manager and the Town Clerk.
Moved by Trustee Loveitt, seconded by Trustee Willett and VOTED to appropriate $500 from the Huston-Waterman Trust Fund for a furnace replacement. 7 yeas.
Moved by Trustee Loveitt, seconded by Trustee Phinney and VOTED to adjourn the meeting of the Huston-Waterman Trust. 7 yeas.
Roll Call of the Town Council: Present: Chairman Justice, Councilors Phinney, Dugas, Willett, Loveitt, Caldwell, & Moulton, Town Manager, David Cole, and Town Clerk, Christina Silberman.
Moved by Councilor Loveitt, seconded by Councilor Moulton, and VOTED to accept the corrected minutes of the November 14, 2006 Regular Meeting. 7 yeas.
Open Public Communications
Lisa Bolduc of Sylvan Rd. spoke and asked that any left over funds from the renovation project be allocated for traffic calming devices in the area.
Mr. McFarland of 75 Libby Ave. spoke about issues with a pothole near his driveway and debris being plowed into his driveway.
Allene Bowler spoke about a sidewalk repair request she made previously for the Little Falls area and showed pictures of the sidewalk.
Councilor Communications
Councilor Moulton thanked the Gorham voters for electing him to the Town Council and reported on a household hazardous waste organization that would like to address the Town Council in the future.
Councilor Loveitt gave an update on the Town Clock Committee and expects a report soon. He reported that ECO Maine is working on battery disposal issues.
Councilor Willett reported that the holiday tree lighting was very nice. The Finance Committee will meet December 14th at 4:00 pm.
Chairman’s Report
Chairman Justice reported on the opening of the newly renovated Municipal Office facility. He thanked the staff for all of their hard work preparing for the move. He also recognized Portland Design Team, Arthur Dudley, the Town manager and the Building Committee. Chairman Justice attended a Council of Governments meeting on November 15th and they looked at report of a focus group, annual financial reports, quarterly activity reports, etc. They are looking at Regional Corridor coalitions.
Town Manager’s Report
The Town Manager reported on the building and thanked the community for their support. He thanked all of the employees on the move and for all of their hard work. This is a functional building that will serve the community well. Mr. Cole gave special thanks to Bob Burns for serving as the project manager. An open house will be planned sometime in the future.
School Committee Report
School Committee Chairman Jim Hager reported that the school department has also moved to the new Municipal Center and thanked staff for all of their work. The Gorham Teacher’s Association will have a proposed 3 year contract on the agenda for the December 13th School Committee meeting. The School Committee needs to hold one more meeting on the naming of the Gorham Middle School auditorium and there should be a request for approval at the January Town Council meeting. The White Rock School Committee will meet on December 6th and there will be a community forum on January 17th.
Old Business
Item #7350 This item was properly moved and seconded at the previous Town Council meeting. An amendment that was moved and seconded at the previous meeting was withdrawn. The proposed order was then voted. ORDERED that the Town Council adopt by reference the same Council Rules as were adopted for the year 2005-2006 as the Council Rules for 2006-2007. 7 yeas
New Business
Public Hearing #1 Chairman Justice opened the public hearing regarding renewal of Massage Therapist/Massage Establishment Licenses for 2007. There were no public comments. Chairman Justice closed the public hearing.
Item #7363 The proposed order was moved by Councilor Loveitt and seconded by Councilor Phinney. Moved by Councilor Caldwell, seconded by Councilor Phinney and VOTED to amend the proposed order to read that approval of the license renewals for Suzanne White and Cynthia Doyle are pending the final approval of the Police Chief. ORDERED that the Town Council of the Town of Gorham, Maine, in Town Council assembled authorize renewal of Massage Therapist / Massage Establishment licenses for 2007 for the following; Julie Brown, Bernadette Curtis, Linda A. Morris, Carolyn D. Parker, & Jennifer Valentine and renewal of Massage Therapist / Massage Establishment licenses for 2007 for Suzanne White and Cynthia Doyle are pending the final approval of the Police Chief. 7
yeas.
Item #7364 was moved by Councilor Loveitt, seconded by Councilor Phinney and VOTED to postpone this item to refer a request from R. J. Grondin & Sons for a 20 year Tax Increment Financing District (T.I.F.) off Mosher Road to the Ordinance Committee. 7 yeas.
Item #7365 was moved by Councilor Moulton and seconded by Councilor Phinney. Baxter Memorial Librarian Pam Turner explained this item. The proposed order was then voted. ORDERED that the Town Council of the Town of Gorham, Maine, in Town Council assembled amend the Borrowing Policy for Baxter Memorial Library as recommended by the Library Board of Trustees. 7 yeas.
Item #7366 was moved by Councilor Phinney and seconded by Councilor Willett. The Town Manager explained this item. The proposed order was then voted. ORDERED that the Town Council of the Town of Gorham, Maine, in Town Council assembled authorize the Portland Water District to accept the low bid for the Little Falls Sewer Conveyance project and proceed with the project, provided that the Town of Windham also agrees to proceed with this project. 7 yeas.
Item #7367 was moved by Councilor Phinney and seconded by Councilor Moulton. The Town Manager explained this item. The proposed order was then voted. ORDERED that the Town Council of the Town of Gorham, Maine, in Town Council assembled accept Hay Field Drive, located in Springbrook Farm Subdivision as a public road; and,
BE IT FURTHER ORDERED that Hay Field Drive be classified as a Rural Access Road. 7 yeas.
Item #7368 was moved by Councilor Phinney and seconded by Councilor Caldwell. The Town Manager explained this item. Jane Mason of the Gorham Women’s Club spoke about this item. Moved by Councilor Loveitt, seconded by Councilor Willett and VOTED to refer this item to the finance committee for review and implementation. 7 yeas.
Item #7369 was moved by Councilor Phinney and seconded by Councilor Moulton. Tom Biegel of Shaw Brothers and SB Aggregates stated that they are supportive of this item and ask that their abutting properties also be considered for a zoning change. Moved by Councilor Phinney, seconded by Councilor Loveitt and VOTED to amend the order to include the abutting property. 7 yeas. The amended order was then voted. ORDERED that the Town Council of the Town of Gorham, Maine, in Town Council assembled refer a request from Norman Richardson to rezone property off Mosher Road (Route 237), Tax Map 31, Lots 9, 10, & 11 and abutting properties from Suburban Residential to Roadside Commercial, to the Ordinance Committee for their review and recommendation. 7 yeas.
Item #7370 was moved by Councilor Phinney and seconded by Councilor Willett. The Town Manager explained the item. Mr. Bernard Rines spoke about drainage problems in this area. The proposed order was then voted. ORDERED that the Town Council of the Town of Gorham, Maine, in Town Council assembled accept an offer from the State to acquire land, drainage easements and temporary construction rights for the Libby Avenue construction project (PIN: 008460 and project STP-8460(00)X) for $500.00; and,
BE IT FURTHER ORDERED that the Town Manager is authorized to execute all documents necessary to implement the order. 7 yeas.
Moved by Councilor Phinney, seconded by Councilor Loveitt, and VOTED to adjourn at 8:03 pm. 7 yeas.
A TRUE RECORD OF MEETING Attest: Christina Silberman, Town Clerk
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