When is an ordinance not an ordinance? Alna First Selectman Melissa Spinney said Dec. 23, the state has told her the town’s 2010 shoreland zoning is still in effect because the town never turned in the one voters passed in 2011.

Towns have to give those to Maine Department of Environmental Protection, Spinney said. The 2010 one was filed with DEP, she said. In a Dec. 19 email Spinney forwarded at Wiscasset Newspaper’s request, DEP’s Colin Clark sends the town the  2010, DEP-approved ordinance and states, “This is the last approval I have on file here.”

The approval had conditions and now selectmen want to know if they can have Town Clerk Liz Brown attest the 2011 one and send it in, Spinney said. Or, Spinney said, they might have the planning board see if the 2011 one — which Third Selectman Greg Shute said is on the town’s website — meets the conditions DEP put on the 2010 one. And what about any rule changes the state has made since then, and will a new town meeting vote be needed, Shute added.  

“I guess we just give this to the planning board and have them hash it out and see what’s right and what’s not,” Spinney said.

Selectmen said a request to see the ordinance led town officials to look and not find it on file. “Neither were any of our ordinances,” Spinney said. Getting copies of them filed is part of the records organizing under way for months now, Spinney said. Former selectman Ed Pentaleri said the 2011 one at alna.maine.gov lacks a map the document refers to. That’s important, he said.

Spinney agreed. “Our records weren’t the best, and we’re working on that. And if anybody can point out some of our deficiencies, we want to address them.” 

Selectmen added, anyone interested in being a planning board alternate should contact the town. Jeff Philbrick said he was. The board took no action.

The board plans to meet with Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway Museum at 10 a.m. Jan. 11 at the Cross Road nonprofit to negotiate archive space at the town office. WW&F Treasurer James Patten doesn’t know where the nonprofit will put its archive long term; but for the next five years, the museum is looking to lease space from the town.

Patten gave the board Ralph Hilton’s $13,000 estimate for a 200 square foot, fire marshal-approved, climate-controlled, secured archive at the town office. “That figure is on the top end and if the job goes as planned it would be less but will not be more under any circumstances,” Hilton writes. “Whatever savings there are on this project will be refunded to you from an itemized bill.” 

Patten asked selectmen if the museum could make payments, and if the $2,000 a year it donates to the town each year, in lieu of taxes on the Sheepscot Station property, could be applied. Shute said that idea would have to be mulled for its fairness to other nonprofits that give to the town. He suggested whatever is worked out for an archive and costs needs a memo of understanding “to protect the town in the best way.”

Spinney said the town would still have the archive room after WW&F vacates it, so she could see tapping maintenance funds for the project and having the museum make payments.  

Selectmen meet next at 6 p.m. Jan. 8 at the town office.