Westport Island is starting an ordinance review committee (ORC). Selectmen Monday night said an ORC could do research, including looking at other towns’ ordinances. “We may have holes in our ordinances and maybe need to rewrite some of (them). We can clone, plagiarize what other towns do,” Second Selectman Jeff Tarbox said in the meeting at the town office and over Zoom.

Proposed ordinances or ordinance changes would each get a legal review, public hearing and town vote, officials said. Tarbox said having too many ordinances would make things hard, and “people like the fact that we have relatively low regulation on the island. But on the other hand there is a concern people can be hurt by the activities of their neighbors, and how do we prevent that as much as possible? So it’s a balancing act.”

For example, with properties that look like junkyards, “We don’t have anything to address that successfully with our ordinances,” Tarbox said.

Planning Board Chair Richard Lorenson said making ordinances simpler and more precise makes them easier to follow and to enforce. He noted the town has until July 2024 to meet Maine’s LD 2003. Those new housing rules need to be incorporated into “a number of different ordinances,” Lorenson noted.

Resident Julie Casson supported the ORC idea and recommended diverse membership, “so that you have ... different thoughts and ideas that so we’re not just one-sided.”

“Our plan is definitely to have a wide variety,” First Selectman Donna Curry said. “We’ll be reaching out to people, and people are welcome to reach out to us,” she added.

Tarbox concurred on the committee’s makeup. He added, “We need people ... willing to put in some energy this year.”

Tarbox touched on the matter earlier in the meeting when resident Dick Tucker, who is helping with a survey of local wells, said some people are concerned other properties’ junk cars and other machinery might affect groundwater. He asked what to say. Selectmen said to have people tell the board. Selectman Jeff Tarbox said that was “a good lead-in” to the ordinance discussion. “We don’t have much ability to take action, so it’s something to consider for looking at our ordinances.”

Those working on the wells survey were set to meet July 13 to finalize a plan, including making sure they have participating property owners’ correct mailing addresses for the test results, Tucker said. Because the lab can only handle 50 samples a week, the about 150 anticipated tests would be done in three batches, he said.

The board named Tarbox, Gaye Wagner, Jason Cates and Ralph Jacobs to the broadband and technology committee.