How should Wiscasset go about selling its tax-acquired properties? Selectmen agree on at least one thing: they want to write a policy to replace the current piecemeal approach.

The sale of Mabel McAfee's former property on Gardiner Road June 18 brought the issue to a fore.

The town had invited abutters including McAfee's son Glenn McAfee to bid. Tuesday night, there were two bids for selectmen to unseal. Glenn McAfee's was $8,700, enough to cover the outstanding taxes on the property assessed at $126,400; Eliza Allison bid $9,554.

A wrinkle came when McAfee told the board that Allison's property does not actually abut the one up for bid. Allison didn't dispute that, but said the town invited her to bid.

Selectmen went with McAfee's lower bid; that would return the property to the family, board members said.

Before leaving, Allison told selectmen she agreed they should have a policy.

Newly elected Selectman Timothy Merry suggested that going through   a realtor to sell a property would help the town get the most it can, not just the back taxes.

“How come the town isn't trying to maximize the profit off these properties,” he asked.

Selectmen made plans for a workshop to draft a policy.

Budget revote planned

Selectmen made September 10 the target date for a town revote on budget items that failed at the polls June 11.

They plan to meet with the Budget Committee at 5 p.m. July 2, then vote on recommendations July 16. The Budget Committee would then have a week to make its recommendations; plans call for selectmen to sign the warrant July 23.

Selectmen lamented this year's low voter turnout and discussed possibly going back to deciding the budget at a town meeting. The turnout might be no better, but it would remove the need for revotes and would give the board a clearer read on voters' views, board members said.

Secret ballot votes could still be taken under a town meeting format, Selectman Pam Dunning said.

The board briefly discussed ways to trim the transfer station budget that failed. Voters' rejection of a change to pay-as-you throw saved $30,000 in bag purchases but also cost the town a projected $80,000 in revenue, leaving $50,000 to either cut the budget by or raise in taxes.

Dunning said she would rather cut station hours than staffing. She recalled a time when only one person was on duty. “It was a total mess up there … and it took way more work to clean it up,” she said.

First green light for Montsweag Roadhouse hookup

The Montsweag Roadhouse's septic system has failed, and the Woolwich business is asking again to hook up to Wiscasset's sewer service.

Construction of the public line will need Wiscasset voters' approval; selectmen Tuesday night authorized Town Manager Laurie Smith to work with the business on a possible agreement.

The business first tried to get on Wiscasset's system in 2009; but, after months of talks and still no approval, it went with the private system.

The proposed new line would run about 700 feet in Woolwich and about 1,600 feet in Wiscasset. The business would cover construction, pay sewer use charges and a hookup impact fee, and have an escrow account for maintenance issues, Town Manager Laurie Smith said.

It would cost Wiscasset about an extra dollar a day to handle the business' waste, but if the town charges the business an extra five percent for being out-of-town, the business would be paying $22 a day, Smith said.

“So that's a good gain,” said Selectman Ed Polewarczyk. Earlier in the meeting, fellow selectmen made him chairman for the next year and Judy Colby vice chairman.

The new sewer line would also be available to some Wiscasset residents who could choose to hook up to it later, Smith said.

Some residents in the audience opposed having a Wiscasset-owned sewer line in Woolwich.

But Dunning preferred Wiscasset ownership over asking Woolwich to own the part in that town. “It's not working for us to let other towns own ours schools, is it,” she said.

Parking lot plan dropped

Selectmen decided to stop exploring a tax-acquired property at 25 Middle Street as a possible parking lot. Instead, they'll sell the property after the board has established its policy for selling tax-acquired properties, they said.

“I do realize we need parking downtown, but right now we need money in this town,” Colby said.

Sewer work loan-grant eyed

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved Wiscasset for a $226,000 grant and a $974,000, 29-year loan for sewer work, with an interest rate no higher than 2.75 percent, Smith said.

Selectmen discussed a possible November town vote.

Dam inspection planned

Selectmen took a Topsham engineering firm up on its offer to inspect the Montsweag Brook Dam for $600. The review will not include any soil or concrete testing. The firm will report back with its findings on the dam's condition, and any recommended improvements.

Susan Johns can be reached at 207-844-4633 or sjohns@wiscassetnewspaper.com.