A lawyer for Edgecomb urged residents July 1 to withhold judgment on the town's sewer options.

It could take the town a year to chart a course, including how to dole out the remaining gallons it can send across the Sheepscot River to Wiscasset, attorney William Dale said.

“The idea is to not make any of those judgments yet … Before we do that, we've got to have some facts and figures so we're not just shooting from the lip,” Dale said at a hearing Edgecomb selectmen called. The board wanted public input about a possible special town meeting to fund an engineering firm's study.

The study would look at either taking over and upgrading a homeowners' association's existing pump station, or building a new one and, if so, where, Selectman Stuart Smith said.

Residents offered several of their own suggestions for the study, including looking at expanding the sewer system beyond Davis Island.

“Why not cast a broader net …,” Jeff Musich asked.

About 20 people turned out at town hall. Some called for the town to reserve its remaining sewer capacity for Edgecomb Eddy School and other town uses, such as helping homeowners who may need to transition away from overboard discharge.

As for the school, planning board member Barry Hathorne suggested that replacing its septic system might be cheaper than a sewer hookup.

The town, not the selectmen, ought to decide on any uses the capacity goes to, Dale said. “The selectmen would be nuts to make that decision … This has huge implications for the town.”

Selectmen planned to get back in touch with Woodard and Curran, the engineering firm that may do the study, and discuss the matter further at their July 15 board meeting. That may result in another public hearing July 29, selectmen said.

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