A local property owner’s reference to school choice in an online ad is drawing criticism from Alna selectmen. On July 13, they decided to send Judith Fossel a registered letter stating the town won’t pay tuition for families who rent from her.

The ad at www.vrbo.com reads in part: “Available for School-Year Rental in School Choice Town.”

Third Selectman Doug Baston argued that the ad encourages people to rent from Fossel so they can choose their child’s school, leaving the town with added tuition costs. “It’s gaming the system,” he said.

“Do people think the tooth fairy pays, or the school fairy, for this,” Baston said. “You are not a resident of the town if you cannot live there year-round. She wants to rent it by the week during the summer, so this is just during the off-season.

“I think we should say, ‘You can do what you want, but if you rent it to a person and promise them we will pay their tuition, we will not. And you can take us to court,’” Baston said. 

“What happens if her lawyer’s already said this is legal,” resident Roger Whitney asked.

“My view is, if you want to try and stiff your town, then take us to court,” Baston  responded.

Alna kept school choice when it joined Sheepscot Valley Regional School Unit 12. In recent years, town and district officials have cited their efforts to make sure tuition is only being paid for resident families. A form which then-town clerk Amy Warner developed to verify residency has drawn praise from SVRSU 12 Superintendent of Schools Howie Tuttle.

Selectmen agreed to have the letter to Fossel state they would be informing the school district the town will not pay tuition for any family who rents the space she is advertising.

In a phone interview July 14, Fossel said stating the town has school choice is stating a fact, which she has a right to do. “If (the selectmen) want to read something into it, they certainly can,” she said about the ad’s reference to school choice.

The ad also refers to the location as being rural and near a lot of things, Fossel said. “There is no mention of tuition.”

Town offiicials called on Fossel to get a business permit in 2015. She paid the $10 and, in a November letter to then-codes enforcement officer Stan Waltz, she stated in part that, if Alna’s taxes were lower, she wouldn’t have to rent out her property to pay them.

In other action July 13, the board signed the next year’s contracts with Wiscasset for the transfer station; and Lincoln County, for animal control. The county deal, now in its second year, remains flat at $15 an hour, plus mileage, according to the document and selectmen; the transfer station pact charges Alna $76,377, up $4,554 from a year ago.

“This isn’t bad,” Baston said about the hike. ”It is what it is. There’s nothing we can do about it. We could keep our trash, I guess,” he added.

Selectmen approved Town Clerk Lisa Arsenault’s $185 request for elections training in Newry in September. She’d like to take it due to the big election coming up in November, Arsenault told the board. Baston said he supports any training germane to her job.