[0:02] - It's, it's a need that I believe the municipality
[0:07] has a, a duty to explore.
[0:10] - Okay, bill. Yeah.
[0:12] And I, you know, I don't have much add to add to
[0:14] that other than that, you know, this is
[0:16] something that, right.
[0:17] We know this comp plan is coming to us. Right.
[0:20] And this is one of the key goals as it has been,
[0:22] is Bridget, you have spoke.
[0:24] It has been, and Steve will attest to, has been for years.
[0:27] So, you know, let's, let's take another swing at it.
[0:32] - Good. So it's four minutes of seven.
[0:34] We'll take a break till seven
[0:36] and we'll come back with the regular council meeting.
[4:59] - My head on a morning - Anymore.
[5:03] I'm the way I am. Good evening everybody,
[5:06] and welcome to the Monday, September 28th
[5:09] Town council meeting.
[5:11] We started off with a workshop on workforce housing at six
[5:15] o'clock and we'll call the meeting to order.
[5:19] First item on the agenda is the approval
[5:22] of minutes from September 14th.
[5:26] - I'll give you a motion to approve the minutes.
[5:28] - Motion by Jeff. A second. Second Andrew.
[5:31] All those in favor, counselor Filson is not here.
[5:36] She's home with sick kids and we wish her
[5:40] and the, the kids the best.
[5:42] Indeed. All right.
[5:46] The next item is the business organization highlight.
[5:49] Every week we try to highlight a Cumberland business,
[5:53] have 'em come in and explain what they do, who they are,
[5:56] what you know, where they are.
[5:58] And I'll turn this over to Councilor Magoon to introduce
[6:02] this week's presenter.
[6:04] - So we have Matt Altman from Main Street Auto here
[6:09] to like counselor e said, you know, give a little idea about
[6:12] who they're, who they're from, you know, all that.
[6:15] So I'll turn over to you.
[6:16] - Hello. Can you hear me? Excellent.
[6:20] Thank you for having me. My name is Matt Alami.
[6:23] I own and operate Main Street Auto, right here in Cumberland
[6:27] with my wife Kylie,
[6:29] and three other employees.
[6:33] We've been in business for six and a half years now.
[6:38] We have the location where we sell
[6:40] and detail vehicles at the corner of Wind Road
[6:44] and Route nine at 1 74 Main Street.
[6:48] And recently this year we were able to
[6:51] purchase 2 96 Main Street,
[6:53] which is the brick garage right across from the cemetery
[6:57] and high school from CN Brown.
[7:00] That's where we service all the vehicles.
[7:04] Yeah, it, it's, it's a, a great small community business.
[7:08] We've had wonderful support from the town of Cumberland
[7:12] and surrounding towns, north Yarmouth.
[7:15] My wife and I live right here in Cumberland
[7:18] and our lead mechanic is Alex Jennings who went to Greeley
[7:23] and lives in North Yarmouth.
[7:25] And we have Bruce, who's a Subaru mechanic
[7:27] and he lives in Yarmouth.
[7:29] And Tyler is our detailer
[7:31] and sort of jack of all trades from Gray.
[7:34] And the five of us, we work Monday
[7:37] through Friday taking care of people's vehicle needs
[7:40] and we love it.
[7:42] And you know, we've been blessed
[7:43] to do business in this community.
[7:44] So thank you all.
[7:46] I'll open it up to any questions anyone may have.
[7:51] - Plenty. - All inspections I assume.
[7:55] - State inspection stickers. Yep. Yes.
[7:57] Yes, we do five of those a day in the morning.
[8:00] - I'll ask you a quick question only 'cause Well Bob
[8:02] and I, Jeff grew up here.
[8:04] Yep. Do you still have the old PJ Brown air hose?
[8:08] - No, no, no. Long gone. Alright,
[8:13] - So we were for those, the Brown family ran that
[8:17] for a long, long time.
[8:18] And I can only gather
[8:19] what you found out back at the, the shop. We,
[8:22] - We actually have a tree that's about this big around
[8:25] that's grown up through the center of a tire.
[8:27] Out in the back of that property is kind of,
[8:29] somebody wheeled that down the hill probably 40 years ago.
[8:32] And there's a tree growing up through it.
[8:35] - We offline. - Well thank you all for having me.
[8:38] Appreciate your time. Thank
[8:39] - You.
[8:40] Thank you Matt. Thank you for coming. Good as you.
[8:49] Matt.
[8:53] - Oh, Bob. - Sure. Sorry Matt.
[8:56] Matt, tech support we're speaking
[8:58] before we go to the manager's report.
[9:00] Thank, thank you Mr. Chairman. Mr.
[9:03] Bob story is here this evening to provide a quick update
[9:05] to the council on a recent installation of a monument
[9:09] at I got it.
[9:10] Yep. Thank you. I, and so I talked to Bob this morning
[9:15] and he wanted to come and just talk about
[9:16] some work that was done recently.
[9:18] And so I'll let him kick off my manager's
[9:20] component if that's good, Mr. Chair.
[9:22] - Thanks Matt. I'll try
[9:24] to be under three minutes this summer.
[9:27] I was contacted by Counselor Alack
[9:31] and he was down at Stiles Way, had the brush facility
[9:34] and he told me about an,
[9:36] a monument out in the, out in the weeds.
[9:39] And it was a veteran's monument. Here it is here.
[9:44] And took me two trips
[9:46] to find the damn thing when I went down looking, so I agreed
[9:50] with, with Jeff it should have a home somewhere.
[9:55] So recently I, I had, I had Chris Stilley
[10:00] put in a mon a foundation at, at
[10:05] and put a foundation in at the cemetery across from the gas
[10:08] station to set this monument on.
[10:11] And in addition, I had him put a pad in for a,
[10:15] for a bench.
[10:17] And I've rebuilt a bench that was at MOS side
[10:19] and got that in place as well.
[10:21] Put a few flowers beside this.
[10:23] It looks pretty nice and I, I never knew
[10:27] where this thing came from
[10:28] and I'll turn to Bob Vale in a minute
[10:31] and he'll tell me where it came from and,
[10:35] and so it's a nice little sitting area I've created right
[10:39] across from the gas station.
[10:40] Got a, see where the heck we are here.
[10:51] Come back. Okay. Sitting at the bench.
[10:54] This is looking towards the congregational church.
[10:57] You can see it's a pretty secluded little area.
[11:03] This is looking to the Greeley monument
[11:06] and this is
[11:09] the sitting area we created.
[11:11] I I re-built a bench set the monument
[11:15] and it's, I think it's a nice little area to go
[11:19] and sit down, take a break.
[11:22] And I had noticed at first,
[11:25] but this monument was donated
[11:27] by the Cumberland North Amout Lions.
[11:30] Do you have any memory of it, Bob?
[11:32] - I I've been a member for over 40 years and I, I don't,
[11:36] - Yeah, okay.
[11:37] I I presume it came from the front
[11:40] of Moss side when we put the big, the big
[11:45] Veterans Memorial in, but I really don't know.
[11:49] So, but there it is.
[11:51] Like I say, it's, this is
[11:54] right directly across the gas station, the, the road
[11:57] that goes in and view to the church Again.
[12:02] That's, that's what it is.
[12:04] And nice little area if you're out walking, need a place
[12:06] to sit that jump into Any,
[12:11] any comments, Jeff, on
[12:14] - This?
[12:15] I think it looks awesome and thank you for doing it,
[12:18] but the credit actually goes to Jesse Lamar.
[12:22] Vincent 'cause he just pointed it out to me
[12:24] and I just made a phone call, so I didn't really do much.
[12:27] I'm,
[12:31] - Yeah, Danny Borough brought it up to us.
[12:34] So we, I had a few people involved here.
[12:36] I had Danny had Chris Stilly and we, we got it done.
[12:42] And like I say,
[12:43] it looks better here than it did in the weeds down at,
[12:47] down at the brush dump.
[12:49] - It's important stuff. Bob. Thank you.
[12:50] - Yeah. Okay. Thank
[12:53] - You.Thank you very much
[12:57] Mr.
[12:57] Manager. Jeff
[12:59] - Oh, go ahead.
[13:01] - Before you run out of the room there, Bob.
[13:04] The importance of a community
[13:06] or the reflection of a community isn't always in
[13:08] how shiny the firetrucks are
[13:11] or how much paint is spread on a building,
[13:13] but on the upkeep of its cemeteries.
[13:15] And you know, if you,
[13:17] if you lived in a community long enough that you know that
[13:20] a quick walk through a a cemetery,
[13:23] you're gonna find familiar names
[13:25] and you're gonna find the people that served on committees
[13:28] and, you know, were, were part of a, a fabric of a community
[13:32] and it's, it's just as re just as important
[13:36] to me is the upkeep of a cemetery.
[13:39] It is as our public buildings.
[13:41] And I noticed just the other day that there a couple
[13:43] of headstones were being set back up.
[13:45] So the, the work that goes on in our cemeteries is,
[13:50] is laudable. Thank you.
[13:52] - Yeah. We, we probably straightened at least 20,
[13:56] straightened out 20 straightened our repaired 20 stones
[14:00] crossing the gas station that in that cemetery this year.
[14:03] And so it's an ongoing thing.
[14:05] We repair stones every year due
[14:08] to frustration every year we, we, we pick at it
[14:12] and thanks to the council
[14:16] and now Matt and Bill Shane
[14:19] before him, as I've talked before,
[14:22] before Bill Shane, the cemeteries were not well funded.
[14:26] And thanks to all of you, we have ample funding now we,
[14:30] something comes up like this.
[14:32] I don't have to defer, defer for five years
[14:34] before I can can do it.
[14:36] I can jump right on it. Okay. Thank you.
[14:39] Thank you Officer. Mr. Manager.
[14:42] - Thank you Mr. Chairman. I've got some updates here from
[14:44] manager's report this evening.
[14:46] First one is of I think a high interest to a lot of folks
[14:51] last Octo or CMP line project update.
[14:54] Last October, CMP held an open house
[14:56] to provide information about its planned power line project.
[15:00] At that session, they committed
[15:02] to keeping the community informed
[15:03] throughout the review process.
[15:05] On Thursday, November 12th, they'll have another opportunity
[15:09] at 6:00 PM in this chamber.
[15:11] CMP will host another open house
[15:13] to share their updated project information
[15:17] and gather community feedback.
[15:19] We'll have additional feed, sorry, additional event details
[15:22] and in our future communications.
[15:24] But please keep an eye on our website
[15:26] and they'll also have to be doing their outreach to by,
[15:29] by ordinance to folks who will
[15:31] but it directly as well within 500 feet.
[15:33] But until that, put
[15:35] that date on your calendar if you would please.
[15:38] Solar field expansion update Council
[15:40] Vail will be interested in this.
[15:42] C mahar engineers were on site last week
[15:44] to lay out the solar array.
[15:47] Increased activities expected to begin this week,
[15:50] primarily involving equipment and material deliveries.
[15:53] The main racking delivery is scheduled for October 5th
[15:57] and will include three flatbed trucks and mobilization.
[16:00] Details are being finalized as subcontractors,
[16:03] but most truck and personnel activities expected
[16:06] to begin October 5th and increase throughout that week.
[16:09] So we should see a lot more happening.
[16:11] So thought you'd find that part good.
[16:14] Councilman Hallick Also
[16:15] regarding the question on the welcome to Cumberland Signs,
[16:18] they are getting a number
[16:20] of their materials delivered this week
[16:21] and we should start anticipating installation
[16:25] with Dan Byrne, his team this week as well.
[16:27] So thought you'd be happy to to hear that. Thank you.
[16:30] We have a very exciting day here tomorrow at Town hall.
[16:34] We have the fourth grade class will be coming to visit us.
[16:38] They're coming, they're coming
[16:39] for a local government learning experience.
[16:42] Students are gonna participate in a simulated election,
[16:45] hear a brief presentation from available department heads
[16:48] and meet North Yarmouth, town manager,
[16:50] Brit Barton and myself.
[16:52] The visit will also include a tour of town hall
[16:54] and if available and weather permitting
[16:57] and an opportunity to view a fire truck and ambulance
[16:59] and a police cruiser.
[17:01] So we're gonna start recruiting early for those departments.
[17:05] Another quick reminder
[17:07] because we wanna make sure everybody keeps
[17:08] us on their radar as well.
[17:10] Upcoming special trash and
[17:12] recycling events are about to happen.
[17:14] The confidential shredding event will be October 3rd,
[17:16] which is this coming weekend,
[17:18] universal waste event October 10th.
[17:21] And then the oversized drop off event will be October 17th.
[17:25] We'll have staffing there for folks if they need help in
[17:28] moving things that are larger.
[17:29] So we're always happy to help and our team is good to go.
[17:31] When it comes to that. All events will be held at the Drown
[17:34] Road facility, public Works garage at 23 Drown Road from
[17:38] 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
[17:42] Looking forward to the Cumberland Fair this week
[17:44] and hoping that the weather cooperates.
[17:48] We'll knock on wood on that.
[17:49] But the livestock auction is on Wednesday.
[17:52] I plan to attend that afternoon for the, for that
[17:56] livestock auction in support of the food bank.
[17:58] The event provides an opportunity to support these talented
[18:01] and hardworking young farmers,
[18:03] the four H and the food pantry.
[18:05] And I also wanna take a moment to extend my thanks
[18:08] to former counselor Ron Kopp and for his guidance
[18:10] and tutelage at last year's event where he showed me how
[18:13] to become a, a livestock purchaser.
[18:15] And it's pretty cool to see if you get a chance.
[18:18] Those kids are amazing. Regional collaboration
[18:21] event tomorrow night.
[18:22] The regional collaboration event will be held at
[18:25] the Falmouth Elementary School from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM
[18:29] The agenda includes updates on current initiatives ranging
[18:32] from administration to public safety.
[18:35] Participating in communities are gonna be Cumberland North,
[18:38] Yarmouth, Falmouth, Freeport, and Yarmouth.
[18:40] So Councilor Vail's been instrumental in pulling
[18:42] that together and looking forward
[18:44] to a good turnout tomorrow evening.
[18:45] So that should be fun. Staff recognition.
[18:49] Last Thursday, Cumberland's own tax assessor Clinton Sweat
[18:54] received the Assessor of the Year award from the main
[18:58] Association of Assessing Officers.
[19:00] I attended the event along with Bill Longley,
[19:02] our code officer Christina s Silverman, that admin assistant
[19:06] for the department and Whitney Hankin.
[19:08] The recognition reflects very well on Clinton
[19:10] and on Cumberland's Assessing office
[19:12] and we're proud to congratulate him on this achievement.
[19:15] Now we can say that we truly have an award-winning codes
[19:18] and assessing office with Bill
[19:19] and Clinton both being named their prospective assessor
[19:23] and code officer of the year over the past couple of years.
[19:24] So it's pretty great for them. And a nice, nice honor
[19:27] for folks dedicated to town of Cumberland Council.
[19:30] Had received a number of emails over the past couple
[19:33] of weeks regarding the, regarding the playground
[19:35] or that's planned for Twin Brook.
[19:39] And I thought I'd tried to,
[19:40] we got a few people here this evening,
[19:41] so it might be helpful to provide some additional
[19:44] info relating to that.
[19:48] Twinbrook is Cumberland's primary recreation hub
[19:50] and to host thousands of families annually,
[19:53] more than 500 soccer players
[19:55] and their families used the facility recently on
[19:59] Labor Day weekend underscoring the demand
[20:01] for recreation amenities at the site.
[20:04] Funding for the playground project was approved back in the
[20:07] fiscal year 24 25 budget.
[20:10] And the Parks and Recreation advisory Board
[20:13] formed a playground subcommittee.
[20:14] Now they've had two of those.
[20:16] One, one, they didn't come
[20:19] to a final consensus on it couldn't come to agreement
[20:22] so they, they put a pin in it based on recommendation from
[20:25] council liaison at the time
[20:27] and then came back at it last year.
[20:31] They created a new subcommittee
[20:33] that included the recreation director Pete Bingham,
[20:36] three advisory board members.
[20:38] And that group also included a certified playground
[20:41] inspector and a local municipal facilities director
[20:43] with experience overseeing multiple
[20:45] playgrounds installations.
[20:48] They did unanimously recommend a final design
[20:50] to the parks advisory committee at board in May
[20:53] and then those brought to the council
[20:54] for a presentation back in June.
[20:56] If you recall, the playground that they chose has been,
[21:00] has been, is manufactured by landscape structures,
[21:03] which is a nationally accredited manufacturer.
[21:06] The approximately 2,900 square foot design serves children's
[21:10] one and a half through 12 years old
[21:12] with distinct age appropriate elements.
[21:15] It focused a lot on accessible play
[21:19] for ground level components
[21:20] and sensory elements including textured panels,
[21:22] musical instruments
[21:23] and support play for children of variabilities.
[21:27] There's safety surfacing in there. There's poured in place.
[21:30] Rubber will be providing the firm stable slip resistant
[21:33] surface for children to walk on as other people to walk on
[21:36] and use or, or that matter if they have, if they are
[21:41] mobility impaired to use their wheelchair on
[21:44] and allows grade level entry without access to limited,
[21:48] limited to ramps or supports longer seasonal use
[21:51] and reduces maintenance material consideration
[21:54] that selected poured rubber is also PFAS free.
[21:58] There was some concern that was raised earlier on in email
[22:00] and I think there's some confusion on that,
[22:02] but it's been confirmed that the rubber
[22:04] that the argon used does not contain PFAS.
[22:07] The con the committee preferred
[22:09] that over engineered wood fiber
[22:11] because they had some concerns about potential PFAS with
[22:14] that or formaldehyde content
[22:16] and then containment requirements as in spilling outside
[22:19] of the contained area for their playground.
[22:22] And then needing ramp access to gain traction into the,
[22:25] into the facility as well as ongoing maintenance.
[22:29] And then site compatibility.
[22:31] The, the committee was, I thought they tried
[22:33] to be sensitive relating to that
[22:34] and chose earth tone color palette looking for it
[22:38] to be blending better into the Twin Brook park setting.
[22:42] So the final cost of the playground with the structure
[22:46] and the port surface was 196,000.
[22:48] It was fully funded in the 24 25 budget
[22:51] and purchasing was completed in July to secure pricing
[22:54] after the industry wide increases
[22:56] during the planning process had already reduced the amount
[22:59] by 20% just due to life in general since,
[23:03] since the COVID pandemic unfortunately.
[23:06] But I think the playground structure's been delivered.
[23:09] Installation is currently anticipated in the spring
[23:11] and staff looks forward to opening this new place space
[23:14] for Cumberland Families.
[23:16] So we do have all, all this.
[23:18] They provide us to the council as well as you've,
[23:21] I sent you all copies
[23:22] and it's available on our website, the site plan for that
[23:25] that was submitted to the town
[23:26] and shows the, the plans that were there.
[23:28] The one thing it does need to have will be a couple
[23:31] of benches will need to be installed,
[23:33] which weren't on the plan as well as some plantings
[23:36] that were also gonna have to be reviewed and installed.
[23:38] But I think they were holding off on making those decisions
[23:40] until they get to the point
[23:41] that they'll see what's gonna fit and what
[23:44] and how that's gonna cite before then.
[23:47] So that's all I have this evening.
[23:49] Mr. Mr. Chairman. Thank you
[23:51] - Mr.
[23:52] Manager. The next item is
[23:55] public discussion.
[23:57] Public discussion is for comments on the on items
[24:00] that are not on the agenda.
[24:03] Comments are limited to five minutes per person.
[24:06] Rebuttal comments will be limited to two minutes.
[24:09] Public discussion topics may be brought up again under new
[24:13] business for further council discussion.
[24:16] Is there anybody from the public who would like to
[24:18] go on up on item?
[24:20] Just if you would just introduce yourself and Sure, sure.
[24:25] - Hi, I'm Annie Witty, you guys can hear me. Hi Matt.
[24:29] This is in regards to an email.
[24:32] I'm taking this opportunity to talk
[24:34] to you all guys about the playground.
[24:37] I sent an email to the council too
[24:40] and I haven't heard from you.
[24:41] So this is sort of coming off of a little bit of
[24:45] what Matt's talking about in the email.
[24:48] I spoke of the twin Brooks playground
[24:50] as voted on June 28th, 2026
[24:53] with the rubber formed flooring making a rectangle
[24:55] format for expansion.
[24:57] After that vote there was only casual suggestions of benches
[25:03] planting or any dog issues actually weren't talked about.
[25:07] They were not talked about.
[25:09] The original playground committee, which was formed in 2023,
[25:14] had discussed all aspects of this very cool project.
[25:17] We're really excited about it.
[25:19] Spring 2025, we were at, we were in long,
[25:24] long discussions about ideas
[25:26] and we with Bill Shane thought that the company view shed
[25:30] of Yarmouth would create renderings, comparing our options
[25:34] and considering different elements
[25:37] to be part of this playground.
[25:39] At that time, the original committee was dissolved.
[25:42] Now I'm wondering that might be the pin.
[25:45] The pin was put in it.
[25:46] Another playground subcommittee was created without
[25:50] informing any of the original guys parks
[25:52] and recs took on the project.
[25:54] This happens, I'm not, you know,
[25:56] I understand these are big, weighty projects.
[25:58] It was extremely difficult though
[26:00] to get any information about the playground at that point.
[26:03] I'm confused how the transparency
[26:06] of this project got so shifted.
[26:08] I do understand that the vote happened possibly
[26:11] because the scale of the playground is 2,900 square feet.
[26:16] Therefore, a different set of requirements are needed.
[26:19] The equipment is here and it's slated to be built.
[26:21] Thanks Matt, for all this info.
[26:22] Now I still would like the council to consider the project
[26:26] and create a more cohesive plan.
[26:27] It's no secret that the beauty
[26:29] of Twin Brooks lies in the pastoral nature.
[26:32] While we need certain necessary manmade additions,
[26:35] the best elements of twin books are natural.
[26:38] In the past we tucked a maintenance building behind a berm.
[26:41] We added a barn instead of of a Quonset hut for shelter.
[26:44] And we chose split rail fencing instead of guardrails.
[26:49] And all the abutters have respected that vision.
[26:52] We should strive to maintain the feeling
[26:53] of this played planned playground.
[26:56] A playground is a great idea,
[26:57] but as we go forward, it's important
[26:59] to maintain Twin Brooks unique identity as in, in all,
[27:03] in all its projects.
[27:05] Thanks and thanks Matt for that information.
[27:08] I mean, I've seen other reports,
[27:11] but I just think this is a really
[27:13] important issue for the town.
[27:15] - Thank you man. Yeah, anybody else?
[27:18] - Come on up. Sarah.
[27:23] - Good evening. My name is Sarah Russell.
[27:25] I live on Tuttle Road and I also
[27:28] wanna comment on the playground.
[27:29] Matt, I appreciate the information that you brought tonight.
[27:32] I really regret the fact
[27:33] that this is probably the first time
[27:34] that anyone in this room is hearing about the playground,
[27:37] little too late for public input.
[27:39] And that's what I wanna talk to you about today is the lack
[27:42] of public input through this process.
[27:44] And I think it's a big oversight.
[27:47] As I wrote, I wrote up my comments.
[27:49] I have to use this open public comment period
[27:53] to talk about the playground
[27:54] because the playground was never in over two
[27:56] and a half years of planning submitted on a
[27:59] town council agenda.
[28:00] It was tucked inside a master plan,
[28:03] but it was never mentioned the play.
[28:04] The word playground was never mentioned in any agenda,
[28:07] making it near impossible for anyone to even know
[28:10] that it was in development, let alone the opportunity
[28:13] to ask questions or be involved.
[28:16] The process of the playground development was
[28:18] pretty messy from the start.
[28:19] And it ended in a process that offered no public outreach
[28:22] that silenced the voices of those few of us
[28:25] who asked questions along the way.
[28:27] And the end pro end product is
[28:29] what we will see this spring plastic components on top
[28:31] of poured rubber sitting in the view shed
[28:35] of the Twin Brook landscape.
[28:37] At the very first meeting of our playground committee,
[28:39] which I was on with Annie
[28:41] and a handful of other people, we were shown catalogs
[28:44] and asked to pick out play components, four swings
[28:46] or three, do we want a mid-size or tall?
[28:49] And we said, whoa, whoa, whoa, let's slow down.
[28:51] Can we talk about the materials that we wanna use,
[28:53] the design that we wanna think about, possible plantings,
[28:57] location, the dog policy accessibility.
[29:02] None of that was willing to be addressed.
[29:05] We requested doing surveys to ask residents their thoughts.
[29:08] We suggested a community meeting to brainstorm play ideas.
[29:11] We found a play expert to come to talk to the town for free
[29:15] about what makes a play space engaging and fun.
[29:19] We were really excited
[29:20] to take on this project and do this right.
[29:23] That was June, 2024.
[29:25] Our committee never heard from Parks and Rec again.
[29:27] We were silently dismissed
[29:29] and apparently a new committee was formed.
[29:32] The original catalog oriented playground breezed
[29:35] through the application process
[29:37] by keeping the playground off of any town meeting agenda
[29:41] by being just under the max dimension of 3000 square feet,
[29:46] which would've required public input.
[29:48] The playground happens to be 2,990 square feet.
[29:52] And by to, by deciding not to notify Abutters,
[29:56] as we will hear later tonight, abutters deserve to be heard.
[30:01] So where was the oversight?
[30:03] How is a committee formed, voted on and approved
[30:06] and then banned with no accountability?
[30:08] This is what I don't understand.
[30:10] How is this happening in our town? How are we pouring?
[30:14] I would, I'm calling it PFAS rubber into our beautiful twin
[30:17] book Landscape Playground Places Only test
[30:21] for 12 PFAS materials.
[30:22] There are over thousands of PFAS materials out there.
[30:25] They only test for 12. We have no guarantee that
[30:27] that poured rubber is not gonna have PFAS in it.
[30:30] Plus the rubber poured rubber, it gets up
[30:32] to 50 degrees hotter than grass in the summertime.
[30:35] Do we have any budget for trees and shade?
[30:38] How have we not made a plan regarding dogs and kids?
[30:41] How did families with young children get cut
[30:43] out of the this process?
[30:45] How were families with disabled children not solicited
[30:48] for input to make sure that there are components
[30:49] upon which their kids can play?
[30:52] So I stand here deeply disappointed my,
[30:56] a playground was budgeted, a committee was formed,
[30:58] the committee was silenced.
[31:00] No effort was made to include the public.
[31:03] $190,000 was spent on materials
[31:07] before the application was even approved
[31:10] or abutters notified.
[31:13] I would like to think that the town would take a hard look
[31:15] at how this process played out.
[31:17] Robust committee involvement is essential
[31:20] to town participation and dialogue.
[31:23] I would also like to think that the town will consider some
[31:25] changes to the current design landscaping plan.
[31:30] A robust dog policy, a look at the engineered wood fiber
[31:34] and assurance that there are play components for all kids
[31:37] to play a playground is a good thing at Twin Brook.
[31:40] I'm not against that, but,
[31:41] and a playground built with input from play experts,
[31:44] design experts, young parents
[31:46] and community members could have been really great.
[31:49] Thank you. Thank
[31:50] - You Sarah.
[31:51] Anybody else?
[31:58] - Jesse Lamar. Vincent Range Road.
[32:01] So I normally don't come out to these things
[32:03] because I'm normally putting my kids to bed,
[32:05] but I dragged them out with me and they were
[32:06] playing some video games in the back.
[32:08] But I'll assure you, I watch most
[32:10] of these while I'm putting my kids to bed.
[32:12] So if you're wondering who one
[32:13] of the like eight people watching live
[32:15] on YouTube is, it's me.
[32:19] So I can't stay and comment on on things later on.
[32:21] But I wanted to come 'cause I think it's important
[32:23] after watching a lot of these, you guys get a lot of flack
[32:26] and a lot of people come up here
[32:27] because they're upset about something.
[32:30] You know, they've got an ax to grind
[32:31] or they have a real concern
[32:33] and you guys have the tough task of threading the needle
[32:36] and doing what's right for the majority of people in town.
[32:39] You know, trying to weigh all the interests.
[32:42] And I thought it was important to reflect that
[32:45] after watching most of your meetings.
[32:47] I'm really proud of the work you do.
[32:50] I think it's really incredible the way you listen
[32:52] to all residents from a variety of viewpoints.
[32:56] You take the time to make sure you're coming
[32:58] to the right decision or
[32:59] what you think is the right decision.
[33:00] You can't always get it right.
[33:01] And so I don't always agree with what you guys are doing,
[33:05] but I'm proud of what you are doing
[33:06] and I'm proud to be a resident of Cumberland.
[33:10] You know, I live on Range Road, people often drive too fast
[33:13] and once in a while there's a police officer there to try
[33:16] and slow people down in front of my house.
[33:19] The pavement was, has been breaking up for a number
[33:22] of years since I moved in.
[33:23] I've never come to complain about it to you guys.
[33:26] But the other day they repaved a section
[33:28] of Range Road in front of my house
[33:29] because somebody was paying attention enough
[33:32] to fix it without me complaining.
[33:34] You know, my kids most days walk
[33:37] to the library after school.
[33:38] It is one of the most inviting, inclusive, positive,
[33:42] safe places kids could go to.
[33:45] And that exists because of you guys.
[33:47] My kids play soccer at Twin Brook where I go for walks, one
[33:50] of the sort of best athletic facilities
[33:54] probably in the entire state.
[33:55] And that exists and main is maintained because of you guys.
[34:00] You know, I live close to the RHS forest.
[34:02] You know those trails are maintained by the l you know com,
[34:06] you know Lands and Conservation Commission,
[34:08] which I'm on the trails committee, you guys support the work
[34:11] that we do so that volunteers in this town can keep our
[34:14] trails looking nice, keep our forests healthy, try
[34:16] and fight back the invasives.
[34:18] So yeah, I just don't hear enough people talking about the
[34:21] good work you guys are doing.
[34:23] It's not easy, you don't always get it right.
[34:24] People are always gonna be upset about something on one side
[34:27] or the other, but I really respect
[34:29] and appreciate that you guys take the time to do your best.
[34:33] And I think most of the time you do
[34:34] and you know, with a number of people
[34:36] who wanna live in Cumberland, I think that's a testament
[34:39] to the incredible work that you and people who have come
[34:42] before you on this town council have done.
[34:43] So just wanted to express my gratitude.
[34:46] I think it's important because negativity can often drown
[34:49] out the great work that people are doing in this world.
[34:52] So thank you.
[34:54] I'm gonna take my kids to bed and thank you Jesse.
[34:56] - Yeah, - Keep up the good work.
[34:58] - Thanks. Thanks - Jesse. I was waiting for the,
[35:00] but the whole time and no but came, I was like, oh wow,
[35:05] - Anybody else in the public would like
[35:07] to come up on an item that's not on the agenda.
[35:10] Chris,
[35:17] - Hi Chris Yale, 2 44 Griller Road.
[35:20] I came to speak and there's way too many people here
[35:23] tonight try to talk.
[35:27] And something I was gonna talk about is on the
[35:29] agenda, which I did not know.
[35:33] I first, I wanted to thank the counselors back,
[35:36] as this gentleman said, I was one of the people
[35:38] that watched these town council meetings
[35:39] because as I guess we have no life, so
[35:42] watch council meetings.
[35:44] I guess it was a month, couple month, month
[35:46] and a half ago where the gentleman
[35:48] with the trail committee was here asking for $12,600
[35:52] and you guys kinda stopped, well what's in writing?
[35:56] Whatever. We're just not handing over this money without
[35:58] anything here.
[36:01] But now it looks like it's on the agenda.
[36:03] So maybe they have plans or something like that.
[36:05] I don't know. I haven't kept up enough with it.
[36:07] So I mean this trail's coming whether we like it or not.
[36:11] I hear it's not really our town property,
[36:14] but eventually it, it is gonna happen.
[36:18] So I've also, you,
[36:21] you were very concerned about the abutters along this
[36:24] and you asked about a fence and will they put a fence up
[36:28] and they talked about that and everything.
[36:29] And I have friends in the fencing business, mainline fence,
[36:33] you know, a fence to fence.
[36:35] That six foot slat fence is $70 a foot,
[36:38] that's $1.1 million for the length of it.
[36:41] So I hope that is appropriated if you said we want
[36:44] a fence on our section.
[36:46] - Chris, do you have anything for that's not on the agenda?
[36:50] - Yeah, I was gonna then move on to Greeley Road.
[36:55] The, the Greeley road's gonna be rebuilt and you
[36:58] and you talk about, that's on the agenda here about riding
[37:02] the bikes to this space, everything like that.
[37:04] I hope you're really considering a sidewalk when
[37:07] you rebuild this road.
[37:09] You asked me would I like a sidewalk in front of my house.
[37:12] Yes, I would love a sidewalk.
[37:13] People drive way too fast down Grilly Road.
[37:16] Even as rough as it is Matt, you made the point
[37:20] of people complaining about how rough it is.
[37:22] As soon as we pave it, they complain about how fast they go.
[37:24] So to catch 22, I think putting a sidewalk
[37:29] down this road and completing the loop to Twin Brooks,
[37:34] as we talked about 5,000 people,
[37:36] was it at Twin Brooks this past weekend
[37:39] or whatever it was for that,
[37:40] that soccer tournament would be wonderful for it.
[37:43] It would really, I think, calm people down on that road and
[37:46] and give it more of a town feel.
[37:50] Okay. So I really hope you really consider that
[37:53] and consider that expense.
[37:55] I know it's expensive. I also looked at a brand new sidewalk
[37:59] go across in across from the sidewalk at Maple.
[38:02] I Wilson go, alright,
[38:03] we just put a sidewalk across from the sidewalk,
[38:06] which was a lot of money.
[38:07] It's pretty, I see a neighbor here that probably loves it,
[38:10] that he can walk from Willow Lane to Windman Road.
[38:13] So that's really nice. So I would think it'd be fiscally
[38:18] responsible for you guys to really look at that.
[38:21] Okay, we're gonna rebuild this,
[38:22] we're gonna probably widen the road, put a bike lane in,
[38:25] we'd really like a sidewalk.
[38:26] And I really think if you ask the people along
[38:28] that residence and along there that they would like it to.
[38:32] So speaking of fiscally responsible, my next item here
[38:36] that's not on the agenda that Mr.
[38:38] Alack had me sign something.
[38:41] My other question too to you is why are we subsidizing North
[38:44] Yarmouth with our tax dollars?
[38:46] It's your job, your job to fdu be Fiducially responsible
[38:51] to spend Cumberland Tax dollars.
[38:53] But I guess with the school budget,
[38:55] north Yarmouth is a little shy of their fair share.
[38:59] So I'm just curious how far, if that's moving forward,
[39:03] if anything's happening with that, Jeff,
[39:06] if it went forward not with that petition or anything.
[39:09] So I just curious about that.
[39:12] I mean, Yarmouth, when this, you know, go back to,
[39:15] you said this was signed in 1966, this agreement was signed.
[39:20] I looked it up. Gas was 32 cents.
[39:24] Also, I also looked up and it was on the internet
[39:27] because it's AI in it, so must be right.
[39:29] North Yarmouth had 1200 residents.
[39:32] Cumberland had 6,000, now they have 4,400 residents.
[39:36] Cumberland has just shy of 9,000 I guess.
[39:40] So a 70% growth in North Yarmouth
[39:43] with 30% growth in, in Cumberland.
[39:45] So why are we using Cumberland Tax dollars
[39:49] to subsidize our neighbors?
[39:51] I wanna be good neighbors, but my neighbor's not asking me
[39:55] to spend 4% just to pay his taxes.
[39:59] So that's all I got. So
[40:00] - Thank you Chris. Thank
[40:01] - You. Make a
[40:02] - Comment on that.
[40:03] - Let's, let's go, right. - Okay.
[40:04] I just wanna know what it force signed. Go ahead.
[40:07] Just so the public knows the petition that Mr.
[40:10] Yale signed was one
[40:12] to basically revisit the cost sharing
[40:14] agreement with the school district.
[40:15] So if anyone's wondering what I got him to sign,
[40:18] that's, that's what it was.
[40:20] I did try to get him to sign over his
[40:21] bank account but he wouldn't do it.
[40:23] So
[40:24] - Anybody else have comment that for an item
[40:27] that is not on the agenda?
[40:31] See now we'll go right to the agenda.
[40:33] Alright, legislation
[40:38] and policy item 26 dash 1 0 4 to hold a public hearing
[40:43] to consider an act on the adoption
[40:46] of the main municipal association.
[40:49] Modeled general assistant appends A through H for the period
[40:54] of October 1st, 26th through September 30th, 27. Matt?
[40:59] - Thank you Mr. Chairman. This is an annual occurrence as
[41:04] most counselors will remember.
[41:05] So about this time every year the legislature comes forward
[41:08] with their, or actually main, main municipal comes forward
[41:11] with their recommended GA ordinance that each town
[41:16] that they sent to each town for annual review and approval.
[41:20] And tonight I actually, we have in-house a our GA expert
[41:24] and our, our person who provides our GA forest,
[41:28] Paige Kibaki, who's here.
[41:30] And if you'd like to come up,
[41:32] you could talk about it briefly.
[41:34] I know there's also a question about heating assistance
[41:38] as well that 'cause it's all,
[41:40] it's all contained within this ordinance.
[41:42] There's heating assistance, what the rental side of it,
[41:44] what the utilities side of it is all,
[41:47] it's all spelled out within the ordinance.
[41:49] The town also has a fund for heating assistance as well.
[41:53] And there's locally a wood bank as well.
[41:55] Talking with Helene, our finance director this afternoon,
[41:58] the heating assistance fund has about $278,000 in it.
[42:02] So it's in, it's, it's healthy, but oil's expensive
[42:07] and gas is expensive
[42:10] and everything's expensive when it comes to heating a home.
[42:12] And we got a lot and we've got a long heating system,
[42:15] heating season ahead of us.
[42:17] So I thought that might be good for the council to know.
[42:20] But I'll let our,
[42:22] our in-house expert also provide some info for the council as well.
[42:25] So thanks Paige.
[42:27] - Thanks Matt. Yeah, so
[42:32] what you have in front of you for the appendices is,
[42:35] like Matt said, updated every year.
[42:37] These are appendices that MMA comes out with.
[42:40] They collaborate with the Department of Health
[42:43] and Human Services to calculate those every year.
[42:46] They're based on some HUD numbers, some USDA numbers
[42:49] from the federal government
[42:51] and they come out October 1st every year.
[42:53] And those do go into effect whether they're adopted or not.
[42:57] The state requires, the state requires us
[43:00] to use those numbers as administrators.
[43:03] And so updating them in the town ordinance is really more
[43:06] of a formality than anything.
[43:07] But you do have some latitude in the adoption.
[43:12] A lot of towns, not a lot of towns,
[43:14] but a handful of towns in the state do choose
[43:16] to not adopt Appendix C, which is the housing maximums.
[43:22] And instead we use the overall, in those cases,
[43:25] the overall household maximum when determining housing.
[43:30] Yeah, happy to answer any
[43:31] questions that you might have about those.
[43:35] - Any, any questions from the council
[43:37] before we turn it over to the public?
[43:42] See none, thank you very much.
[43:46] - Yeah, of course. - A anybody from this public hearing?
[43:49] Anybody from the public? Like we heard on the first item,
[43:55] seeing none, send it back to the council.
[43:57] What's your favor on this thing?
[44:03] - I can provide you with a motion.
[44:04] - Go ahead Jeff. - I move
[44:06] to adopt the main municipal association's model
[44:08] for general assistance appendix A through H for the period
[44:12] of October 1st, 2026 through September 30th, 2027.
[44:16] Second
[44:18] - A motion.
[44:19] And second. All those in favor
[44:20] - About discussion on the motion?
[44:23] - We did? - No, we didn't.
[44:26] We made a motion to second discussion on the motion,
[44:28] please. Okay,
[44:30] - Go ahead Bob.
[44:32] - I won't say that I read the whole ordinance
[44:34] 'cause it was exhausting.
[44:36] That's okay. And I can say
[44:37] that I didn't read the whole thing last year either.
[44:40] But what I struck me was the complexity of it
[44:43] and the, the severability, I guess of, of people that
[44:49] could easily get cut off.
[44:51] And it's, it's, it's astonishing to me at some level that,
[44:59] you know, we want every dollar to be accounted for when we,
[45:02] when we, when we give aid to people.
[45:04] But at some level you wanna say to yourself, you know, let,
[45:09] let's not be so strict.
[45:11] Let's, let's let's meet people's needs.
[45:13] And I think you know, it, it's,
[45:18] it's, it is sobering to read through this
[45:20] and to understand that there are
[45:22] so many people in this state that, that are of need.
[45:25] And we are a wealthy community.
[45:27] We are a wealthy country
[45:29] and we, we, we struggle to meet the needs of people
[45:32] who are struggling worse than we are.
[45:35] Anyways, thank you for your what you do.
[45:39] - Thank you Bob. Anything else from the council?
[45:43] We have a motion, a second. Change things.
[45:45] All those in favor? Unanimous
[45:50] Item 26 dash 1 0 5 to hold a public hearing
[45:54] to consider an act on a special amusement license renewal
[45:58] for wander at Longwoods Preserve Mr. Manager.
[46:02] - Thank you Mr. Chairman. On the council agenda this
[46:05] evening, you have that request from,
[46:08] or the annual special amusement license renewal
[46:10] for wander at Longwoods Preserve.
[46:12] Remember this from last year, this is an annual occurrence.
[46:15] There have been no items that staff has identified
[46:18] and brought it forward this evening
[46:20] with the recommendation for approval.
[46:24] And this is if they want to have live,
[46:26] live music performed there, that they that
[46:30] as they've, as they've lined it out.
[46:32] - Is there any questions from the council for the manager?
[46:36] - I have a question. Go ahead.
[46:40] The highlighted portion in this memo
[46:45] realigning the special amusement permit expiration
[46:47] with the existing liquor license.
[46:51] Yes. Didn't we already do that last time?
[46:56] Maybe
[46:58] - That was, that was what the request was
[47:02] and I think, I don't think it got all the way,
[47:06] I don't think it made it all the way through.
[47:07] So that's what we're looking at as well
[47:09] to get this in alignment with that.
[47:10] So next spring you should see that when they do come back
[47:12] for their liquor license renewal.
[47:14] - So the liquor license will be aligned with,
[47:17] - With the special - Amusement.
[47:18] This one. Okay. So we don't actually have
[47:20] to have any language in the motion about dealing with that.
[47:23] It'll just pop up Yeah, a little early. We should be good.
[47:25] Okay, cool.
[47:29] - This is a public hearing.
[47:30] Anybody from the public like to be heard on this
[47:34] or asked a question?
[47:37] Seeing none. Trying to back over the, the council.
[47:42] Any comments from the council?
[47:46] Any motion?
[47:49] - I'll do it. All right.
[47:53] I mo I move to approve the special amusement license renewal
[47:57] for wander at Longwoods Preserve for the period
[47:59] of November 1st, 2026 through June 9th, 2027.
[48:03] - We have a motion. A second? - I'll second
[48:06] - Motion a second.
[48:07] Any other comments from the council, from the
[48:09] - Peanut gallery?
[48:12] - No. All those in favor thank you.
[48:20] Item 26 dash 1 0 6 to consider an act on reorganizing
[48:25] the Cumberland North YA joint standing committee
[48:28] into two separate groups.
[48:30] Number one is a Knights Pawn committee
[48:34] and number two, a joint standing committee consisting
[48:37] of the Cumberland Town Council
[48:39] and the North AMH select board to meet approximately two
[48:42] to three times annually to discuss collaboration,
[48:46] joint projects, mutual concerns,
[48:49] and other matters of shared interest.
[48:53] Bob, I'm going to turn this over to Bob
[48:56] and I have been meeting with the manager
[48:58] and assistant manager, excuse me, town chair
[49:01] and a sit vice chair of the Northam Select board.
[49:05] And we, we went on, we wanna, we've been wanting
[49:08] to head in the right direction, work on projects and,
[49:12] and not just meet for the sake of meetings.
[49:14] So Bob,
[49:17] - I I think the, the first piece
[49:18] to address is the Knight's Pond breakout of,
[49:22] of the people on that.
[49:24] And I think it's good that that is separated out.
[49:26] There's enough things that go on over the course of a year,
[49:31] maintenance of trails, expenditures of funds, that that's
[49:36] specific topic should be addressed by people
[49:37] that perhaps have a little more background than the council
[49:41] or the select board of North Yarmouth.
[49:42] So I think taking that piece away makes perfectly sense.
[49:47] So over the last few months, as Mike said, we've met
[49:51] with the leadership of North Yarmouth, the chair chair
[49:54] and vice chair of the select board.
[49:57] And we've kind of challenged each other on
[50:00] what is a working relationship look like and,
[50:04] and how, how important is it?
[50:06] And I think over the last couple of years we,
[50:11] we've seen a a, a falling away of,
[50:14] of dialogue, if you will.
[50:16] And you know, at some point we've, we've had members
[50:21] and myself included have just said,
[50:22] don't put me on that committee anymore.
[50:24] 'cause I I just, it's, it's not working for me.
[50:29] And I think that, so there's a recognition that
[50:34] we had to be engaged and,
[50:36] and if you don't know your neighbors, not
[50:39] to pick on the folks down in Washington,
[50:41] but when you pick on your neighbor to the north of us
[50:43] and you don't have a good relationship, you know,
[50:46] good things don't happen anymore.
[50:48] So it it's, it's incumbent upon not only the council,
[50:53] but the select board to sit down
[50:56] and have real constructive talks about
[50:58] how the two communities work together.
[51:00] How we share our funds and,
[51:03] and including in that is,
[51:04] is our relationship with the schools.
[51:06] And nothing could be more important than, you know,
[51:10] 70% of our tax dollars.
[51:13] And how
[51:18] how that is shared is, is of not most importance.
[51:20] But I think really the thing that, that Mike
[51:23] and I came away with is that
[51:25] the folks in North Yarmouth have a desire as much as we do
[51:29] to work together and have a amicable relationship.
[51:33] So I I think that the, this realignment is, is important
[51:36] and it's, it's step forward for us to show that we are,
[51:40] we're gonna make the effort to be good neighbors.
[51:44] - And having been on that committee for about 10 years,
[51:47] this is the first time I've seen real motivation on,
[51:51] on their part to, to come, come to the table, talk about
[51:55] what can we do jointly and save money for the tax pay.
[51:59] So it's a good thing.
[52:01] Any questions from the Council of Bob
[52:03] before I send it out to Go ahead Andrew.
[52:07] - So Bob on the Knights Pond is the thought that
[52:11] that will be made up of citizens of Cumberland would be on
[52:15] that committee, not not being just, you know, made up of Oh,
[52:20] citizens of Cumberland North, I should say,
[52:22] and not just members of the town council
[52:24] and the select board for I Pond specifically? Yes.
[52:28] - Land conservation, the land trust, somebody, those type
[52:31] of people that better understand those things.
[52:37] - All this is public hearing.
[52:39] Anybody from the public wanna be heard on this bill?
[52:43] - CCI. - Gotcha.
[52:50] - Bill Young Hedgerow Cumberland,
[52:51] north Army Taxpayers Group.
[52:53] We are just giggly
[52:55] that you guys are finally getting together
[52:57] and doing something good and we are a hundred
[52:59] percent behind you on this. So I'll say that. Thank you.
[53:01] - Thank you Bill.
[53:10] - John Jensenius, chair
[53:12] of the Recreational Trails subcommittee
[53:14] and Vice chair lens and Conservation.
[53:16] I know in some of the emails that are in your packet,
[53:19] it talks about involving North yarm,
[53:22] north Yarmouth parks
[53:24] and the Recreational Trails subcommittee.
[53:26] I think it's important to recognize
[53:28] that it's more than just trails.
[53:30] It's important to have the Lands
[53:32] and Conservation Commission very involved in this as well.
[53:36] And the other point that I wanna make is,
[53:38] I think it's important to identify funding for projects so
[53:42] that when we get to a point where we have something
[53:44] that we'd like to do, that we have either have the funding
[53:49] or have a path to get the funding.
[53:51] - Thank you John. Thank you for all you've, you do for us.
[53:58] Anybody else in the public want? Have you heard on this?
[54:01] Bring it back to the council.
[54:06] - I think it's a great idea. I maybe quarterly makes more
[54:10] sense than two to three times a year,
[54:11] but I mean, I'll take it.
[54:17] I like that it would be the entire, the entirety
[54:21] of both bodies and not onesie, twosies here and there.
[54:25] 'cause in my past experience, a lot of
[54:28] what happens at the JFC stays there
[54:30] and that we don't really hear about what happened
[54:32] or, you know, I randomly show up to talk about something
[54:35] and now that there's like a power imbalance
[54:37] and now you have more too many people
[54:39] and we don't have enough people.
[54:40] So both bodies there, everybody understanding
[54:43] what is going on, everyone able to collaborate.
[54:46] I like that a lot better than the way it's been.
[54:49] And also we did just vote both towns
[54:53] and the school board, I think unanimously on creating
[54:56] that additional kind of like mini tricom committee where,
[55:00] you know, two individuals from each body will meet more
[55:03] often, probably maybe monthly.
[55:05] So new stuff happening, glad to see it.
[55:10] And that's all, that's a good idea.
[55:15] - Anything else from the council? Seeing none,
[55:19] I'll entertain a motion.
[55:20] - I can give you one. - Go ahead.
[55:24] - Alrighty. On 26 dash 1 0 6, I moved
[55:27] to reorganize the Cumberland North Yarmouth joint Standing
[55:29] Committee into two separate groups, a Knight Spawn Committee
[55:32] and a joint standing committee consisting
[55:34] of the Cumberland Town Council
[55:36] and North Yarmouth Select Board to meet approximately two
[55:39] to three times annually to discuss collaboration,
[55:41] joint projects, mutual concerns,
[55:43] and other matters of shared interest.
[55:45] - Is there a second? - I give it a second.
[55:49] - Motion is second. Any further discussion from the council?
[55:54] All those in favor?
[55:57] - Thank you. - Item 26
[56:02] dash 1 0 7 to consider
[56:05] and act on appropriating local matching funds
[56:09] to support the preliminary design
[56:12] and engineering of the Casco Bay
[56:15] Trail. Matthew,
[56:20] - Mr.
[56:21] Chairman, as, as this one was tabled at the last time it was
[56:24] on the counsel will need to make a motion
[56:26] to take it off the table this evening as well.
[56:29] Correct.
[56:30] - So there is, this has been tabled.
[56:36] Is there a motion to remove it from the table prior
[56:40] to discussing it? Yes,
[56:43] - I would make that motion.
[56:45] - Go ahead Bob. - I move to take from the table the matter
[56:47] of appropriating local matching funds
[56:49] to support the preliminary design
[56:51] and engineering of the Casco Bay Trail.
[56:53] - Is there a second? A second. Take my bill.
[56:56] All those in favor?
[57:00] All right, it's
[57:04] - All yours.
[57:05] Well, Mr. Chairman th Thank you sir.
[57:09] As, as many who are in this room this evening.
[57:11] Recall we had, I had, well the item was on the agenda
[57:16] back in August
[57:17] and then in September, earlier in September,
[57:20] there was another workshop that was attended by Dakota.
[57:25] Gosh, Hewlett.
[57:27] Hewlett, sorry, from, from MDOT
[57:29] and it was well attended as well.
[57:31] And I thought Dakota did a great job answering a lot
[57:34] of questions and addressing a lot of the issues
[57:36] and concerns that were brought up as well as,
[57:39] I think quite frankly, brought something
[57:41] that hadn't happened to this point,
[57:44] at least the full exposure that it had.
[57:46] And Dakota was there and spent as much time, almost as,
[57:48] as was needed that evening.
[57:50] But a lot of what you have on this evening is
[57:53] as the secondary
[57:54] or the follow-up to that, that was referenced at the end of
[57:58] that last meeting that this would come back to the council.
[58:01] So this is part of a,
[58:06] A local match that's been asked for by the state
[58:08] or the main DOT.
[58:09] They've currently allocated about $600,000
[58:12] to do the planning and design work
[58:14] or engineering for this project.
[58:17] And it's, it's preliminary design
[58:21] and then it's reached out to four different towns.
[58:24] It would be the town of Cumberland, north, Yarmouth,
[58:27] Yarmouth, and Falmouth.
[58:29] Actually, I think the, actually I think Portland's involved,
[58:31] north Yarmouth isn't involved at that aspect yet.
[58:34] 'cause they're, they're above, they're
[58:35] above the section that's being considered.
[58:36] So apologize for that. But there's a 10% match.
[58:40] So if there's 600,000 that the state has to kick in as part
[58:43] of the federal requirement, they, they require
[58:46] that there's a 10% match that the towns
[58:48] who are involved with this put in.
[58:50] Dakota did address one question
[58:52] that was brought up at that meeting.
[58:53] There's another section, I think it's the mountain division
[58:55] segment that's over like the brown, brown field section,
[59:00] brown field of, of the state.
[59:01] And they, they're not requiring that that match up there.
[59:07] He explained the reasoning why the state felt
[59:10] that they didn't have that.
[59:11] And it was, it basically came down to ability to, to spend,
[59:15] quite frankly, and they're in a different economic situation
[59:18] than the towns that are down
[59:19] here that they'd asked that for.
[59:20] And that was, was, that was why the DOT took that approach.
[59:25] Now the, while construction funding for the project has not
[59:28] yet been identified
[59:29] or committed, the town does know
[59:32] that there are additional future phases
[59:34] that may also require a future match That's to be determined
[59:38] through the whole preliminary design work.
[59:42] So ultimately what what this does is well, is looking
[59:46] to do the preliminary design work for the Ca Bay Trail,
[59:48] which is a, a multi community off road shared use pathway
[59:52] that will ultimately connect the communities
[59:54] between the greater Portland region beginning in Portland
[59:58] where, or where the, you know,
[1:00:00] the retired Trestle bridge is off the eastern prom
[1:00:04] connecting all the way through, up to, up into Yarmouth.
[1:00:07] So it does run through that on a, on a rail bed
[1:00:10] that quite frankly the state owns and,
[1:00:13] and it has not their,
[1:00:17] their approach from the RU act, which is this rail
[1:00:20] use authority commission.
[1:00:22] I believe there's a lot of, when you do these types
[1:00:24] of things, there's a lot of na a lot
[1:00:26] of acronyms as you can observe.
[1:00:28] But they had a recommendation that came from
[1:00:30] that committee was trail until rail.
[1:00:34] So what they're looking now at is that the trail,
[1:00:37] the trail component of it.
[1:00:40] So what they're looking to do is have the town commit up
[1:00:43] to $12,000 as their portion of this.
[1:00:46] That was going to be, actually there was four towns
[1:00:49] that were, that were in it.
[1:00:50] It was originally gonna be $15,000.
[1:00:52] But there's also
[1:00:57] Bill, you could tell me that ca Caco Bay Trail,
[1:01:00] thank the Caco Bay Trail Group also donated $12,000 to this.
[1:01:04] And sorry, I'm just trying to keep all the,
[1:01:07] all the players on the chess board accurate here.
[1:01:09] But they c they also committed $12,000
[1:01:11] to offset the local match from
[1:01:14] through volunteer efforts and their cash.
[1:01:17] So ultimately this would be the playing
[1:01:21] and design work where a lot of the issues
[1:01:22] that have been discussed will get the opportunity to be,
[1:01:26] to be looked at further.
[1:01:28] It does get the town involved in the conversation.
[1:01:33] There may be some difference of opinion regarding that,
[1:01:35] but quite frankly, if we're not involved with the planning
[1:01:38] and design work, it's awful hard to represent the interests
[1:01:40] of the town and others who may
[1:01:42] or may not be in favor or opposed to it.
[1:01:44] But it does get us into the room.
[1:01:46] But it does not commit the town
[1:01:48] to any future financial obligations beyond anything
[1:01:53] that could have to be separately
[1:01:54] and subsequently approved by the town.
[1:01:56] So it doesn't, you're free 12 grand.
[1:01:58] You're not buying the atten the potential
[1:02:00] for hundreds of thousands in the future.
[1:02:03] That question is yet to be answered.
[1:02:04] But if you don't do the preliminary design work,
[1:02:06] you're gonna have a hard time finding out
[1:02:08] how much you're actually gonna have to spend
[1:02:11] or what the cost of the project's gonna be.
[1:02:14] So that's, that's the step that they're at now.
[1:02:16] And I think, let's see,
[1:02:20] right now the participating municipalities have proposed
[1:02:23] sharing the required local match equally.
[1:02:25] And I've got over that and I think
[1:02:27] I've said about enough, Mr. Chairman. So
[1:02:29] - That's good. Thanks
[1:02:30] - Matt.
[1:02:31] Sorry it was a long-winded way
[1:02:31] to get there, but that's where we're at. Anybody
[1:02:33] - From the council have any questions of Matt
[1:02:35] before I turn it over to the public?
[1:02:38] - I have one question and I should have looked at the packet
[1:02:41] better and asked you this.
[1:02:44] Not right now, but I was
[1:02:48] anticipating seeing a more official document, like
[1:02:52] with some warehouses and stuff that we would agree to.
[1:02:55] I just see the memo and then like the flash vote,
[1:02:59] are we going to be doing something more official,
[1:03:01] like since it's,
[1:03:02] - Well there's a - Finances or,
[1:03:04] - Yeah, no, thank, thank you for the question.
[1:03:06] S Morgan? I think there is
[1:03:09] and there's, there's a couple
[1:03:10] different instruments that are out there.
[1:03:12] Okay. There's one, there's like a,
[1:03:15] I wanna say a local advisory group that would be,
[1:03:17] that's being formed between the different towns
[1:03:19] to look at this on the go forward for different,
[1:03:22] like thinking out like how are you gonna maintain it?
[1:03:25] Rules that you're gonna have different areas
[1:03:27] of collaboration between the towns to make sure that they,
[1:03:30] they can find some consensus.
[1:03:32] That's one area that's there.
[1:03:34] Ultimately this part here is, I mean the state just needs
[1:03:36] to know if the town's gonna commit the $12,000
[1:03:39] and then there's other areas that you could look at
[1:03:41] for collaboration with other towns when it comes
[1:03:43] to the management of that.
[1:03:44] And that's kind of a longer term
[1:03:47] item where it comes to this. Okay.
[1:03:49] - I just meant as far as us agreeing to give them some cash,
[1:03:53] whether or not we need that in a more formal sort of
[1:03:57] agreement or
[1:03:58] - Document.
[1:03:59] I, I haven't had anything really provided from the state.
[1:04:01] Okay. That that's it.
[1:04:02] But ultimately it's, it's, it's, it's similar to when we,
[1:04:06] like when we just did route 100 work with that, that was,
[1:04:11] that was an MPI project, whereas we just, you know,
[1:04:15] our local share was like 50% of that.
[1:04:19] So we got like a $1.4 million project for 700 grand
[1:04:22] and that's just how some of those are set up. Okay.
[1:04:25] - So as long as it's good then. Yeah. Seems legit.
[1:04:30] - Anybody have any more questions of Matt? Go ahead.
[1:04:34] - We are doing a, a study
[1:04:36] or engineering work for the reconstruction of Greeley Road
[1:04:40] and there is cost associated with that.
[1:04:45] This is a little different.
[1:04:47] Would it be appropriate if the council moves forward
[1:04:50] with a endorsement tonight to make that subject to a review
[1:04:55] of a document of some sort?
[1:04:58] Or was it It would be
[1:05:02] Green Road's a little different.
[1:05:04] It's a town, it's, we're the only entity involved with it,
[1:05:08] but whereas this is multiple entities,
[1:05:10] would it be appropriate for us to say
[1:05:13] our endorsement is subject to the review of something?
[1:05:22] - Well, - May, may I jump in on that?
[1:05:25] - I, I would love it if you would Councilor Foley.
[1:05:28] - I, I'd say I, I, I get where you're going, Bob.
[1:05:31] I think for the amount of money.
[1:05:32] That's quite a bit of a, that's a,
[1:05:34] I understand we want accountability,
[1:05:37] but I do think that's a, an administrative burden, right?
[1:05:39] That I think we can trust the town staff to look at
[1:05:42] that agreement and figure it out.
[1:05:45] If we did that for Route 100 for substantially more cash, I,
[1:05:50] I think, I think we can work through this one.
[1:05:52] I think that was the answer. I was, and trust the
[1:05:54] town manager to do that.
[1:05:56] - I think that was the answer I was looking for.
[1:05:58] - Thank you Councilor Fett.
[1:06:00] - Any more questions from the council?
[1:06:03] Alright, this is a public hearing we would ask you come up.
[1:06:08] There's a lot of people in the room.
[1:06:09] Just keep that in mind when you make any comments, you have
[1:06:11] to, you're allowed up to five minutes.
[1:06:13] We want to hear from you, but just keep in mind there's a
[1:06:15] pile of people behind you.
[1:06:17] So anyway, somebody step up. Come on up. Phil.
[1:06:23] - Yeah, - Patty.
[1:06:27] I'm Phil Gleason, longtime Cumberland resident
[1:06:30] and I'm also affiliated
[1:06:33] with the Casco Bay Trail Alliance group, which is sort of
[1:06:37] working to move this trail forward
[1:06:40] with the municipalities involved.
[1:06:43] I think it's important to emphasize that and,
[1:06:45] and I think this has already been said by Matt,
[1:06:47] but it's worth saying again that the only issue
[1:06:51] on the table tonight is writing a check
[1:06:55] for 12 grand to participate in the design
[1:06:58] and planning of the trail,
[1:07:01] assuming the trail ultimately goes forward.
[1:07:03] There will be multiple steps after that,
[1:07:07] but I think it's important
[1:07:11] that the town be involved at an early stage.
[1:07:16] The, you know, the phrase
[1:07:17] that we use is we want a seat at the table.
[1:07:19] It doesn't, writing, writing a check for 12 grand to get
[1:07:23] that seat at the table commits us to nothing further.
[1:07:28] And I think that's often misunderstood,
[1:07:30] although you've probably heard me say that enough so that
[1:07:35] you, you get it at this point, you know
[1:07:38] what happens down the road.
[1:07:40] I, this project is not gonna get built
[1:07:43] and construction will not start
[1:07:45] for at least a couple of years.
[1:07:47] So it's a long way off. I'm 78 years old.
[1:07:50] I hope I get to ride on this trail,
[1:07:52] but I think it's gonna be a close call.
[1:07:55] So I, I don't have anything more to say than that.
[1:07:58] I'm here to answer your questions
[1:08:01] and if any members of the public have questions,
[1:08:03] I'll do my best to respond to those as well.
[1:08:06] - Thank you Phil, and thank you for what you've done
[1:08:08] for the town currently and in the past.
[1:08:11] Anybody else, step up, please introduce
[1:08:16] - Yourself.And,
[1:08:23] Hi, I'm David Brink, also of Cumberland
[1:08:26] and as we, you were speaking
[1:08:28] before, working with your neighbors, your towns
[1:08:30] of North Yarmouth, et cetera, to the schooling
[1:08:35] and also the trails up at the ponds and whatnot.
[1:08:41] Portland is on board with this.
[1:08:43] Fath is on board with this
[1:08:45] and Yarmouth is on board with this
[1:08:48] and it makes total sense to work with our
[1:08:53] neighbors to just get a peek at
[1:08:55] this to see what it's gonna be.
[1:08:57] And if we don't get a peek at this
[1:09:00] and we'll have more opportunity to design this if we
[1:09:04] start now rather than wait later.
[1:09:07] It's, I think it's a very small price to pay for
[1:09:11] what the potential of this can be.
[1:09:13] Thank you. Thank you David. Anybody else? Please?
[1:09:20] - Good evening. I'm Mark Isaacson,
[1:09:22] 30 year resident in Cumberland.
[1:09:25] Urge you to go forward with this.
[1:09:27] Been a long time cyclist since I was a boy
[1:09:32] and I think it's important that Cumberland
[1:09:36] have an opportunity to participate in this design
[1:09:39] and one of my great concerns is the prevalence
[1:09:43] and ever increasing velocity of e-bikes
[1:09:47] and it's important that Cumberland have a voice in
[1:09:51] how this thing gets used and make sure that it's safe
[1:09:54] and that it doesn't turn into a motorcycle trail frankly.
[1:09:59] So I urge you to support this and have a seat at that table.
[1:10:02] Thank you. Thank you.
[1:10:06] - Somebody else?
[1:10:15] - Hi, my name is Lucia Stanoff.
[1:10:17] I'm a resident of Cumberland.
[1:10:18] I've been here about 13 years on Tuttle Road.
[1:10:21] I'm also executive director of the Gear Hub.
[1:10:23] And I just wanted to speak today that opening the door
[1:10:26] to this trail is about more than just recreation,
[1:10:30] it's also about transportation.
[1:10:32] As somebody who has firsthand experience working with people
[1:10:34] who can't afford cars or looking to get around,
[1:10:37] opening the door to this design would also allow us
[1:10:40] to open the door to people in Cumberland
[1:10:42] and other towns who might have difficulty
[1:10:45] navigating the roads by bicycle
[1:10:48] and might want a safer way to get from town to town.
[1:10:52] As a kid, I lived in affordable housing.
[1:10:54] My job was in Falmouth, I lived in Yarmouth
[1:10:57] and I had to drive, I had to figure out a way to get a car.
[1:11:00] It was really hard. A lot of high schoolers on the road.
[1:11:03] Bicycling is a lot safer opportunity for people
[1:11:05] to get from place to place.
[1:11:07] And I think that if we can look at this trail design like
[1:11:11] has already been said about opening the door, I just wanted
[1:11:14] to remind everyone we're opening the door
[1:11:16] to more than just recreation with this trail.
[1:11:18] We're opening the door to cleaner air
[1:11:20] and we're opening the door to transportation
[1:11:23] and reaching those who who need it.
[1:11:25] So thank you for considering it
[1:11:26] and I urge you to vote to open that door.
[1:11:30] - Thank you.
[1:11:39] - Hi, good evening. Brian Allenby
[1:11:41] up on live Up on Main Street.
[1:11:43] Thanks for taking this under consideration.
[1:11:45] I'm here to urge you to vote
[1:11:46] to take part in the planning process as well.
[1:11:49] Two quick points to make.
[1:11:51] Over the past few weeks, David and, and a few other folks
[1:11:54] and I have organized
[1:11:56] and reached out to a number of residents
[1:11:58] and we have over $3,500 in private commitments.
[1:12:01] This is above and
[1:12:02] beyond anything the Casco Bay Association has been doing.
[1:12:05] Folks saying, I'll give 50 bucks, a hundred bucks
[1:12:06] because they believe in this
[1:12:08] and they want this for their town.
[1:12:09] So it's over 30 residents, $3,500.
[1:12:12] I think even with a little more time,
[1:12:13] if we needed it, we could get there.
[1:12:14] So I think it's important to, to understand
[1:12:17] that there are folks in this town that believe it enough
[1:12:19] that even if the town weren't to fund it, they would pay
[1:12:22] for it out of their own pocket, which
[1:12:23] hopefully won't be necessary.
[1:12:26] Second point, this, this has stirred up.
[1:12:29] I it feels a lot like the conversation we had
[1:12:31] around Harris Road not that long ago.
[1:12:33] And so I was looking back through the, the newspapers
[1:12:36] and looking back through some of the coverage
[1:12:37] and there was a quote from a town counselor as,
[1:12:41] as we were going through all those proceedings
[1:12:44] and she said the road connection would help improve
[1:12:46] connectivity and one of the comprehensive plans goals is
[1:12:49] to reduce the town's number of dead end roads.
[1:12:51] She thought, hey, that sounds a lot like this, right?
[1:12:53] We're we're increasing comp connectivity for the town
[1:12:56] and we're really trying to look at the, the town's comp plan
[1:12:58] and and how to, how to factor that in, right?
[1:13:02] And how to make decisions based on those things.
[1:13:04] And you know, I know there, as with Harris Road, there was,
[1:13:08] you know, folks and I see some of the folks in the room here
[1:13:10] who were impacted by that decision.
[1:13:12] And so there, there are always some folks
[1:13:14] who are gonna be more impacted than others,
[1:13:15] but that counselor saw fit to kind of put, put the goods
[1:13:19] of the, the needs of the many ahead
[1:13:21] of the needs of the one, right?
[1:13:22] And so I think it's important to remember
[1:13:24] that in, in this case as well.
[1:13:27] And I am sorry 'cause I don't think Shirley is here,
[1:13:30] but that was Shirley's quote,
[1:13:31] so I thought we could ask her about that too. Thank you.
[1:13:35] - Thank you. Anybody else?
[1:13:40] - Okay.
[1:13:45] - Again, Chrisia Griller Road, as I stated
[1:13:49] before, this trail is gonna happen whether you're,
[1:13:53] it's the seat of the table or not, it isn't a lot of money.
[1:13:56] No money's money though.
[1:13:59] So I'd almost say before this
[1:14:04] and, and and before it to, to be at the seat of the table
[1:14:07] and to say, okay, we do want to have access to it.
[1:14:09] Where is Cumberland's access gonna be and,
[1:14:12] and how do we get to it?
[1:14:15] Lee mentioned e-bikes.
[1:14:17] Well I, I drive for a living,
[1:14:19] I see e-bikes all over the place,
[1:14:21] so this would be a connector for people to run e-bikes
[1:14:27] down the road and be able to pull 'em back and forth.
[1:14:30] It would give them access
[1:14:31] and get them off the road As I drive for a living,
[1:14:35] a a big tri wheeler, it's the bikes are you, you pull up
[1:14:39] and you get scared to make sure you can get around them and
[1:14:42] and give them enough space.
[1:14:44] So this would be a good connector for that.
[1:14:47] So I just wanted to say that. So
[1:14:50] - Thanks Chris.
[1:14:53] Anybody else?
[1:15:00] - Good evening counselors. I'm here.
[1:15:02] David Tulip, my daughter lives at Hillcrest
[1:15:05] Drive with her fiance.
[1:15:07] She's an adaptive rider, drives all
[1:15:10] around Cumberland on a recumbent bike
[1:15:12] and having that dedicated trail would be
[1:15:15] fabulous for her and her fiance. Thank
[1:15:16] - You.
[1:15:17] Thank you.
[1:15:23] - Ah, I'm Jonathan Lab on two 70 Main Street and I've spoken
[1:15:28] before in support of this
[1:15:29] and I'm, I'm here again just to urge you to commit the funds
[1:15:33] and get us involved in this, in this study.
[1:15:35] There's, I understand there's a lot of issues,
[1:15:37] but it's a huge opportunity.
[1:15:38] It's a really exciting opportunity for those of us
[1:15:40] who love the trails and bike and commute by bike.
[1:15:44] And so would love to see us be part of this
[1:15:47] and understand the design
[1:15:50] and figure out how to address some
[1:15:51] of the concerns that are out there.
[1:15:52] But see this as just a huge community building opportunity
[1:15:56] for us and we're excited about it.
[1:15:57] So hope you vote for it. Thank you.
[1:15:59] - Thank you Jonathan.
[1:16:04] - Jonathan Hos from Cumberland.
[1:16:05] I just want to let you know that my wife
[1:16:07] and I have found rail trails in our late sixties
[1:16:10] and absolutely love them.
[1:16:12] We have been to Cape Cod, we've been
[1:16:13] to Montreal, we've been to Vermont.
[1:16:15] And it is a wonderful way of developing community
[1:16:18] for the times that you're on the trail.
[1:16:21] You meet people from all parts of the world,
[1:16:23] you have conversations.
[1:16:25] The economic boost is unbelievable as people stop
[1:16:28] to get lunch somewhere or a cup of coffee.
[1:16:31] And I just think as far as in this day
[1:16:34] and age of, of divisiveness
[1:16:36] and meanness, that this is an opportunity
[1:16:38] to meld communities together.
[1:16:41] - Thank you very much. Anybody
[1:16:45] else please
[1:16:52] - Eli Wilson Range Road.
[1:16:53] I'd like to second what I heard from so many people.
[1:16:56] As somebody who bike commutes,
[1:16:58] I really would appreciate having a designated area
[1:17:02] that isn't next to cars.
[1:17:03] That's fantastic, but even more so what I wanna speak to is
[1:17:07] I've got two young kids
[1:17:09] and it would be great to have a place
[1:17:10] where I felt safe to bring them.
[1:17:12] And I know they will be old enough by the time this is built
[1:17:14] that it might not be for them, but,
[1:17:16] but like it would be nice to have a place
[1:17:18] where you feel comfortable to take kids, to learn to bike.
[1:17:22] That's a long stretch. It's not just going around the,
[1:17:25] you know, the school like parking lots or whatever.
[1:17:30] So for, for that reason, I, I think it's, you know,
[1:17:34] one more, one more reason.
[1:17:35] - Thank you. Please.
[1:17:40] - Hi, my name's Tiffany Townsend. I live on Middle Road.
[1:17:42] I'm in butter to the, the trail rail.
[1:17:44] And first I wanna say that I am
[1:17:48] hugely in support of this.
[1:17:51] I was here a couple of weeks ago
[1:17:52] or months ago when Dakota was here
[1:17:54] and a couple other questions came up
[1:17:58] and one of them is
[1:18:01] that I have heard tonight
[1:18:03] that there will be a seat at the table.
[1:18:05] I have also heard some of my neighbors say that
[1:18:07] that is a lie, that we won't have a seat
[1:18:09] at any sort of table.
[1:18:10] And so I'm hoping that maybe
[1:18:12] that could be addressed in your convers in
[1:18:14] your discussion tonight.
[1:18:15] I don't know what $12,000 gets us other than, you know,
[1:18:20] we're saying that yes, as a community we support this,
[1:18:23] but I'd like to know exactly what a seat at the table means
[1:18:27] if, if that's possible to hear from.
[1:18:33] I also would like to know,
[1:18:34] and I don't expect this to be done tonight,
[1:18:36] but I'm seeing the questions here for the record.
[1:18:40] I'm curious if there are any reliable studies
[1:18:42] that are out there that showing that an abutters property
[1:18:46] to a rail trail either enhances
[1:18:49] or detracts from property values.
[1:18:51] I have not heard anything about that conversation
[1:18:53] and a quick search on my own.
[1:18:56] I have not been able to find anything of that.
[1:18:59] Secondly, my, or my next question is, there's quite a bit
[1:19:03] of noise on 2 95 when I sit in my backyard.
[1:19:06] It's a white noise humming in the background.
[1:19:09] And so I'm hopeful that if we do get a voice in
[1:19:12] what this project looks like, will there be a noise study?
[1:19:15] Because it would be a, a terrible disservice
[1:19:18] to have this project go through all this money be spent
[1:19:22] and two people can't walk along this trail
[1:19:24] and have a conversation
[1:19:25] because the noise from the traffic is so loud,
[1:19:28] probably not an issue with the commuters as their, you know,
[1:19:31] maybe ear budding or something of that nature.
[1:19:33] But for the, the casual family or
[1:19:36] or community member to walk on this trail,
[1:19:39] that could be a significant component.
[1:19:41] Thanks so much for your time.
[1:19:42] - Thank you. Anybody else
[1:19:47] before we bring it back to the council?
[1:19:52] Seeing none, I'll open it up please.
[1:20:03] - Hi, Craig Wener on Labrador Lane in Cumberland.
[1:20:06] The other part that I think is important about the $12,000
[1:20:09] funding to get to be part of the community,
[1:20:12] the planning project is I know that, you know,
[1:20:15] we've talked a lot about re regionalization and cost sharing
[1:20:19] and sort of thoughtful planning with our neighbor partners,
[1:20:22] whether it be through, you know, mass purchasing
[1:20:25] or something like that with the inherent costs
[1:20:28] that will come necessarily for planning this.
[1:20:31] And we're planning for future costs efforts.
[1:20:33] It's actually built, it would be great
[1:20:35] to be part of those discussions.
[1:20:36] So it's a thoughtful process that involves everybody
[1:20:39] because I, I, I personally, without knowing for sure,
[1:20:42] think it's going to end up happening
[1:20:44] 'cause it's happening on property
[1:20:45] that we don't necessarily control.
[1:20:47] But if we're part of the organization
[1:20:49] that actually strategically decides how
[1:20:51] to fund it moving forward, like people are, you know,
[1:20:54] raising funds privately, now there's an opportunity to
[1:20:57] for you all or whoever gets
[1:20:58] designated to be part of that process.
[1:21:00] So again, the focus on regionalization I think is
[1:21:03] where we get cost savings over time. So thank you.
[1:21:06] - Thanks Greg. Anybody else in the
[1:21:11] public please?
[1:21:12] John?
[1:21:20] - John 10 44 Laurel Lane. Speaking for myself this time.
[1:21:26] I just wanted to say,
[1:21:27] I know Tiffany touched upon this talking about people
[1:21:30] walking on the trails,
[1:21:31] but the all we've heard tonight is about bikers.
[1:21:35] I think this is, this is stated as a multi-use trail.
[1:21:39] I myself have run over a hundred miles
[1:21:42] this year on rail trails south of Portland.
[1:21:46] I would appreciate having one closer by that.
[1:21:48] I didn't have to drive so far to,
[1:21:51] but while I'm running I see lots of people, I see bikers,
[1:21:55] I see walkers, I see runners.
[1:21:57] And I think it's important to realize that there are a lot
[1:22:00] of people including bikers that would be using this trail.
[1:22:04] - Thanks Sean. All right,
[1:22:18] - Super - Quick.
[1:22:20] Lala Caruthers from Main Street in Cumberland
[1:22:22] and I coach Nordic skiing
[1:22:24] and with our, we hope it's not a shortened snow season this
[1:22:27] year, but before the season starts it's really nice
[1:22:31] to have a place to go roller skiing or running
[1:22:35] or whatever that doesn't include a parking lot,
[1:22:37] which can be a little bit scary,
[1:22:39] especially at the middle school level.
[1:22:40] So just throwing that out there too. Thank you.
[1:22:43] - Thank you - Bill.
[1:22:59] So
[1:23:01] - I'm all for the planning part of this.
[1:23:04] I think the $12,000 will be well spent.
[1:23:08] What I'm hearing though is that we're going forward
[1:23:11] and I wasn't gonna say anything
[1:23:12] 'cause I'm all for the planning part of it,
[1:23:14] but you know, I also kind of belong to that tax group
[1:23:18] and so I wanna read you a couple of things.
[1:23:21] Not a great public speaker.
[1:23:23] So I wrote it down,
[1:23:24] so I'm gonna throw a blanket on this just for a second.
[1:23:28] So first the school came out with something today,
[1:23:30] so I'll read this first budget preview.
[1:23:33] I've anticipated expenses associated with the shift
[1:23:36] to new grade spans in 27 28.
[1:23:39] It may feel like it's a bit early
[1:23:41] to be talking about the district's budget a year in advance,
[1:23:45] but with the upcoming opening
[1:23:47] of the new Carol F. Small school
[1:23:49] and one campus shift in grade levels, I'm starting
[1:23:51] to bring information to the board while in advance
[1:23:54] of the typical budget season.
[1:23:56] Much of the anticipated budgetary implications in 27 28
[1:24:00] includes staffing increases for the new school, building
[1:24:03] a new state law, shifting special education services
[1:24:06] for three or four year olds to local schools.
[1:24:10] Continuing staffing additions to meet increases
[1:24:13] in student enrollment, debt service on the new building,
[1:24:16] estimated utility costs and expense reductions.
[1:24:20] Woo, after the modular classrooms are
[1:24:22] removed, that came out today.
[1:24:25] All right,
[1:24:31] Now some of you don't read Facebook,
[1:24:34] but I wrote something this past week.
[1:24:39] Voters in the SAD 51 district voted in a school bond
[1:24:43] of 53.5 million,
[1:24:44] which included the new school turf field and maintenance building.
[1:24:48] Soon the board will be locking in the bond rate, likely be
[1:24:52] anywhere between four and 5%.
[1:24:54] It came in at the estimated 4%.
[1:24:56] Were well over 5% on a double a bond right now.
[1:25:02] And this will last for 30 years
[1:25:03] unless they're able to shorten the term
[1:25:05] with larger, more frequent payments.
[1:25:07] We did a new school, we voted on it
[1:25:09] and now we are going to pay for it
[1:25:10] with no help from anyone in government.
[1:25:12] Just the residents of which 60%
[1:25:15] have no children in the school system.
[1:25:18] Recently, my wife and I were in Ellsworth
[1:25:20] on our way home from Upta camp
[1:25:23] and stopped in to see an exhibit of 12 main mighty girls
[1:25:27] who had great influence.
[1:25:28] The exhibit was called 12 Main Women Portraits
[1:25:31] of Change sponsored by the Francis Perkins Center.
[1:25:34] One of them was Sherry Mitchell, she's a lawyer,
[1:25:37] an indigenous and human rights advocate.
[1:25:39] Each woman had a quote
[1:25:40] and her quote kind of struck me,
[1:25:43] of course it was about the course
[1:25:44] that we are taking in these two towns in regards to
[1:25:47] how taxes are putting a major bur
[1:25:48] major burden on many folks.
[1:25:51] Her quote, please listen carefully, I had
[1:25:54] to read it a number of times, rights
[1:25:57] and responsibilities cannot be separated.
[1:25:59] Every right we stand upon must be balanced by a set
[1:26:03] of corresponding responsibilities.
[1:26:05] We cannot legitimately make a demand
[1:26:08] unless we are willing to take responsibility
[1:26:10] for creating a world where that demand can be met.
[1:26:14] Can that demand be met by the seniors in this town
[1:26:17] and the other people that are struggling?
[1:26:19] We all know, right?
[1:26:21] So as we go forward this year
[1:26:23] and into budget season, we hope that when you go
[1:26:25] to vote on any budget item, you realize how
[1:26:27] that vote will affect the community.
[1:26:29] No doubt these are strange times,
[1:26:31] but it's how we deal with all the needs of our community
[1:26:34] that will make it sustainable for all.
[1:26:37] Education is a right,
[1:26:38] but so is being able to stay in a home you built
[1:26:41] and lived in all these years as you age.
[1:26:43] You shouldn't have to decide between heat and food
[1:26:46] or losing your home for escalating taxes.
[1:26:48] The responsibility of having a great community relies on
[1:26:51] your understanding of the consequences
[1:26:53] of your vote wants versus needs, demands and responsibility.
[1:26:58] Please give that some thought. Thank you.
[1:27:01] - Thank you Bill. Anybody else
[1:27:06] before we close the public hearing portion of this?
[1:27:12] Okay, I'll bring it back to the council, council discussion.
[1:27:17] Go ahead Andrew. I know you are,
[1:27:23] - I wasn't necessarily preparing to to sure
[1:27:26] - You no, you're no - Say anything.
[1:27:30] So I think the a, a few good points have been brought up
[1:27:34] that we don't own the land, the state is gonna do
[1:27:39] what the state wants to do on it
[1:27:41] and if we want to see about access for Cumberland,
[1:27:45] that we need to be involved in that.
[1:27:48] And I think that there are some potential areas
[1:27:52] that people brought up either, you know, was Paul Road
[1:27:57] or the Bridge looking at those access points.
[1:27:59] But a lot of the questions
[1:28:02] that people have can only be answered by doing the work.
[1:28:06] And if it costs the $12,000 to do that work as part
[1:28:10] of the, the larger effort, then I think that's
[1:28:15] a good thing to get those questions answered.
[1:28:17] The answer to those questions might be no, the answer
[1:28:20] to those questions might be yes,
[1:28:22] but the only way to get them is to actually
[1:28:26] spend the money to get the information that we need.
[1:28:29] - Thank you. - I I just got one question right now,
[1:28:34] but we talked about 8,500
[1:28:36] or we talking about 12,000
[1:28:38] probably ought to make that point clear.
[1:28:41] - I think we talked 12,000. - Okay
[1:28:45] - Bill.
[1:28:48] - So probably no secret then for spending the money
[1:28:52] to do this, you know, to, not
[1:28:56] to belabor the point, but this is an engineering study
[1:28:59] and the process of the engineering study is
[1:29:01] to answer the questions.
[1:29:04] You know, I I am truly respectful of the, the,
[1:29:08] the expenditure bill that was, you know it no, great quote
[1:29:12] and you know, I don't like to see us spend money with no,
[1:29:17] you know, clear path forward.
[1:29:20] But I think this is money well spent.
[1:29:23] I think it will answer a lot of the questions
[1:29:25] that folks on the council have had, right?
[1:29:27] They're all good questions.
[1:29:28] Things that we've worked through in the workshops,
[1:29:32] I think there by being at the table here, right?
[1:29:35] We also know that CMP is looking at upgrades along the
[1:29:39] corridor, right?
[1:29:40] This is a way to engage
[1:29:43] and maybe consider, you know, how we do those,
[1:29:46] those CMP upgrades, right?
[1:29:47] That will impact those abutters there
[1:29:50] and maybe incorporate that with some
[1:29:52] of the work on the rail trail, right?
[1:29:53] But if we don't, if we're not participating as part of that,
[1:29:58] we don't necessarily have that voice again, right?
[1:30:03] You know, there's, there's lots of good comments.
[1:30:05] I agree it can be noisy down there,
[1:30:09] but that doesn't seem to stop people from
[1:30:11] using trails like that, right?
[1:30:12] Depending on where you go,
[1:30:13] you people still use those trails regardless, you know,
[1:30:16] they can think of places in DC or,
[1:30:19] or other areas where they're pretty noisy trails
[1:30:21] and people still use 'em every day.
[1:30:23] But it's a great comment, right?
[1:30:25] It's something to be considered again, state owned land,
[1:30:29] right in, in the world of impacts.
[1:30:32] You know, I I do, I I heard the folks down on
[1:30:37] Middle Road, I can, many of those people I've known
[1:30:40] for many years consider some of them friends.
[1:30:43] So I don't take making a decision, you know,
[1:30:46] to support this slightly,
[1:30:48] but will do, do know that the closest residents to the right
[1:30:51] of way is 250 feet.
[1:30:54] So I wish I had a 250 foot backyard, but I do not.
[1:30:58] So, but I do understand their concerns and I
[1:31:01] or have heard their concerns.
[1:31:05] I do think this provides an alternate path
[1:31:09] for folks Trent to recreate.
[1:31:13] I had the opportunity to ride the new section
[1:31:15] of the East Coast Greenway from South Portland down
[1:31:19] to Bedford the other day.
[1:31:21] It's great the new bridge is in there
[1:31:22] and I, it is a great asset for folks walking, biking,
[1:31:28] people walking their kids, walking their dog out there.
[1:31:31] It is just right.
[1:31:32] It's, it's a real component of the communities.
[1:31:37] And what I always find on there is
[1:31:39] that the people on those trails are very respectful
[1:31:42] of Abutters and of others.
[1:31:44] And they, they do, they appreciate the activities there
[1:31:47] and they appreciate the use of the, the, the trail.
[1:31:52] I will say that for in my short time on the council,
[1:31:56] I think the majority of the emails that have come
[1:31:58] through on the short time of my council, on the council
[1:32:01] are for support of this.
[1:32:02] I, it's got to be 20 to one.
[1:32:04] I didn't do the math, but it's, it's at least in
[1:32:07] that neighborhood, I appreciate the fact
[1:32:11] that folks went out
[1:32:13] and kind of put their money where their mouth lay
[1:32:14] and you know, pledge to support this.
[1:32:18] If that's really the issue.
[1:32:20] I, I don't think that's the way we should go,
[1:32:23] but I think it's a show of support.
[1:32:25] And then I'll also go back to the fact that, you know,
[1:32:28] both on the, the flash vote and the comp plan, right?
[1:32:32] This has been something that as everybody has talked about
[1:32:36] and wanted to, or not everybody
[1:32:38] but a large proportion, the majority
[1:32:40] of the folks in town have
[1:32:42] that participated in these surveys supported to me.
[1:32:47] You know, when I see that, I see what comes out,
[1:32:50] what's come out of the comp plan, the flash vote survey
[1:32:53] and the level of support that we've seen from the public.
[1:32:57] I think it's pretty hard as a council
[1:32:59] for us not to approve this.
[1:33:01] But that's my view of the world.
[1:33:03] - Great, thanks Phil. Thanks. - Go ahead
[1:33:06] - Willie me.
[1:33:07] Okay. I'm glad that Phil brought up what this is
[1:33:12] and what it isn't
[1:33:14] and I'll clarify again, this is only
[1:33:17] $12,000 for design study.
[1:33:19] It is not an endorsement
[1:33:21] or signing on of the interlocal agreement.
[1:33:23] It is not agreeing to trail construction
[1:33:27] because some of the emails we did receive
[1:33:30] made it sound like this was an endorsement of the project
[1:33:34] and signaling that we
[1:33:35] were going to be going forward with it.
[1:33:36] And that's not what this is.
[1:33:38] So just making sure that we're all clear on that.
[1:33:41] I think we are at this point. This doesn't
[1:33:46] buy us a seat at the table.
[1:33:48] I know that wording has been passed around.
[1:33:52] I know Dakota cleared that up.
[1:33:54] For us, it does allow us to be involved in the design study
[1:33:59] and for me, the main reason I would want to be involved is
[1:34:02] to ensure that Cumberland residents have access to this
[1:34:05] proposed trail in Cumberland
[1:34:07] or else what really is the benefit if
[1:34:10] there's no access for residents.
[1:34:11] 'cause there certainly isn't going to be an economic boost
[1:34:13] for Cumberland unless you're going to foresight,
[1:34:15] outdoor power and then like take in a
[1:34:17] snowblower with you down the trail.
[1:34:18] There really isn't anything that we'll see from that
[1:34:22] on the economic side of things.
[1:34:24] And it's,
[1:34:29] there's, this is the first step
[1:34:31] and for me, I do support doing the $12,000 initially just
[1:34:36] to ensure that we have access,
[1:34:37] but seat at the table as far as decision making.
[1:34:40] To me that is something that comes later.
[1:34:43] If you agree to the interlocal agreement
[1:34:45] and are a member of that board
[1:34:46] and that decision making body, if you choose
[1:34:48] to join the agreement, which it's not mandatory
[1:34:51] towns can go it alone, but that's kind
[1:34:53] of putting the cart before the horse.
[1:34:55] But just since people are kind
[1:34:57] of pairing these two things together, it is not a done deal.
[1:35:01] The design study is just the first step.
[1:35:02] It's going to be years before anything is ever done on it.
[1:35:07] If it even is. There's a lot of things in flux
[1:35:10] and I don't necessarily trust that
[1:35:14] the government's gonna come give us money
[1:35:16] for this funding may fall through.
[1:35:17] We may be on the hook for over a million dollars a mile
[1:35:21] on the town side of things.
[1:35:23] So first steps first is doing this.
[1:35:26] I think if people wanna donate, feel free to.
[1:35:30] I am not basing my decision on that
[1:35:34] we should approve something
[1:35:36] because we think it's the right thing to do, not
[1:35:39] because the community is helping us fund it,
[1:35:41] in my opinion at least.
[1:35:45] And what else, just
[1:35:51] to restate, I know we're not here yet,
[1:35:53] but at this point I wouldn't vote in favor
[1:35:55] of anything beyond the study.
[1:35:58] It's at a minimum hundreds of thousands
[1:36:00] of dollars in a match for construction, which is untenable
[1:36:04] for me given all the other priorities we have,
[1:36:06] including people without water in town, the need
[1:36:08] of water line ran and improvements and things like that.
[1:36:12] There's just so many other things
[1:36:13] that are more important when I consider putting the needs
[1:36:16] of the many ahead of one.
[1:36:17] This is one of those things where I'm thinking
[1:36:20] of the entire town.
[1:36:24] And then I wanted to read
[1:36:26] what Counselor Filson sent via email since she's not here to
[1:36:31] give her own opinion and is not here to vote.
[1:36:34] However, still wanted to make sure
[1:36:35] that her thoughts were heard.
[1:36:38] So she said, I'm in favor of the initial 12,000 investment
[1:36:42] for the engineering work.
[1:36:43] That said, I have major reservations about
[1:36:45] what happens if federal funding
[1:36:46] for construction doesn't come through.
[1:36:48] I know we won't have that answer for a few years,
[1:36:51] but I think it's worth managing expectations now,
[1:36:53] approving this 12,000 does not mean
[1:36:55] that the town will be writing a check
[1:36:57] for 1.2 million per mile if DOT funding doesn't
[1:37:00] materialize when the time comes.
[1:37:03] - Great, thank you Robert.
[1:37:08] - The rubber meets the road.
[1:37:11] I've lived here for over 60 years.
[1:37:14] I've seen a lot of change.
[1:37:18] All my playgrounds as a child
[1:37:21] are housing developments today, with the exception
[1:37:25] of of Knight's Pond.
[1:37:27] Dick Knight created that little oasis up there,
[1:37:33] but he wouldn't let anybody on the property except when
[1:37:36] the ice was frozen.
[1:37:37] He would allow us to go up
[1:37:38] and play hockey on it in the winter.
[1:37:40] And lots of fun playing hockey up there as a kid.
[1:37:48] We've, we've done a lot
[1:37:49] of things in this community over the years.
[1:37:52] It took us three tries to get a access to the water.
[1:37:58] We didn't get
[1:38:01] to Twin Brooks without some controversy.
[1:38:04] Everything we've done in this town has had the distractors
[1:38:08] and naysayers and, and negativity
[1:38:11] and a lot of it has been well warranted.
[1:38:15] But the, the fact of the matter is we've moved ahead
[1:38:19] and we've, we've created some real places of importance
[1:38:24] for the, for the town.
[1:38:26] I think about the things that I use.
[1:38:28] I I don't have a library card,
[1:38:30] but I support it wholeheartedly.
[1:38:34] I've been to Twin Brooks a couple of times to watch my,
[1:38:38] my kid, my son when he was a a skier
[1:38:41] or running cross country, I do use the town forest to hike
[1:38:46] on Sundays with my dogs.
[1:38:49] So there's a lot of amenities that over the years that,
[1:38:52] you know, I've supported with my tax dollars
[1:38:54] but haven't, haven't used.
[1:38:57] So I, I do support the expenditure of the $12,000.
[1:39:02] But I think what I want to have to show
[1:39:05] to everyone here this evening is perhaps a response to,
[1:39:09] to bill, to bill Young.
[1:39:12] We have a, a duty to spend every dollar
[1:39:17] equally and not frivolously.
[1:39:19] It's all done with responsibility.
[1:39:22] Tomorrow evening is probably the most,
[1:39:25] the biggest opportunity in my lifetime that I've seen.
[1:39:30] We're gonna have five communities, Falmouth, Yarmouth,
[1:39:33] Freeport, north Yarmouth, and Cumberland.
[1:39:36] The elected bodies of the town council's select boards
[1:39:39] and the school boards will sit down
[1:39:41] and talk about collaboration and not on a small scale,
[1:39:46] but on a large scale.
[1:39:48] So the, the idea that we just have money to,
[1:39:53] to spend freely is, is not, is not true,
[1:39:57] but I do think we're going to spend it wisely.
[1:40:00] So I I would hope that you folks would question
[1:40:04] how we spend $12,000 for a study on the rails,
[1:40:07] but also what you would come back next meeting
[1:40:10] and question us on how we sat down
[1:40:12] and discussed collaboration with five other communities
[1:40:15] because those are equally as important.
[1:40:18] Oh, I am gonna vote in favor
[1:40:19] of this this evening, Jeff.
[1:40:26] Yeah, I mean this is, this is a tough one.
[1:40:29] I mean a lot of people have sent voicemails
[1:40:33] and text messages and emails
[1:40:35] and I've met with people that have supported this
[1:40:39] and I've also met with people that weren't in favor of it.
[1:40:43] And I don't want to minimize the concerns of the abutters.
[1:40:50] I mean basically their backyard has been
[1:40:53] unchanged for decades.
[1:40:56] And you know, what I think is important for everyone
[1:40:58] to remember is this is change
[1:41:01] and change is un uncom uncomfortable for people at times.
[1:41:06] So, you know, just imagine all
[1:41:10] of a sudden your backyard becomes industrial zoned
[1:41:13] and somebody wants to build a modern car dealership
[1:41:15] or cement plant in the backyard.
[1:41:18] Probably pretty shocking to hear.
[1:41:20] So be try to be sympathetic of those, the, the abutters
[1:41:23] with this whole process.
[1:41:26] You know, I think there's a potential for this
[1:41:28] to do some really good stuff for the community.
[1:41:33] You know, flash vote, yeah, there was 367 votes
[1:41:36] and 59% of them supported the, the trail
[1:41:42] tonight we're just talking about the engineering
[1:41:44] of the trail, not the construction.
[1:41:46] There's no guarantee in my
[1:41:48] opinion, construction will follow.
[1:41:52] I'll be honest, and I've said it many times in these
[1:41:54] meetings, we really gotta figure out
[1:41:58] where our capital funding is gonna line up
[1:42:00] with stuff like this.
[1:42:02] You know, Lily talked about people about water.
[1:42:05] That's the top priority to me for people.
[1:42:07] West Cumberland talked about Greeley Road, talked about
[1:42:11] aging, rolling stock that the town owns
[1:42:13] and then somehow we gotta fit this in as well.
[1:42:16] And we hear about people's taxes concerns And I think
[1:42:21] that's what's really challenging is we can't show you folks
[1:42:26] the tangibles behind some of those numbers very easily.
[1:42:31] And that's something that I'd like to see us really work on
[1:42:34] so that when we talk about, let's just say we get
[1:42:37] to the point where there is construction funding to discuss
[1:42:40] with this, that when we start talking about say, $600,000,
[1:42:45] you can see where it fits and what the impact's gonna be.
[1:42:50] 'cause right now I think
[1:42:51] that's the most important thing we can have to try
[1:42:53] to make these decisions.
[1:42:55] 'cause otherwise I look at it
[1:42:56] as like I'm shooting from the hip up here right now.
[1:43:02] So I'm a gambling
[1:43:05] person to be honest with you.
[1:43:08] And if I had it my way, I'd play chicken
[1:43:13] with the state and say, you know what?
[1:43:15] You figure it out. But the abutters mean a lot to me
[1:43:20] and I do believe that
[1:43:24] being involved in the engineering part of this project
[1:43:28] is gonna help look out for their interest.
[1:43:31] And I will be honest with you, that's a big part as
[1:43:35] to why I am gonna look to approve in move in this direction.
[1:43:40] But, but you know, if I had it my way,
[1:43:43] I'd just play a game of chicken.
[1:43:45] So you go to Las Vegas,
[1:43:47] you can find me at the crafts tables.
[1:43:49] So that's, that's where I sit.
[1:43:52] - Anybody else? This is tough.
[1:43:56] I've, as long as I've been on the council,
[1:43:59] I've supported every trail proposal in this town.
[1:44:02] Every single one and never regretted a vote.
[1:44:07] We've always worked with our neighbors.
[1:44:12] I'm not there tonight. I can get there,
[1:44:15] I can get there at the Casco Bay Alliance
[1:44:18] and the state works with the Abutters, but they haven't.
[1:44:24] Casco Bay Alliance, trail Alliance
[1:44:26] and the State ignore the Abutters for the last two years.
[1:44:31] And that really hit home.
[1:44:32] 'cause most of these people I grew up with,
[1:44:34] I've known since we were, I was a kid
[1:44:38] and I can't turn my back on 'em.
[1:44:40] When, when we were doing other projects in town looking
[1:44:43] for us land for Salt shed, we listened to our neighbors,
[1:44:48] we listened to every single one
[1:44:50] of our neighbors when they came up and they opposed it.
[1:44:52] And we finally found a spot.
[1:44:54] But I voted against those spots
[1:44:55] because I listened to the neighbors and their concerns.
[1:45:01] If nothing else, my vote tonight is a vote of support
[1:45:05] for the the Abutters.
[1:45:09] But I'm just letting you guys know, I can get there.
[1:45:12] You can get me there as long as we keep listening
[1:45:16] to the abutters and the people's concerns.
[1:45:22] And if, if, if you can, if the state
[1:45:26] and Casco Bay can meet these people at least
[1:45:29] halfway, you can bring me over.
[1:45:32] But for tonight, I'm voting in support of
[1:45:36] the abutters, the majority of the abutters.
[1:45:41] And that's all I got. But I just want to, just a final note.
[1:45:46] We had the, oh, a month
[1:45:48] or so ago we had the workshop on this trail.
[1:45:53] And in my 14 years on the council,
[1:45:55] it's probably the best one.
[1:45:57] It was well attended. It, it was so good.
[1:46:01] The back and forth and the people that were pro portray
[1:46:06] really listened to the people, the Abutters
[1:46:10] and the Abutters were listening to the Pro Trail people.
[1:46:12] And that's, and I made the comment afterwards,
[1:46:15] that's really a great civic le lesson
[1:46:17] and I feel the same way tonight.
[1:46:19] You guys have been great.
[1:46:22] This is this, this is good stuff
[1:46:25] and just makes you a lot more proud to be part of this town.
[1:46:29] So with that,
[1:46:30] do we have anything else from the council on it?
[1:46:35] No. Do we have a motion?
[1:46:38] - I'll give you one. Mr. Chairman, a move
[1:46:41] to appropriate $12,000 to support the preliminary design
[1:46:44] and engineering of the Casco Bay trial.
[1:46:47] - We have a second. - I will second
[1:46:50] - Any more discussion from the council.
[1:46:53] We have a motion and a second.
[1:46:55] All those in favor and wanna post?
[1:46:59] Thank you very much folks.
[1:47:01] Tonight really, really was a good night. Thank you.
[1:47:10] - Everyone wants to leave. I can't understand why
[1:47:12] - We haven't even gotten to new business yet.
[1:47:16] - Thanks. - I'm gonna like talk about this
[1:47:19] - Park.
[1:47:24] Well
[1:47:25] - Done.
[1:47:26] We're not done yet. Do people know that we're not done yet?
[1:47:28] - No, we're not done. We're not done yet.
[1:47:29] All right, if we can, we gonna go into new business?
[1:47:34] - Send me an email. Thank you.
[1:47:44] - New business. We'd start with you last week, Bob,
[1:47:47] we'll start with last meeting Bill.
[1:47:51] - Sure. So new business.
[1:47:55] I think we heard earlier about the, the,
[1:47:58] the concerns about the playground, right?
[1:48:00] - I can't really hear you. Oh, we're gonna have
[1:48:02] to wait till people quiet down
[1:48:08] or exit the room, preferably.
[1:48:11] - Thank you so much. Thanks Retirement.
[1:48:14] You gotta start shaving while you're retired. Thanks.
[1:48:17] - They're not, they don't see my motions.
[1:48:20] - Alright, bill, go ahead. New business. All
[1:48:22] - Right, so new business.
[1:48:24] I, I heard the comments from the folks about the playground
[1:48:29] and I went to Trail Fest the other day
[1:48:31] and Nice spoke with folks about that.
[1:48:34] Had several folks speak with me about that there.
[1:48:36] So I don't know what the best way is to
[1:48:41] kind of hear their concerns.
[1:48:43] I know Mr.
[1:48:44] Manager that, you know, you've direct folks to come in
[1:48:47] and talk with the folks at, you know, Peter Brigham Jr.
[1:48:52] With the folks at Parks
[1:48:53] and Recreation there to, to, you know,
[1:48:55] get their concerns in there.
[1:48:59] But I do, you know, there is, you know,
[1:49:01] Sarah obviously spoke kind of passionately about the
[1:49:06] concern about the process, et cetera.
[1:49:08] So I don't know what the best path is forward to,
[1:49:11] to go forward with this
[1:49:13] and you know, how we listen to their concerns and,
[1:49:18] and, and implement those.
[1:49:20] You know, I know we are down a path already
[1:49:22] and I'm not suggesting that we stop the path,
[1:49:24] but, you know, are there ways to improve it?
[1:49:26] So I think that's something
[1:49:27] that I would encourage the down staff to go forward with
[1:49:31] and see if we can get some input
[1:49:34] and maybe recommendations to move forward.
[1:49:37] 'cause I don't think this one's gonna go away.
[1:49:40] And then I also want to, I I did not do this last meeting,
[1:49:43] but I will, bill came up, bill Young came up
[1:49:46] and spoke about the traffic on, on Hedgerow.
[1:49:50] And I can tell you that when I walk there at night,
[1:49:55] frequently, especially around nine o'clock when
[1:49:59] Rachel closes,
[1:50:00] or it is a very busy area, it's, you know,
[1:50:03] folks running up hedgerow
[1:50:05] and, you know, speed bumps slow folks down.
[1:50:07] But, you know, I I don't know what the other,
[1:50:10] if there's other traffic calming things we can do to try
[1:50:13] to get people to go out Val Halla Road
[1:50:15] and go up, you know, Greeley Road instead.
[1:50:18] So that's that story.
[1:50:20] And then the other one I'd say is, I know this is coming up,
[1:50:23] but I would love to hear more about where we're going on,
[1:50:25] on the design of, of Greeley Road
[1:50:27] as well in the future. Thanks.
[1:50:29] - Thanks Phil. Jeff.
[1:50:32] - All right. $20 for the food pantry
[1:50:36] and despite yesterday's weather, I took some time
[1:50:38] to visit the Cumberland Fair and
[1:50:41] - Brave - Man.
[1:50:42] Just want to thank our fire department
[1:50:43] and our police department for their dedication
[1:50:46] and support in this event.
[1:50:48] They were out in rain gear
[1:50:51] and, you know, not just hiding under a a building
[1:50:54] and they were doing their job
[1:50:56] and representing us very well as a town
[1:50:57] and excellent level of professionalism.
[1:51:00] And I think it's goes without saying
[1:51:03] but you know, it involves people stepping up
[1:51:06] and working additional hours and overtime.
[1:51:08] And I think it's only fair
[1:51:10] that we acknowledge those employees for doing so this week.
[1:51:13] So, you know,
[1:51:19] just had two difficult items that we had to discuss tonight.
[1:51:23] Talked about housing and we talked about this rail trail
[1:51:27] and I know I'm a broken record
[1:51:29] 'cause I've already said it twice tonight,
[1:51:31] but I really feel we owe our citizens
[1:51:35] some tangible items behind our upcoming capital expenses
[1:51:40] and showing them, yeah, when we finance, you know,
[1:51:45] 600,000 is needed.
[1:51:46] What is behind the 600,000?
[1:51:50] So, and I, and here's why I'm really asking for it.
[1:51:54] You know, we talked about the new committee with working
[1:51:57] with the school, it's already Bill
[1:52:00] already hit home about it.
[1:52:01] It's gonna be a challenging year
[1:52:03] of upcoming school expenses.
[1:52:05] We know we're gonna have a challenging year,
[1:52:08] but come budget time,
[1:52:10] we're gonna find some expense that's gonna be critical.
[1:52:12] And if I can go to that committee
[1:52:16] and maybe show what that critical expense is,
[1:52:20] and not just dollars and cents, but what it actually is
[1:52:23] and what it provides to citizens.
[1:52:26] Does it open some eyes? I, I don't know.
[1:52:28] But I look at what's the why behind the money.
[1:52:31] And that's what I'm trying to get to.
[1:52:35] You know, we talk about housing
[1:52:37] and rail trail, where does it all fit in?
[1:52:40] Because there's some expenses we can't just put off.
[1:52:45] I sleep pretty ni well at night
[1:52:46] knowing I have a good ambulance.
[1:52:49] So, you know, I don't wanna put us in a position
[1:52:51] where we're putting stuff off like that with our population.
[1:52:55] We, we need those things.
[1:52:58] So With that all being said,
[1:53:03] I, I'd like to try
[1:53:04] to formally discuss this a little bit more on
[1:53:06] what we can provide our citizens with visibility.
[1:53:11] So I, I don't know what your thoughts are,
[1:53:13] but I think it'd be nice to talk about it, you know,
[1:53:15] sooner rather than later.
[1:53:17] Matt, I don't know if you have any ideas
[1:53:18] or anything you could, you could share
[1:53:19] of us maybe in the next meeting,
[1:53:22] but it, it'd be nice just to put it on this agenda item and,
[1:53:26] and if the six other people on this board say
[1:53:30] it's the wrong way to go, then I'm gonna drop it. No,
[1:53:32] - I'm gonna say that - Neither.
[1:53:34] I'm just trying to give everyone the visibility
[1:53:36] so they can understand where the funding's gonna come from.
[1:53:38] Because at the end of the day, I really don't want
[1:53:42] to tax people outta their homes
[1:53:44] and I don't want to promote one thing
[1:53:47] to cause other people in this town to struggle.
[1:53:50] It's, we talk about sustainability
[1:53:52] and I want to be sustainable
[1:53:54] for everyone and that's my goal.
[1:53:56] So that's just why I'm asking for this.
[1:53:58] 'cause I think the only way we can do it is
[1:54:00] to have the data and the tangibles. Thank you.
[1:54:03] - Thanks Jeff. Lily.
[1:54:07] - All right. Have you heard anything about
[1:54:12] an ETA on when the first meeting of that mini tricom
[1:54:17] committee will meet?
[1:54:20] - As of the, the end of the day today? No. Okay. But just
[1:54:24] - Curious.
[1:54:25] - I, I, I think they were just,
[1:54:28] I think the school chair was,
[1:54:30] I think she was taking point on that. Okay. So
[1:54:32] - Good deal.
[1:54:33] Just figure out check shortly.
[1:54:35] - Like I can reach out to the superintendent
[1:54:37] to see if they have an update.
[1:54:38] I'll see 'em tomorrow. So,
[1:54:40] - Okay.
[1:54:42] Thank you for doing the overview
[1:54:43] of the Twinbrook playground.
[1:54:45] How we got here and clearing up the PFAS thing.
[1:54:49] I understand about PFAS testing.
[1:54:51] It had only tests for a little bit of substances.
[1:54:53] That was my main beef with the turf field.
[1:54:58] There was an email suggesting that if I was
[1:55:01] anti infilled turf field,
[1:55:03] I should also be anti poured rubber surface.
[1:55:05] I don't feel that those are the same thing.
[1:55:08] One is hundreds of tons of crumb rubber that is
[1:55:12] getting inhaled and kicked up
[1:55:14] and washing into the environment poured rubber.
[1:55:17] Especially if it's PAS free by, you know, all intents
[1:55:22] and purposes you can't guarantee it
[1:55:25] is probably the best surface for a DA compatibility.
[1:55:29] And there's poured rubber on the track, I believe,
[1:55:31] or on the school track.
[1:55:35] Yeah, so it's just saying,
[1:55:39] I don't think those are two equal things.
[1:55:42] I was looking at what was available
[1:55:45] regarding the whole parks decision
[1:55:47] and I was able to find that there was an agenda
[1:55:50] and pretty detailed minutes on the town website under the
[1:55:53] parks and rec advisory board for the months
[1:55:57] of February, March, April, and May.
[1:55:59] And then it wasn't a specific agenda item,
[1:56:03] however, it was talked about extensively
[1:56:05] during the manager's report on Monday, June 29th when
[1:56:08] Pete Bingham gave us a slide deck overview of the project
[1:56:13] and where we're at and what they determined
[1:56:16] there was the issue of dogs.
[1:56:18] We have discussed this a little bit
[1:56:19] and I think we had asked the ordinance committee
[1:56:22] to revisit dogs potentially at this playground,
[1:56:26] if not banning them entirely.
[1:56:29] And I think that was going to be looked at along
[1:56:30] with the chicken ordinance.
[1:56:33] Do we have any updates on that?
[1:56:35] Have you guys thought about talking about
[1:56:37] that a little more chair of
[1:56:40] - The audience to I'll come home to roost eventually.
[1:56:42] Exactly. I I have avoided even thinking about that. You
[1:56:46] - Better do it.
[1:56:49] So yeah. Dogs and chickens, yes
[1:56:51] - Please.
[1:56:52] We will, we will get to that. Okay. We will get,
[1:56:54] - Get to that.
[1:56:55] So there's that. I don't want
[1:56:58] to sour the potentially wonderful new era
[1:57:03] of collaboration with North Yarmouth Select board.
[1:57:06] I would ask that perhaps as a show of good faith
[1:57:10] that perhaps maybe our first
[1:57:13] new joint standing committee we could ask them if they would
[1:57:15] like to revisit the cost sharing agreement
[1:57:17] with the school board rather than us having to do a petition
[1:57:19] if we wanna just get to it.
[1:57:22] Perhaps they feel a little bit differently about it now.
[1:57:25] So that's a question. I think the last thing is
[1:57:31] still waiting
[1:57:32] for our last remaining council priorities survey
[1:57:36] to be delivered to me.
[1:57:38] And I will compile that stuff and put it in a readable form.
[1:57:42] I think that we are gonna do a workshop to talk about
[1:57:45] that along with the council work plan,
[1:57:47] which I think would be a really good opportunity
[1:57:49] to talk about Jeff's thing.
[1:57:51] 'cause it kind of goes with that,
[1:57:52] getting all the stuff in a readable form.
[1:57:56] And I don't remember if that was October 13th. Yes.
[1:57:58] Or 26th. October.
[1:57:59] - October 13th. Okay. - Okay.
[1:58:00] So I will have survey results for you guys at
[1:58:05] that time. October 13th.
[1:58:07] - Right? - Just been waiting, waiting on you Bill
[1:58:10] if you wanna submit them. That's it
[1:58:13] - Andrew.
[1:58:16] - I'll try to be short and sweet.
[1:58:18] October 7th at seven o'clock.
[1:58:20] The LCC has its meeting,
[1:58:22] it's monthly meeting here in cons chambers.
[1:58:25] And so that's not next week, but the week after.
[1:58:29] So I think that's it
[1:58:32] - Robert.
[1:58:34] Okay. Tomorrow night go time.
[1:58:37] This is, this is in response to you Jeff.
[1:58:41] I hope you've spent a lot
[1:58:42] of time thinking about tomorrow night
[1:58:44] because I have thought a lot about tomorrow night.
[1:58:49] This is where we have an opportunity to
[1:58:53] show the public what leadership can be.
[1:58:59] Five communities are gonna get together tomorrow.
[1:59:02] Five select boards, count count, town councils
[1:59:06] and school boards.
[1:59:09] The challenge, this comes from the executive director
[1:59:13] of Greater Poland Council of Government.
[1:59:15] The group will focus on the political will
[1:59:18] for substantial collaboration,
[1:59:20] which would likely involve communities giving up some local
[1:59:23] control and or sharing resources.
[1:59:27] This will not be a discussion about smaller efforts
[1:59:29] with small returns, but rather gauges their genuine interest
[1:59:33] and will for difficult collaborative work.
[1:59:39] You know, I've got lots of ideas, you know,
[1:59:41] and I've got lots of ideas how, how we can,
[1:59:44] the schools can collaborate, you know,
[1:59:47] and we had an exercise here a couple weeks ago about cutting
[1:59:50] 5% outta municipal budget.
[1:59:52] You know, what, what does that exercise look like
[1:59:55] and how do we offset that 5% by collaborating
[1:59:59] with other communities?
[2:00:01] I've said this a number of times, I'll say it one more time.
[2:00:05] Hancock Lumber has 800 employees in three different states.
[2:00:09] They have one person who does payroll.
[2:00:14] The opportunity for the schools
[2:00:17] to have a single payroll system, the municipalities
[2:00:20] to have a single payroll system is not rocket science.
[2:00:24] It's, you know, the rest
[2:00:26] of the country operates on a larger scale.
[2:00:27] The entire state of Maine.
[2:00:32] There was an accident on the turnpike the other night.
[2:00:35] Ronnie Copp relayed this story to me.
[2:00:38] This, the accident was in gray.
[2:00:40] Cumberland responded first
[2:00:42] 'cause they could get up the turnpike headed north.
[2:00:44] By the time the whole thing was done,
[2:00:46] there was three communities involved.
[2:00:47] Gray found with and Cumberland with six pieces
[2:00:50] of apparatus on the road.
[2:00:52] You know, so the idea that shared services
[2:00:57] can't be extended beyond the property lines of a community.
[2:01:02] We can't go, we, we can't, can't do that anymore.
[2:01:05] The tax burden that's coming with our next tax bill,
[2:01:08] with the school coming on board with
[2:01:12] the debt load, additional staffing,
[2:01:17] it's imperative that we all sit down tomorrow night
[2:01:19] with a degree of seriousness about what we can do, what we,
[2:01:25] what is the will, the political will of, of
[2:01:29] just not John, not just us, but all of us.
[2:01:33] I think we all have to come tomorrow night with, you know,
[2:01:36] fresh ideas, you know, and we are ready to try something.
[2:01:41] The alternative is more taxes.
[2:01:45] Oh, I'll add one piece of good news.
[2:01:49] This also, this also came from Ronnie Co.
[2:01:52] The, and i, I, I think it's spelled MERE
[2:01:55] but i I, I know I can't pronounce it.
[2:01:58] Mayor, mayor, mayor.
[2:01:59] They had an opening day the other day
[2:02:01] and Ronnie said they were people lined up across the street.
[2:02:04] - Oh, that's great. Safety. Yeah. 25 deep out the door.
[2:02:08] - That's awesome. - At a minimum.
[2:02:11] - I have a question for Bob. Hey Bob.
[2:02:15] On those meetings that you guys were having in Yarmouth,
[2:02:18] like kind of leading up to all of this, did,
[2:02:21] was there a consensus yet on what you guys are thinking of?
[2:02:25] Are we talking about like consolidating fire EMS is
[2:02:29] or is that like that you're talking about large stuff?
[2:02:31] Yeah, like large scale stuff.
[2:02:33] So is that what this anonymous
[2:02:35] vote will be tomorrow is seeing
[2:02:37] what people are actually willing to do?
[2:02:40] - I really don't know. Okay. Christine is a Jan Jen.
[2:02:43] We had a, a couple of meetings
[2:02:45] and out of that meeting was the, the decision
[2:02:48] that we should involve everybody.
[2:02:50] Yeah. And, and the fact that we got the schools to agree
[2:02:53] to come, I think it was, it was substantial
[2:02:56] good news for all of us.
[2:02:57] So I don't, we don't, I don't have any preconceived ideas of
[2:03:01] where tomorrow night is gonna go.
[2:03:04] I'd like to think that I would know
[2:03:06] how it might play out, but
[2:03:08] - If anything, people get to hang out and eat food and meet
[2:03:12] - Each - New people.
[2:03:13] Yeah. Cool.
[2:03:19] - Alright. I had some stuff tonight,
[2:03:22] but I don't think I'll wait.
[2:03:26] Bob, I really enjoyed the discussion earlier.
[2:03:30] Six o'clock on the housing. Thank you Bill.
[2:03:34] Bob, it was very good.
[2:03:36] Just want to repeat
[2:03:38] what I said earlier tonight was a great exercise
[2:03:41] and good civics
[2:03:45] and you know, we'll, we'll, we'll,
[2:03:48] we'll work together as a community.
[2:03:51] So that being said,
[2:03:55] we're gonna go into executive session.
[2:03:57] Do we have, somebody will give us a motion.
[2:04:00] - I'll give you a motion. I moved to recess
[2:04:03] to executive session pursuant to title one MRSA 4 0 5 6 C
[2:04:08] regarding acquisition of real property
[2:04:10] and 4 0 5 6 A regarding a personnel matter.
[2:04:16] - Second.
[2:04:22] - All those in favor? Goodnight folks.
[2:04:26] Thank you. That's, thank
[2:04:27] - You.