On June 13, Standish residents will vote on two referendum questions.
The first question is whether to approve the $325,000 purchase of a parcel of land on 270 Northeast Road as a site for a new community center.
Town Manager Gordon Billington thinks the site is a good location for a community center. “It’s in the center of town, in very close proximity to the municipal center, on a major arterial, a corner lot with access to public water,” he said.
The second question on the ballot is for the approval of $609,300 for the following items:
•Purchase of a used excavator with rubber tracks: $30,000
•Purchase of a 14-yard Wheeler Highway Truck: $145,000
•Pavement Maintenance: $236,000
•Road Rehabilitation: $50,100
•North East Road Extension Realignment: $105,000
•Pave Brush Storage Area: $12,000
•White Bridge/Route 35 Intersection: $31,200
The pavement maintenance and road rehabilitation involve reconstruction of roads that are on a priority list for maintenance, including Corey Lane, Dolloff Road, Liza Lane, Middle Jam Road, Spear Road, Sunrise Street, and Twin Springs Drive.
Billington said this follows a long-term plan to keep all the town roads maintained.
“We have a ten year capital improvement plan, which lists all of the roads in the town that are going to be improved over a ten year period, so it follows our capital improvement plan to get to each road about every 10 to 12 years. They [the roads] are all reviewed on an annual basis by our capital improvement committee,” he said.
Public Works director Roger Mosley estimates that most of the pavement maintenance and road rehabilitation should be completed by the fall.
Town Councilor Larry Simpson said repairing roads for a solid 10 to 12 years will save money in the long run, “This isn’t just a band aid that will last a few years.”
Question #2 also calls for a realignment of Northeast Road Extension, an extension of Route 35 that goes to the edge of Sebego Lake.
“Right now, the travel lane going to the waterfront actually moves outside the right of way; this will bring it back to the right of way that the town owns,” said Billington, “The Portland Water District has ordered us to move the travel lane back into the right of way, so we are currently under a court order.”
Also on the agenda is the White Bridge/Route 35 road intersection project, which Billington refers to as a “high priority” for the town and the Department of Transportation. “[The White Bridge/Route 35 Intersection] is the highest accident location in the town, and there’s quite a volume of traffic that goes through that intersection. It is at a brow of a hill and it is difficult for people coming through Route 35 to see people waiting at the intersection. The Department of Transportation has proposed improving it under a safety enhancement project.”
Funding for the $609,300 will come from two sources – $140,635 from reserve funding, while the $468,665 remaining will be issued in general obligation bonds.
Polls on June 13 open at 6 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.
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