Thumbs down to the City of Biddeford for providing trash pickup and snowplowing on some private roads for several years. No doubt there were reasons for this practice, but taxpayer money cannot be used to maintain and provide services to roads that are private. Worse, the city is doing it for some private roads and not others, which opened it up to litigation.
It would have been appropriate for the city’s Public Works department to review which roads are private and discontinue service to them long ago. Unfortunately, it has now taken an expensive lawsuit to get the city to consider stopping those services come April.
Thumbs up to the Biddeford School Committee for its decision to hold a workshop to allow parents and professional health workers to discuss air quality concerns at the high school. The school department has handled complaints about the school’s air quality by having studies done there, and reports show that the air is acceptable. Cleaning staff have already stepped up their efforts in response to health complaints from students and staff. However, school officials need to do more to accommodate those students who are negatively affected by the school environment to the point of being unable to attend.
Thumbs up to the Town of Sanford’s decision to finally enforce the section of its trash ordinance that requires landlords of buildings with five or more units to pay for their own trash disposal, as of March 1. A rental building of that size is an income property and should be treated like a business, not like an average residence. It is high time that landlords take responsibility for trash generated by their buildings, rather than having the taxpayers shoulder the cost, especially in the wake of the pay-as-you-throw ordinance defeat.
Thumbs up to Kennebunk Police Chief Robert MacKenzie for his completion of the exclusive FBI National Academy course and the optional “Yellow Brick Road” obstacle course that put his physical prowess to the test. MacKenzie said the course was inspiring and informational and we hope that he can convey much of what he was taught to not only his department but to others in the area as well. This knowledge can improve not only police work, but also quality of life for police officers themselves, both of which affect all of those who depend on them.
Thumbs up to the proposal before the Biddeford City Council to expand the allowed uses in the Biddeford Industrial Park. In these tough economic times, the city should do all it can to attract new businesses and those looking to move into nicer quarters. Only six types of uses are currently allowed in the park, which tightly restricts the economic development director’s efforts to court prospective tenants. These restrictions should be loosened to make the area available to various operations and broaden the city’s tax base.
— Thumbnails is a Monday feature of the Journal Tribune’s opinion pages. If you would like to respond, please write the Reader’s Forum via e-mail at jtcommunity@journaltribune.com or by dropping your letter off at our Biddeford or Sanford offices.
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