Thumbs up to the Public Works Department in Sanford for its proposal to reduce the number of streets and roads that are cleared of leaves each autumn, as a way to stretch personnel recources. Already, there have been six layoffs at the department due to budget cuts this fiscal year, so the remaining workers cannot be expected to complete the same amount of work as in prior years.
This approach will allow workers to concentrate on more important projects. It won’t have much of an impact on the average resident, either, since the areas considered for elimination from the leaf program have few catch basins and most runoff discharges into ditches rather than pipe systems that can become clogged. Public Works Director Charles Andreson is making a smart move by choosing this program for cuts, and residents can still take their leaves to the transfer station on their own.
Thumbs down to the wrangling on the Arundel Board of Selectmen about fining Bentley’s Saloon owner Bentley Warren for having nine more campsites on his property than what is allowed by ordinance. Warren, who runs a campsite associated with the saloon, was found to be in violation of the ordinance in May and according to reports, took care of the violation as soon as he was asked to do so. In a small town, a friendly reminder should suffice unless a resident or business owner refuses to comply. In this case, and at this point in the season, it seems a fine is overkill and unnecessarily sets up an adversarial relationship between the town and the business owner. Being in violation of an ordinance is not the same as committing a crime, and the issue should be resolved in a friendly way whenever possible.
Thumbs up to the current Building Committee in Lyman for its efforts to finally move the town forward on improvements to the Cousens Memorial School building. Now that it has a new roof and drainage will be completed in the near future, water will finally be kept out of the building. Those improvements have been funded by the town, but it takes dedicated volunteers to organize the actual work. Once the building is shored up, an environmental study can be completed and townspeople will be able to decide if they want to reuse the building as a community center or sell it. We hope they see the value in preserving and renovating this building for town use and come together as a town to donate the labor necessary to bring it up to par.
Thumbs up to the Moroney family for its recent donation of the Star Landing property to the Sanford Springvale Mousam Way Land Trust. This eight-acre parcel will provide access to the Mousam River Water Trail, serve as a park for the Jagger Mill Road neighborhood, and offer outdoor classroom opportunities, all thanks to the family’s generosity. The lot has historic value as well, with remnants of the road that used to run through it 200 years ago, and is host to wetlands that are important to local wildlife. The Moroney family could have sold the property for profit but instead chose to preserve it for public use, and for that they will hold a place in Sanford history.
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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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