Town Meeting 2023: Here’s a look at what’s on the ballots in Kennebunk, Ogunquit and more

Voters throughout southern Maine will head to the polls for their annual town meetings on Tuesday, June 13, and will tackle both election races and high-profile proposals for the coming fiscal year.

If you’re in Wells, that means considering capping the number of marijuana shops in the community. If you’re in Kennebunkport, it means deciding whether the town should purchase its first public boat launch. And if you’re in Ogunquit, you will vote on whether to approve a $12 million makeover of the town’s municipal campus.

Here are a few of the highlights on the ballot in the York County Coast Star coverage area.

Kennebunk seeking 23% budget hike

Voters on June 13 will tackle a new budget that proposes an increase of 23% over the current year to the town’s net operating budget.

As for proposed expenses, the budget shows a 16% increase over last year, as explained by Town Manager Heather Balser in Kennebunk’s online voter guide. Broken down, general government services are proposed to be up more than $950,000, or 14.7%, from last year, while public safety is up $631,454, or 10.8%, public services, $315,181, or 11%, and recreation, $125,039, or 15%, for example.

Projected revenues and the proposed use of the General Fund Balance are showing a 4% increase from the current fiscal year.

The overall 23% increase to the net operating budget is attributable to the 16.8% increase to expenditures, according to Balser. A 4% increase in revenues is projected.

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In the voter guide, Balser explained that expense increases in the proposed budget are due to fluctuating fuel rates, a 5.2% jump in health insurance, higher costs in organic pesticides, and the creation of 10 new positions, with benefits, among other factors.

The new positions include a lister-appraiser for the town’s assessing division; a code enforcement-land use officer and an administrative assistant for the community development division; a detective and a traffic officer for the Police Department; and four firefighters and a deputy chief of operations for the Fire Department.

Balser added that post-COVID, materials and supplies are seeing an increase of 5% to 7% in costs.

“We are still experiencing an inflationary economic environment,” Balser said.

All factored, the budget calls for a 10% jump in the town’s contribution to the mil rate, according to Balser.

Currently, the town’s mil rate is $14.60 per thousand of property valuation. As proposed, the rate would jump to $16.16 after the proposed county and RSU 21 budgets are factored for the final result.

Under the current mil rate, a home valued at $380,000 would result in an annual tax of $5,548 for the property owner. Under the $16.16 mil rate projected for Fiscal Year 2024, that amount would be $6,140.80 for the same property at the same value.

Voters on June 13 also will be deciding whether to approve the RSU 21 budget.

There is just one contested race on the Kennebunk ballot. Incumbent Robert Emmons is defending his position as a trustee of the Kennebunk-Kennebunkport-Wells Water District and is facing a challenge from June Huston, who is aiming for the five-year post on the ballot.

From there, new faces on the Kennebunk Select Board are guaranteed when voters report to the polls. While incumbent Selectperson Bill Ward is seeking re-election on the ballot, fellow Selectperson Sally Carpenter is not. Ward and newcomer Kevin Therrien are both unchallenged on the ballot.

Kennebunk also will be sending two newcomers to serve on the RSU 21 School Board, as incumbents Art LeBlanc and Dawn Therrien are not seeking new terms. Leah Bares and Leslie Stoeffler are running unopposed for those seats.

Voting is open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the Town Hall Auditorium on Summer Street.

Kennebunkport eyes purchase of first public boat launch

In Kennebunkport on June 13, voters will decide whether to seize what Select Board Chair Ed Hutchins has called a “golden opportunity,” which is for the community to have its first-ever public boat launch.

The need for such a launch has been prioritized in the town’s comprehensive plans of 2012 and 2022. In recent times, a town committee looked at 17 potential sites for a launch, evaluating each one for access, ownership, environmental conditions, and the ease with which it could be developed.

Using such criteria, the committee recommended the launch owned by Harold and Louise Mooney on Langsford Road. Selectmen were able to negotiate a purchase-and-sale agreement with the Mooneys for $275,000. Now all that’s needed is voter approval.

If given the go-ahead, the town will use existing funds from its capital reserve account for the purchase.

'Golden opportunity': Kennebunkport eyes purchase of first public boat launch

Voting will take place at the Village Fire Station at 32 North Street, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Also on the ballot is a request to authorize an easement for St. Ann’s Episcopal Church. The easement would allow the congregation to access town-owned land as it rebuilds and maintains part of its seawall, which was damaged during the big storm on Dec. 23.

Voters will also be asked to move the town’s second portion of the annual town meeting from Saturday, when it has traditionally been held, to the day after the election on the second Tuesday in June.

Also, voters will be asked to amend the criteria for membership on the Cape Porpoise Pier Committee and amend the town’s Land Use Ordinance as it pertains to accessory apartments and private road construction.

As for the election races, voters will encounter nothing but fresh faces when they cast their ballots on June 13.

Newcomers George Bentley and Mary Beth Gilbert are vying for one seat on the Kennebunk Select Board. Chair Ed Hutchins has opted against seeking another term.

Two more newcomers, Susan Holleran and Timothy Spang, are competing for one seat on the RSU 21 School Board. Like Hutchins, incumbent Louis Braxton, Jr. also is not seeking reelection.

Wells mulls cannabis cap in town

Voters will address election races and 24 ballot questions, including the budget and a request to hire four new firefighters, when they report to the polls on Tuesday, June 13. Voting is from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Wells Junior High School gym at 1470 Post Road.

On the warrant, voters will be asked to approve a retroactive ordinance that seeks to cap the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the community at three.

In May, Select Board Chair John MacLeod III said the proposed ordinance is the town's effort to give local voters a say in how many dispensaries are allowed in the community. Such a say was not needed when the ordinance was passed in 2011, given that the state at the time had limited the number of dispensaries per health district in Maine to one. That limit per district no longer exists.

Currently, Curaleaf is the only open and operating dispensary in town. This year, however, the Wells Planning Board has approved three applications for dispensaries to open at sites along Post Road. If voters pass the ordinance, then the fourth successful applicant, Marks Organix, would not be allowed to operate in town.

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Also on the warrant, in addition to routine budget items, the town is seeking $32,432, combined, to increase the working hours of the assessing clerk and a library assistant.

As well, the town is requesting 10 new positions. Those positions include $78,771 for a new assistant code enforcement officer, $94,918 for an assistant fire chief, $110,774 for two dispatchers, $122,758 for two police officers and $443,336 for four firefighters.

The additional positions, according to the warrant, are being proposed so that the town can more fully serve a growing local population.

The only contested race on the ballot is a two-person race for one seat on the Wells Select Board. Incumbent Tom Roche is being challenged by newcomer James Smith.

The Wells-Ogunquit Community School District will hold its annual budget meeting at Wells Junior High School on Wednesday, June 7, at 6 p.m. Voters then will have an opportunity to validate the budget at the polls on June 13.

As for political races, incumbent Tom Roche is facing a challenge on the ballot from newcomer James Smith in his bid for three more years on the Wells Select Board.

The continuation of the annual town meeting will be held at the Kennebunkport Consolidated School at 25 School Street on Saturday, June 17, at 9 a.m. At this time, voters will weigh in on proposed finances for the town’s 2023-2024 fiscal year and will vote to validate the RSU 21 budget.

Ogunquit seeks $12 million for new municipal campus

In all, voters in Ogunquit will settle 74 articles on the warrant June 13, including budget expenditures, ordinance amendments and a $12 million request to revamp the town campus.

The polls will be open at the Dunaway Center at 23 School Street from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The big-ticket item on the ballot is the town campus project. The proposal calls for the demolition of a portion of the Village School to make way for the new town hall and police department.

The new town hall and police department would cost $9.3 million, while the demolition of the Village School to make way for the project would come in at $60,000. Plans to renovate the Dunaway Center – the current home for municipal offices and the police department – into a community center are estimated at $2.3 million. Lastly, $300,000 would be needed to relocate and level the basketball court and playground that currently stand in between the Dunaway Center and the Village School.

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As for the candidates on the June 13 ballot, the race to fill two seats on the town’s Budget Board is the one to watch. Three candidates are competing for two seats. Challenger Boriana Dolliver will try to oust one of the two incumbents, Vice Chair Peter Kahn and Secretary Peter Griswold, both of who are bidding for new terms.

Incumbent Heath Ouellette is not seeking reelection to the Ogunquit Select Board, so fellow selectperson Rick Dolliver and candidate Michael Collins are certain to secure the two three-year seats that are on the ballot.

Lastly, incumbent Heather Sittig has the race to represent her hometown on the WOCSD School Committee for three more years all to herself.

The Wells-Ogunquit Community School District will hold its annual budget meeting at Wells Junior High School on Wednesday, June 7, at 6 p.m. Voters then will have an opportunity to validate the budget at the polls on June 13.

Contested races for Select Board, School Board in Arundel

Voters in Arundel will settle two contested races when they report to the town office at 257 Limerick Road on Tuesday, June 13. Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Incumbent Select Board member Thomas Danylik is being challenged by Rodney Sparkowich. Also, newcomers Charles Bassett and Kirstin Shapiro are running to represent Arundel for a three-year term on the RSU 21 School Board. Incumbent Ken Levesque is not seeking re-election.

A second, separate term on the School Board also is on the ballot. Unless there is a successful write-in candidacy, Britney Gerth is assured to keep serving a term to which she was appointed by the Select Board in April. Gerth succeeded Ryan McQueen, who resigned in March as a result of public controversy over some of his posts on social media.

Previous story: Arundel appoints Britney Gerth to RSU 21 School Board after resignation

Also on June 13, voters will be asked to validate the RSU 21 budget for the coming fiscal year.

Voters will return to the municipal office at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 14, to vote on 39 warrant articles. On that evening, the community will vote on the proposed 2023-24 municipal budget, which, in addition to annual housekeeping requests, also seeks $70,000 for the first year’s payment on a new ambulance and $45,000 for the purchase of a new cruiser to support the local deputy of the York County Sheriff’s Department.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, Ogunquit, Wells to decide budgets, elections