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Blethen Maine News Service Sunday, March 11, 2007

Voters at Saturday's town meeting agreed to fix the town's roads but still managed to shave $78,000 from the proposed overall municipal budget.

The $598,000 budget is up about $73,000 from 2006, Selectman Michael Cray said.

Voters agreed to take $300,000 from surplus to help offset property taxes, he said.

The largest reduction came in capital road improvements, cut from $90,000 to $40,000 at the suggestion of Road Commissioner Paul Gatcomb. Voters earlier had approved two articles dedicated to road improvement, so the extra $50,000 was unnecessary, Gatcomb said.

The town also was able to shave $11,000 for insurance fees, Cray said. Town clerk Joan Bradley is retiring and her replacement, Denise Butler, is not taking the town-paid health insurance, Cray said.

Voters were not afraid to spend, either. Residents approved a five-year plan to rebuild the town's roughly 14 miles of dirt roads. More than $800,000 will be spent during the five years, $226,000 of which will be taken out of surplus to begin ditching along roads this year.

Voters also appropriated $6,000 for improvements to the portable classroom unit behind the Town Hall.