B'field voters approve four warrant articles

BUCKFIELD — Approximately 30 residents voted on four warrant articles during a special town meeting December 8.

After electing Glen Holmes as moderator, voters enacted a special entertainment ordinance, approved the adoption of the Maine Public Employees Retirement System and agreed to support a possible court decision to rescind a conservation easement the town enacted in 2003.

The easement was approved by voters to protect a stream on the property when it was being considered for a subdivision, before the current owner, Dale Eichorn, purchased the land.

Eichorn says she has no intention of developing the property, and residents' support of the court's decision allows it to remove the easement more easily.

The special entertainment ordinance allows the town to issue permits for live  entertainment to establishments licensed to sell alcohol – the permit would be valid for a year.

The ordinance was drafted by Jason Rowe, part owner of Captain Bly's Tavern, a new restaurant and bar set to open in town.

Several residents, including people who live near the tavern, expressed concern that the ordinance could permit loud live music and increase the chances that people would over-indulge.

Some worried that the tavern itself could lead to more impaired drivers and harmful behavior in the community.

Rowe, a Hartford resident, said there were no plans to turn Captain Bly's into a "party" spot.

His idea was to have some musicians play at lunch and maybe during the evenings, Rowe said, but not to have full-size bands playing late at night.

His goal was to make food 75 percent of the new establishments' sales, Rowe told residents – he wasn't intending to make Captain Bly's just a bar.

Rowe reminded residents that the ordinance would apply to anyone who served alcohol and wanted to have live entertainment, not just the new tavern.

Responding to concerns that a permit could allow late-night entertainment, Town Manager Dana Lee said the ordinance allowed the board of selectmen to limit the hours of live entertainment the permit applied to.

Residents approved the ordinance in a two-thirds vote.

Voters also agreed to join the Maine Public Employees Retirement System as a participating local district.

Adopting MPERS gives town employees a choice between the state plan and the town's current plan, a private IRA.

The plan allowed full-time town employees to pay into the system and start receiving benefits after five years, Lee said.

The town paid a 3-percent match under its current plan and would need to pay a 3.4-percent match with MPERS, Lee said.

No employee would be required to switch, said Selectwoman Martha Catevenis – employees could make their own decision whether to stay with the old plan or move to the new one.

Adopting the new system might also attract highly-qualified applicants to any open positions in town, Lee said.

Four recent applicants for a road foreman position declined the job at least partially because they would be unable to carry over their MPERS benefits to a new job with the town.