Selectmen mull casino costs, view dam video

02-45-ECS-Oxford Selectmen

by E.C. Shanor

OXFORD - A victory in the polls for casino supporters put the town management into overdrive to develop appropriate policies and procedures before the first gamblers place a bet.

A citizen, who announced that she was soon leaving for her winter home in New Jersey, asked the selectmen to proceed carefully, so as not to harm the character of the community she'd come to love.

Town Manager Mike Chammings informed the board that the committee to develop new policies and procedures for mass gatherings and the probability of a casino-resort being constructed has met. In addition to Chammings, the group consists of the police and fire chiefs, and the code enforcement officer. They have been meeting for some time, but will now be getting beyond generalities, he said.

For example, the plan proposed for a resort suggests a roof more than 35 feet high, the present highest allowable point. Also, although the police department will likely need to be expanded before the casino begins to grow, the revenue from taxes or contributions might not materialize for some time after opening day. For these and possibly many more, the time to begin thoughtful revisions is now.

Chammings also told the board that the video of the dam inspection was, at last, available.

The Thompson Lake Dam Advisory committee had seen the video at its meeting last month, but the selectmen viewed it as a group for the first time at their regular, November4, session. Actually, only a portion of the five-hour-long visual record was shown.  Chammings said he edited it down to a 20-minute version that only depicted the damaged area. He invited selectmen and the public to see the whole video.

"I watched it all. It's pretty boring," Chammings said. "If anybody wants to see it in its entirety, we'll set you up in a quiet place somewhere here [in the town office] with a laptop, and you can watch it."

The selectmen passed on Chammings' offer, indicating they'd get back to him about scheduling.

In other business, the selectmen voted to extend the Ocean Pearl restaurant's liquor license for another year. Chammings said the restaurant has had a license for more than five years, and the owners waived their right to a public hearing.

Police Chief Jon Tibbetts assured the selectmen that there had been no complaints involving the eating place, and the board approved the license renewal.

The selectmen signed the warrant paying the town's bills and wages, then adjourned, 28 minutes after calling the meeting to order.