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    • SAD 17 makes recommendations to legislators

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      OXFORD — State funding formulas and unreasonable achievement standards of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) initiative, as well as aspects of teacher requirements, Maine Care, and charter schools were topics of concern to area school administrators who met with state legislators on February 18.

      Rick Colpitts, superintendent of SAD 17, advocated for various changes in state law that would help the cash-strapped district.

      One factor that hurts local schools is the method of funding for Essential Programs and Services, or EPS, said administrators.

    • Towns express concern over excise tax legislation

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      AREA — Some towns are expressing concerns about a piece of state legislation that may threaten their revenue stream.

      Sen. Douglas Thomas (R-Ripley), is sponsoring a bill to base excise tax on the purchase price, rather than the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of a car. Currently, excise tax is charged at 2.4 percent of MSRP at the time of registration and decreases every year that the car is registered.

    • Look at this!

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      NO FISH TALES TODAY! — Quinn Schieferstein, 5, of Harrison, already caught his first fish (a one-pound pickerel) before 9 a.m. Saturday morning at the Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Ice Fishing Derby on Long Lake in Harrison.

    • Norway, Paris commission $20,000 recycling study

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      PARIS — On February 24, the Town Managers of Norway and Paris, in conjunction with Oxford County Regional Recycling (OCRR), officially commissioned a $20,000 study to look into making solid waste disposal and recycling more efficient for the two towns.

      According to Phil Tarr of Paris, 11 consulting firms were invited to submit bids. Three were received, and the towns ultimately settled on DSM Environmental of Windsor, VT.

    • Sumner, Buckfield split on station funding

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      SUMNER — At a joint session February 22, the Buckfield and Sumner Boards of Selectmen decided against instituting a $10 annual fee on citizens who use the transfer station.

      Buckfield Town Manager Glen Holmes proposed the fee as a means to raise $12,000 for the transfer station without raising taxes.

      Sumner's selectmen immediately took up a stance against the fee, with Mark Silber being its most vocal opponent.

    • NPSW board steadied by town managers

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      AREA — When a power struggle caused the Norway Paris Solid Waste (NPSW) board to be disbanded last year, Town Managers Phil Tarr and David Holt stepped in to keep the organization afloat.

      Now, some citizens have raised concerns that it is time for Holt and Tarr to step down from the newly-reconstituted board, questioning whether the dual roles are compatible.

      Tarr is the president of the NPSW board, while Holt is a member, along with Woodstock Town Manager Vern Maxfield. Tarr's one-year term is set to expire this summer.

    • Open space debated in Hebron

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      HEBRON — Selectmen debated, Monday night, whether a 2010 change to subdivision regulations could threaten the town's open spaces.

      If the rules are allowed to stand, homes can be built clustered together next to a large open space, as opposed to having a larger lot for each house.

      Selectman Jim Reid expressed concern that the regulations violated the spirit of a 1989 land use ordinance that restricted builders to undertaking construction on no less than 120,000 square feet of land.

    • Buckfield employee benefits threatened

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      BUCKFIELD — In an effort to cut costs, the Buckfield Board of Selectmen is considering slashing employee benefits.

      The most dramatic scenario of those under consideration would save the town nearly $14,000, but would cost the town's eight employees the same amount in lost holidays, health insurance, IRA benefits, and the ability to sell unused sick days back to the town.

      A change to employee health insurance would shift approximately $5,000 in costs from the town to three employees.

    • Towns vie for share of casino dollars

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      PARIS — Concerns about traffic congestion, managing growth, the misuse of income leading to additional strains on social services, and heavier usage of emergency services have led to a discussion among towns to discuss the reallocation of casino revenues.

      Norway, Paris, Poland, Oxford and Mechanic Falls plan to ask the state legislature to establish a regional impact fund that would defray potential costs caused by the casino's presence.

    • County commissioner appointed to state office

      Mar 03, 2011 12:01 am

      AREA — Caldwell Jackson, former Oxford selectman, current county commissioner, and lifelong resident of East Oxford, was recently appointed to the post of Deputy Commissioner for the Maine Department of Agriculture.

      The department is a branch of the Governor's office in Augusta and is described by the Maine government's website as the "State’s lead agency dealing with all aspects of the food system from the field to the table."

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