Street project funding up in the air

By Stuart Hedstrom 
Staff Writer

    MILO — The status of a project to improve Main Street is still uncertain after Town Manager David Maynard received a phone call late last week from the Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT) informing him that federal monies earmarked for the project had been returned to the U.S. Treasury. The estimated $375,000 in improvements to the area, which consist of a Main Street Project and a Safe Streets Project being combined into one endeavor, include fixing up the intersection by the library and intersection of West Main and Elm streets as well as alterations to the sidewalk, putting in lighting fixtures and trees and more.

    During a selectmen’s meeting on April 2, Maynard informed town officials of this news and said he would be meeting with the MDOT again “to sort out what’s going to be funded and what is not” as the Main Street Project was set to start later in the spring.
    He said the state was planning to conduct paving on Route 11 but this work was added into the Main Street Project. The scope of paving work was lessened as well from the West Main Street bridge up Park Street to the Brownville town line, then from NAPA Auto Parts to the town line with a paving ending at the railroad tracks also mentioned as a possibility.
    “Part of that meeting is to fight to get part of that back,” Maynard said about the Route 11 paving. “Right now we have gridlock in Augusta and gridlock in Washington. Until we get some people to work together we are likely to have more bad news.”
    In other business, the selectmen gave Police Chief Damien Pickel the go-ahead to purchase a new police cruiser. “The budget committee met and we discussed the need for a new cruiser,” Pickel said, saying the department currently has three vehicles that each have about 80,000 miles on the odometer. “We went to the town and the town approved it, so now we are hoping the town will give me the go ahead.”
    Pickel said he would like to purchase a Ford Explorer from Varney Ford for $23,900 — the lowest bid received for a Milo police vehicle — as well as trading in another vehicle with a value of about $4,000. Pickel said the Ford Explorer would be better suited for the department’s needs than the Crown Victoria it would replace.
    “That’s pretty much in line with what was presented to the budget committee,” Selectman Lee McMannus said. After Town Treasurer Robin Larson said the cruiser account consists of about $25,000, McMannus said, “there is enough to purchase the cruiser itself, but not enough to do all the stickering and the lights.”
    Pickel explained the police cruiser would need to have Milo Police Department decals attached as well as be properly equipped, with some of the gear being able to be transferred from the trade-in vehicle. A financing package will be sought to fund the cruiser and all the necessary accessories.
    During the discussion on the cruiser, Selectman Jerry Brown asked Maynard about the state budget in which proposals have revenues to Maine communities being reduced. “The feedback I get as town manager is it is basically going in every direction,” Maynard said, adding that the legislature is trying to work on a solution that does not place too heavy of a financial burden on Maine towns.
    The selectmen gave Maynard approval to work on an internal lease to allow the Milo Fire Department to establish a training center at the Eastern Piscataquis Industrial Park. Maynard said the department is looking to have about two acres to use for exercises such as practice burns and search and rescues. Having a location specified would aid in the grant application process to fund a fire training center.
    Members of the Milo Fire Department said the nearest such training center is in Bangor, and part of the training curriculum requires firefighters be inside burning structures. The facility could also be used by other fire departments in the region, both for training and possibly for competitions such as firemen’s musters to help show the public some of the skills firefighters use.
    Maynard said he would write a letter saying the Milo Fire Department can use the property via an internal lease. “They literally control the property which is what the grant requires,” he said.
    The town manager said a preliminary request has been made from Bike Maine to hold a luncheon at the town hall on Sunday, Sept. 8. “They are anticipating 350 people and they would like to use the upstairs in this building to do the luncheon,” he said, mentioning that food preparations are still unknown as the kitchen would need to be renovated by the early fall or several community groups may need to get involved.
    Maynard said the cyclists would be traveling across the state during the ride, and they could stop off in Milo to “at least get some idea of what the town is like.” He said about a third of the Bike Maine participants may be from out of state and the event is a “chance for the town to let people see what it is.”
    The meeting began with a 34-minute executive session and after town officials came out from behind the closed doors Maynard said, “There was a discussion that took place on a real estate matter, and there is going to be a vote to table for further negotiation.” The selectmen then passed a motion to table the matter, and while discussions can take place in executive session any and all votes will be conducted in the public portion of a meeting.