Dover-Foxcroft referendum on June 11
DOVER-FOXCROFT — Three weeks before residents head to the polls on Tuesday, June 11, Dover-Foxcroft citizens had the opportunity to learn more about the referendum ballot questions during a May 20 public hearing.
“Tonight’s meeting is for one purpose and one purpose only, a public hearing to hear any remarks from citizens regarding the referendum items we are going to be voting on at the town referendum on June 11,” Select Chair Tom Lizotte said, as the session was held separately from the two regular May select board meetings.
The ballot articles are available for review at https://dover-foxcroft.org/. These include the municipal budget, a question pertaining to the future of the Mayo Mill Dam, several items on land use ordinance amendments, and the RSU 68 budget (which will also be voted on that day by the fellow district communities of Charleston, Monson, and Sebec).
A proposed municipal budget totaling $8,302,205 for the 2024-25 fiscal year was approved at the annual town meeting in late April. There is also $845,370 proposed for wastewater operations and capital but this would be equaled by the same amount of wastewater revenues and offsets.
The $8.3 million-plus budget figure will be offset by $4,728,035 in nontax revenues for a net amount of $3,574,170 to be raised through property taxes.
The total appropriation is up by $1,442,430 (21.03 percent) from the current fiscal year’s near $6.86 million figure. Revenues are $852,608 more than the current fiscal year or up 22 percent. The $3,574,170 to be raised is an increase of $589,822 (19.76 percent) from 2023-24.
The ballot will include a question and detailed explanatory note concerning the recommendation from the Mayo Mill Dam steering committee that removing the downtown Piscataquis River dam and connecting facilities and building a riverfront park is in the town’s best interests moving forward.
Reducing flooding dangers, improving the area’s ecology, including fish passage, and the availability of funding for dam removal were among the main reasons for the committee’s conclusion. The board voted in February to place a question on the June ballot pertaining to the project concerning the acceptance of grant funds as a way to gauge if residents favor the plan or not.
A 4-page, approximately 1,600-word resolution explaining in detail the issues of the dam, with historical context of the recent process and reiterating the Feb. 26 vote was approved by the select board on March 25. The June referendum question, explaining what yes and no votes mean, was also approved at the meeting following an executive session.
The June 11 ballot has five questions on land use ordinance amendments, pertaining to a state housing density bill, subdivisions, self-storage facilities, changeable electronic copy signs, and wind energy systems.
The full text of each proposed ordinance amendment is available on the municipal website.
Earlier in the month the RSU 68 Board of Directors approved a proposed $14,238,768 budget for the 2024-25 academic year. The $14.2 million is up by $855,004 from the 2023-24 total of $13,383,764.
The overall increase to taxpayers would be $147,179 or 3.15 percent from the 2023-24 combined assessment of $4,670,845 for Charleston, Dover-Foxcroft, Monson, and Sebec.
RSU 68 residents were set to vote on the proposed spending plan at the May 28 annual district budget meeting. The total budget approved that evening would be moved to referendum in Charleston, Dover-Foxcroft, Monsoon, and Sebec on June 11 to coincide with the general Maine election.
A video of the public hearing has been posted on the Friends of Dover-Foxcroft Facebook page.