NEWRY — Selectmen on Monday received a petition asking for a town vote on whether to pursue creating a withdrawal plan from SAD 44.
The petition, with 22 signatures, was submitted by resident Jim Sysko.
The board must schedule a public hearing and a referendum vote on whether to enter a formal withdrawal plan process, and whether to approve a set amount of money to fund it.
If the process is approved by a simple majority vote, a plan for educating the town’s two dozen students would be crafted and would likely require the advice of a paid educational consultant. The plan would also include a negotiated withdrawal agreement with SAD 44, which must be approved by the state.
The town would vote on the plan and actual withdrawal from the district. A two-thirds majority would be required.
Sysko and others began looking into withdrawal out of concern for the large amount of money Newry pays to SAD 44 and the quality of education.
Selectman Brooks Morton said he contacted Andover officials recently for information about the formal withdrawal process because that town has gone through it once recently and is doing it again.
The Newry board decided to contact the consultant Andover used in order to get a cost estimate, timeline for the process and other information. Selectmen will take up the issue again at their July 15 meeting.
In other business at Monday’s meeting, Town Administrator Loretta Powers said she has received 17 applications for the deputy town clerk position, which recently opened up after Anita Clark left for another job. The board decided to have Powers narrow down the field to several names and Powers and selectmen will do interviews.
The board awarded paving work for the Skiway Access Road to Bruce Manzer Inc. for a bid of $180,000. They had also asked for and received bids for paving the Monkey Brook Road, but the total of the bids submitted was higher than the $200,000 allocated for all paving. Selectmen decided to do only the Access Road, paving from near its intersection with the Sunday River Road to Timberline Road at Sunday River Resort.
Selectmen approved a new liquor license for Matthew Wolf, the new owner of the Matterhorn Restaurant on the Sunday River Road. Wolf told selectmen he does not plan any changes to the restaurant, which he is purchasing from Roger Beaudoin.
After receiving an estimate of $4,600 each to construct 12- by 12-foot sand sheds on both sides of town for public use, the board decided to wait for a special town meeting. Selectmen were asked about making such sites available after last winter’s particularly icy conditions.
Powers said if the sheds were provided, they would have to be monitored to prevent people from taking more than a five-gallon bucket of sand at a time.
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