Bangor council hears city manager updates on Job Corps, parking and vacant-property action; votes to enter executive session on AFSCME matter

The Bangor City Council voted unanimously Monday to enter an executive session under "MRSA 4 0 5 6 d" to discuss AFSCME Local 926-01 mechanics after receiving a series of city manager updates that included a possible Job Corps closure, pending legal action on a property at 166 Larkin and proposed changes to downtown parking.

Interim City Manager Courtney O'Donnell told the council the Job Corps site is the subject of ongoing legal action and that a court order is in place to hold any changes until later this month. She said the city's homeless response manager is coordinating with partner organizations on contingency planning because, "As we do anticipate that should it close, there would be a number of students or young adults that would be facing homelessness as a result." O'Donnell added that the city also expects "the over 100, loss of jobs as well."

Why this matters: a closure could create immediate housing and service needs for young residents and require coordinated outreach among city staff and partner agencies.

O'Donnell said code and legal staff are preparing legal action related to 166 Larkin and expect to file within the next couple of weeks once evidence is gathered. She also said the city's vacant-property register — originally focused on residential parcels — may be brought back for council discussion late this summer or early fall with options to expand coverage to additional commercial properties depending on zoning.

On parking, O'Donnell said the city's parking vendor will soon release a mobile payment app and plans to deploy a windshield-cover enforcement device commonly described as a "barnacle" rather than the traditional wheel boot. She said the barnacle will work with mobile payments and is expected in August. O'Donnell also said the city will encourage people to pay outstanding parking tickets in July at original rates (before late fees are added) to reduce backlog. A downtown parking advisory committee meeting is scheduled for Friday; Councilor Joe Leonard is the council's appointee and will chair that meeting.

The interim manager described a staff parking proposal affecting City Hall that would move some staff spaces to the area along Park Street Hill and convert "about five" curbside spots on Harlow Street in front of City Hall into spots reserved for City Hall visitors to improve accessibility. A councilor opposed the Harlow Street designation, expressing concern that "we should not treat ourselves different than any other business" and urging the council not to create special on-street privileges for the city. Leonard said the committee's ordinance currently names a councilor as chair and suggested amending procedures so a non-council member could serve as chair with a councilor acting as liaison.

The council then took a formal vote to move into executive session. The motion on the record was stated as: "Make a motion, MRSA 4 0 5 6 d, AFSCNELocal926DashO1BIAMechanics." The roll-call recorded the following yes votes: Councilor Joe Leonard; Councilor Beck; Councilor Trimble; Councilor Fish; Councilor Dean; Councilor Fournier; Councilor Mallard; and Council Chair Pelletier. The motion passed and the council entered executive session.

Other items: O'Donnell invited the council to a Saturday ceremony at 10 a.m. at City Forest to honor Roland Perry, the longtime city forester for whom the City Forest is named. She also announced that Carolyn Lear will begin as the city manager on Monday, June 16, and that staff will plan an onboarding and a public reception to introduce Lear to the community.

The council discussed several of the interim manager's proposals but did not take additional formal votes on the vacant-property register or parking-designation changes during the workshop. Legal action on 166 Larkin and any ordinance changes regarding the vacant-property register will return to the council for further action when staff have prepared proposals and evidence.