Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Municipal Administration topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Wayne Select Board opens town manager search, approves warrants and begins ordinance reviews
Summary
At its Jan. 21 meeting the Wayne Select Board opened the permanent town manager recruitment, authorized routine payments including $118,039.05 to Maine Tennis and Track Company, approved warrants and abatements, and discussed converting a culvert/driveway policy into an ordinance and other code updates.
Town of Wayne — The select board met Jan. 21 and took several administrative steps: it opened the search for a permanent town manager, approved warrants and payroll, authorized payment tied to the Ladd Rec Center court project, and continued a multi-month review of town ordinances and code.
Hiring process: The board confirmed the permanent town manager posting is open through Feb. 14 and agreed that two board members (identified in the meeting as Marianna and a colleague) will do an initial screening of applications and recommend candidates for interviews. The board discussed supplemental advertising through municipal associations and third-party job boards; the board has previously budgeted $1,000 for advertising and had spent about $700 through Maine Municipal Association (MMA). One additional posting option would cost roughly $450; the board deferred a final decision until it sees the quality and number of applicants.
Warrants and payments: The board approved accounts payable (check run identified on the warrant as #33) in the amount of $141,947.35 and payroll (payroll #32) of $8,800.76. It also approved a motion to pay Maine Tennis and Track Company $118,039.05, the contractor tied to the Ladd Rec Center court project. Board members discussed that the town has funds on hand to pay these obligations and expects to recover LWCF reimbursement after submitting paid invoices and inspection documentation.
Meeting minutes and abatements: The board approved several meeting minutes from December and January and approved two tax abatements (the transcript records the abatement motions and the amounts as spoken during the meeting; the meeting record contains ambiguous phrasing of the dollar amounts and those figures are noted in the clarifying details). The board also approved standard warrants for insurance and contractual services during the meeting.
Ordinance review and code update: The board spent substantial time reviewing draft code sections prepared by a code consultant. Key points: - Culverts/driveways: The board discussed whether the town’s existing culvert installation policy (dating from 1998) should be converted into an ordinance so the town can impose enforceable standards and penalties. Members favored making it an ordinance and agreed to require a permit from the town road commissioner for any new planned entrance onto a town road; they also agreed to add a conflicts provision and a penalty/liability clause modeled on other Maine town ordinances so the town can recover costs if a noncompliant installation causes damage. - Amusements/entertainment ordinance: The board reviewed a recently adopted entertainment ordinance (music/dancing on licensed premises) and agreed only minor, mostly grammatical edits (for example, changing "select board or their designee" to "select board or its designee"). The board did not plan to put those minor changes on a separate warrant; instead, they will be incorporated into the larger code adoption process. - Campground and parks code: Planning board work on a revised campground ordinance was discussed; the planning board voted to forward amendments to the select board and the select board expects to coordinate with planning to decide which provisions belong in the zoning ordinance versus policing/regulatory provisions.
Other business: The board introduced interim town manager Shannon McDonald (the board voted to allow her, a nonresident, to speak if called upon during meetings). The select board scheduled a special select board meeting for Jan. 28, and later moved into an executive session on a personnel matter.
Why it matters: The board’s decisions move forward hiring and town administration, authorize current spending and payment of contractor invoices for an active recreation project, and establish an ordinance review path that could change enforcement and permitting for private driveways and culverts on town roads.
What’s next: The town will continue recruiting for a permanent town manager, complete the ordinance review process with code consultants and the planning board, and follow up on payments and LWCF reimbursement for the Ladd Rec Center project.
