Select Board splits warrant, moves 31-acre Perry Oliver Road purchase and possible LMF grant to Nov. 5 ballot

The Wells Select Board on Sept. 3 moved to put two amended warrant articles before voters on Nov. 5 related to the town's planned purchase of a 31-acre parcel on Perry Oliver Road and a possible Land for Maine's Future (LMF) grant.

Select Board Chair opened a public hearing on the parcel and asked town staff for an update. Mike, town staff handling the negotiation, told the board the town has funds in a conservation land bank sufficient to purchase the parcel outright (the purchase price and available funds were discussed as approximately $350,000 to $370,000) but that accepting LMF money would bring covenants and restrictions. Mike said the state could treat a revised application differently and might require a new submission if the town removed the originally proposed match acreage.

Neighbors and conservation supporters spoke during the public-comment period. Gary Phillips, who said he lives at 250 Perry Oliver Road, told the board he supports town ownership but is "deeply, deeply concerned about my tranquility and my safety" if a larger Eastern Trail parking area or 24-hour public access were allowed next to his house. Conservation-commission representatives explained that many of the LMF project terms are standard: no subdivision without LMF approval, public access must be allowed (but can be managed in the town's management plan), limits on transfers, reporting requirements and an 18-month timeline to prepare a management plan if the grant is accepted.

Board members questioned how LMF's model management terms would interact with the town's plans for an 8-foot crushed-stone Eastern Trail connection, and whether the town could exempt up to 1 acre for a parking spur and minor maintenance structures. Leah, the board's attorney, advised that accepting covenants that affect "management control" could trigger a town-meeting requirement in the town charter and that the board should be deliberate about authorizing any grant acceptance.

After extended discussion about preserving municipal control while keeping the option of grant funding, counsel drafted two separate warrant articles. The first, Article 16, asks voters to "appropriate and expend up to $370,000 from the conservation land bank reserve account" to purchase Map 29 Lot 5 for conservation, recreation and the Eastern Trail project and to authorize the board to negotiate and execute documents needed to complete the purchase. The second, Article 17, conditions acceptance of any grant on Article 16's passage and would "authorize the board of selectmen to accept or decline a possible grant from the Land for Maine Futures Trust Fund" and to negotiate and execute any documents relating to that grant, including covenants that could restrict future development of the land.

Select Board members emphasized that placing the articles on the warrant does not obligate them to accept any grant; it preserves the board's ability to negotiate and to hold further public hearings before final acceptance. The board voted 4'0to'00 to approve the amended warrant language and to certify the special town-meeting warrant for Nov. 5. The closing date for the parcel purchase was discussed as mid-December, and staff warned that changing the original grant proposal could reduce or eliminate LMF funding.

The next procedural steps are the special town meeting on Nov. 5, further legal review of any proposed LMF project agreement by counsel, and additional public hearings before the board takes any final acceptance action.