Finance staff presented a comparative debt chart showing where Ellsworth sits versus nearby towns and how upcoming road repayments will affect debt service.

Nate and Charlie described the chart and highlighted that, while debt service is rising because of road repayments (projected to add about $400,000 next year), Ellsworth’s property-tax burden as a share of median income remains comparatively low. Charlie said the city’s debt-service peak is expected to reach roughly $1.4 million next year before dropping in later years.

Council members used the comparison to reopen a debate about development tools. Steve cited Freeport as an example of a town with low debt and no impact fees and urged reviewing the city’s impact/development fees, which he said can deter nonprofits and small developers (he gave an example of a non-profit incurring $1,800 in impact fees on a $2,800 move). Committee members discussed ordinance reform, tax-increment financing (TIF), credit-enhancement agreements, and whether waiving or reducing fees in comp-plan–aligned projects would accelerate development on Courthouse Road and the Myrick Street area. The group also noted that larger retailers such as Walmart and Home Depot now yield substantial recurring property-tax revenue.

The committee asked staff to: produce a full debt-service schedule, tag impact-fee issues for the upcoming ordinance-reform discussions, model scenarios for police-only vs. all 24/7 department treatment of fees, and work with the economic-development director on potential incentives. No ordinance changes were voted on at the meeting; members requested more analysis and expected the ordinance-reform item to come to a future workshop.