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Seal Cove residents press LAFCO on sewer governance after long spill, disputed classification
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Summary
Two Seal Cove residents told the commission that the Seal Cove collection system was publicly financed but now is being treated as private infrastructure; they urged LAFCO to examine municipal service responsibility and to respond to delayed public records requests after a roughly 70‑day sewage spill.
Two residents of the Seal Cove neighborhood in Moss Beach used the commission’s public‑comment period to urge LAFCO to review whether local sewer collection infrastructure is being correctly classified and whether that ambiguity impaired spill response.
Andrew Boston said he submitted county resolutions (Res. 6 98 and Res. 7 38) to the record showing the Seal Cove system had been constructed and financed by the district through bonds and parcel assessments, and that he believes the system remains publicly financed even though the Midcoast Sewer Authority (MWSE) now treats the collection system as private. "To date, none [of the documents authorizing reclassification] has been identified," Boston said, and he said his group filed multiple public-records requests over the past 10 months with many unanswered. He added that a sewage spill on La Grande persisted for roughly 70 days while different entities disputed responsibility, which he said affected response times and public health.
Another commenter who identified herself as Carlisle Ann Young ("Sid Young") said she has been a Seal Cove resident since 1988 and that the improvement system was reflected on tax rolls in the 1880s. Young, who said she serves on her local water and sanitary district, urged staff to fulfill outstanding public-records requests and said a neighbor whose property was damaged by the leak had been treated rudely when seeking records.
Clerk's office staff confirmed they received a written comment from Boston and that both speakers were on Zoom. Commissioners took the public comment under advisement and did not take immediate action; staff did not announce a specific follow-up at the meeting.
