LIMESTONE, Maine – Recent vandalism has prompted Limestone town officials to consider installing security cameras at the town office.
On July 2, town residents were unable to conduct business at the office after internet and phone services went down, said Interim Town Manager Alan Mulherin.
After Spectrum investigated, they found that someone had cut the internet and phone lines on a nearby street pole and stole the grounding block, which protects the wires and keeps signals from being disrupted. Spectrum workers restored service to the office by 2:30 p.m. that day, Mulherin said during a Select Board meeting Wednesday.
Someone also pulled the electricity service meter out of the socket and left it on the ground, Mulherin said. But the town office did not lose power.
“The vandal apparently didn’t know that by pushing the arm up to release the meter, it also bypasses the meter and feeds unmetered power to the town office,” Mulherin said.
Since the town office currently has no security cameras, there is no evidence as to who might have vandalized the Spectrum lines and Versant Power meter, Mulherin said.
He and Select Board Chairperson Randy Brooker recommended that the board consider purchasing and installing cameras at the town office, and possibly at the public works garage and fire station.
“We think it’s time to get cameras since we no longer have a police department,” Brooker said. “There are cameras out there that will send you a message if there’s activity and give you remote access [to footage].”
Board members gave Mulherin permission to look into potential costs of camera purchases and installations from various companies.
Mulherin also updated the board on a rather odd and dangerous sinkhole on the intersection of Pleasant Street and Leighton Avenue that has grown lately.
The hole first formed in late spring this year and public works crews were initially unsure of its origins, so they filled the space with gravel as a temporary solution, Mulherin said.
But two major July rainstorms have washed away that gravel. The hole has expanded to 12 feet long and four feet deep, making passage around it risky for anyone traveling through those streets.
“I went down there once and it’s very dangerous. You could lose a whole car in there,” said Select Board member Irma Labreck. “We need to fill [the hole] because it’s an accident waiting to happen.”
The cause seems to be coming from damage to underground piping. When Allen’s Environmental Services, based in Presque Isle, inspected the sinkhole, they could not determine exactly where the damage had occurred, Mulherin noted.
After the town determines the cost and scope of the repairs, the board could decide whether it’s best to have public works crews or an outside company permanently fill in the hole, Mulherin said.
Mulherin warned that the sinkhole project could delay paving on Bog Road that the town had hoped to complete this year.
In other business, the town will be sending 30-day tax lien notices to property owners who have not paid their 2024 real estate taxes. This year’s unpaid taxes total $282,483, with an additional $287,901 in accumulated interest.
Between 2019 and 2023, the town has recorded $441,544 in unpaid taxes, plus accumulated interest of $464,130. For 2024, there is $282,483 total, plus $287,901 in interest.
Wednesday’s meeting was the first for new Select Board members Troy O’Bar and Timothy Busse, who were elected in June. Labreck was reelected. The board voted to reappoint Brooker as board chairperson and Labreck as vice chairperson.
Mulherin introduced Corin Cooper as the town’s new full-time parks and recreation director.
Cooper will be the first director that the department has had in nearly two years. Previous searches for a full-time director were not successful, leaving recreational activities mostly reliant on community volunteers. A part-time director left in April.
In June, local voters approved spending $86,933 on parks and recreation, which includes a full-time director’s salary.
Cooper’s first day on the job was Monday, July 15. She told the Select Board that she wants to hold a public meeting to gauge the community’s ideas for potential activities.
“I want there to be activities for elementary [school] kids, toddlers, adults, pretty much everyone,” Cooper said.
Cooper’s main office is located within the town office but she will also have an office at Limestone Community School in the future, Mulherin said.
Correction: A previous version of this story misstated how many unpaid taxes Limestone had recorded for 2024 so far.
