HOULTON, Maine — The Houlton Town Council confirmed two new department heads during an Oct. 14, 2014 meeting, ending several months of interviews.
Councilors unanimously approved the hiring of Christopher Stewart as public works director and Nancy Ketch as community development director and grant writer. Ketch takes over the post from Lori Weston, who resigned Aug. 10 to take a job at Bangor Savings Bank.
Ketch is a past executive director of Greater Houlton Chamber of Commerce, former town councilor and most recently worked in the local office of Maine Revenue Services until it closed. She has more than 27 years of marketing and public relations experience.
“We interviewed several candidates for this position,” explained Town Manager Butch Asselin. “Nancy was the unanimous choice of the committee. What impressed the committee the most were the vast amount of contacts she has throughout the state.”
Stewart has 12 years of experience in road construction and maintenance. The Houlton Water Company previously employed him. Stewart replaces Leigh Stilwell, who retired in July after nearly 25 years with the town.
According to Asselin, Stewart was one of four applicants for the position.
Ice rink waiver denied
In other agenda items, the council rejected a request from the Southern Aroostook Minor Hockey Association to waive the $130 per hour fee for ice time at the Millar Civic Center and instead charge $110 per hour for peak ice time for the group.
Asselin noted it was the third consecutive year that SAMHA requested the reduced rink fee. No representative from the group was present during the council meeting.
“The request was submitted this year because they (SAMHA) are offering a free program to build up interest in the sport,” Asselin said.
The cost to rent ice time during peak hours was raised from $100 in 2012 to $130 last year. Peak ice times are from 3-9 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday. The fee for off-peak time is $75 per hour. The fee for peak ice time has risen slightly over the past 14 years.
SAMHA is one of the primary private users of the rink.
Councilor Sue Tortello said since this was the third consecutive year that the group was asking for a rate reduction, perhaps it was time to investigate the Civic Center’s fee structure to see if the amount the town charges is reasonable.
“I’d like to support SAMHA as much as possible and I think it’s unfortunate that they have to come before us every year to ask for this waiver,” Tortello said. “I am unsure why we chose the $130 rate to begin with.”
Councilor Rob Hannigan said the advisory committee determined that rate after reviewing what similar venues charged.
“The first year, SAMHA came and asked for a waiver because they said they didn’t know about it (the rate increase) in time,” Hannigan said. “The second year was kind of similar. This is the third year. I think we should keep it right at $130.”
Councilor Phil Clooney said the town has already made significant upgrades to the Civic Center through the purchase of new hockey boards, heating system and compressor. He added the original plan was for fundraising to be done to assist with purchasing the boards, but so far the town has not seen any efforts made to assist with the cost.
The new hockey boards cost about $142,000. The town had set aside $75,000 in an account for the boards, with the hopes that fund-raising efforts would cover the remaining share, but that plan did not materialize.
“SAMHA does a lot for the community,” noted council chairman Paul Cleary. “Without them, how busy would it be?”
Cleary said he felt Civic Center Director Haley Nickerson should be included in the discussion and took issue with the fact that she was not in attendance for the meeting.
“If there is a question about the Civic Center, the director should be here to answer those questions,” he said. “My question is what does our schedule look like if we do this?”
Cleary and Tortello both felt tabling the matter until the next meeting was in order, but fellow councilors did not agree as Tortello’s motion to table failed.
The request for a waiver failed 1-3 with councilors John White, Hannigan and Cloney opposed. Councilors Wade Hanson and Dan Peabody were not in attendance for the meeting.
In other agenda items, the council:
• Signed an agreement with the town of Hammond to provide limited animal control officer services for a nine-month period. Hammond will pay Houlton $400 for these services.
• Ratified three-year union contracts for emergency medical technicians and public works employees for 2014-17. The new contract calls for a 6 percent pay increase spread out over the three-year contract, resulting in an increase of $7,447 in salaries. Both groups will see a 4 percent increase in the first year, 2 percent in the second year and no increase in the third year of the deal.
• Tabled a tax write-off for property owned by Teresa Moore until additional information could be gathered. The abatement is for $440.84.
The next regular council meeting is set for Monday, Oct. 27 at 6 p.m.
