York Town News
York reacts to election results
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YORK - From the overwhelming passage of every zoning and Comprehensive Plan question on the ballot to the defeat of the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, last week's local election results were received as good news by local officials.However, where TABOR was concerned, officials were also quick to point out that although voters in York and the state as a whole rejected the initiative, the issue of Maine's tax burden must be addressed.
"I did breathe a sigh of relief Wednesday morning in realizing that the TABOR initiative didn't pass. Having said that, and after breathing that sigh of relief, the city and town managers as a group started discussing early Wednesday morning what we have to do from here," said York Town Manager Rob Yandow. "… We realize we have to assist with the effort to address the inequities in the tax structure and the need for serious tax reform."
Both Yandow and York Superintendent of Schools Dr. Henry Scipione said it is crucial for the state to come together with a plan.
"We were fortunate this time, and I think everybody got the message that we need to deal with these issues proactively and not wait until the next initiative comes forward," Yandow said.
Scipione voiced a similar sentiment.
"The message is clear," he said, describing last year's Palesky proposal and this year's TABOR initiative as a "wake-up call" to the state that something must be done to address the issues surrounding taxes.
Locally, Scipione said, York's Tax Task Force has worked with town and school officials on a voluntary operating budget cap that the York School Department has met since it was first proposed. Today, Wednesday, Nov. 15, the School Committee will hear about a similar proposal at the local level for capital expenditures.
Just as York is looking at taxation locally, Scipione said, "the next legislature heading up to Augusta is going to have to take this on."
Yandow agreed.
"I think what we do here can easily be a model for other areas in the state," he said, but added a different form must be considered for the state as a whole. "There needs to be some group that can address the issues on a statewide basis."
Looking to the local zoning and Comprehensive Plan questions, both Yandow and Town Planner Steve Burns said they were pleased to see each request pass by such a wide margin of votes. In most cases, the questions passed by a margin of 3 to 1 or more.
"Every one of those passed convincingly," Yandow said. "… The important thing is that the voters got the opportunity to decide, and it's clear they approved the changes."
Yandow said he believes the opportunities for public participation in the process, including hearings before the Board of Selectmen and Planning Board, and efforts to make the information available through the town's website, at meetings and through the media, were important to the success of the local zoning questions.
Burns said the amount of work that goes into zoning questions like these encompasses many months' time.
"I've been working on next year's for two months," he said, offering a perspective on the process and adding that the schedule for the November 2007 election is already in place.
Zoning and Comprehensive Plan articles that won approval ranged from banning "big box" stores in York Harbor to establishing a Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) district in York Beach.
Speaking on the TIF plan, Yandow said it was important throughout the process that voters understood the general fund tax revenue will not be penalized by the establishment of the TIF.
Greater York Region Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Cathy Goodwin said the town's strong support of that request came as welcome news to the ongoing York Beach revitalization effort.
"I think that we were pleasantly overwhelmed by the very positive vote on TIF. It's a reassuring testament to people's understanding of what we're trying to do," she said. "… I think people in York showed they have great pride in their community and they want it to be the best that it can be."
Goodwin said Yandow, the selectmen and the Planning Department deserve credit for their part in the effort.
"It's very good leadership at this point," she said of the town. "It's a common vision. It makes it much easier to get things done."
Looking to other local ballot questions, York Water District Superintendent Don Neumann clarified the passage of Article 14, which adds a Comprehensive Plan goal to protect watershed lands.
"That land in the watershed is an asset of the Water District and, technically, is owned by our ratepayers. … As far as we're concerned, it has always been protected," Neumann said, as the goal of the York Water District and Kittery Water District, which also has watersheds in York, is to protect the quality of drinking water.
Burns, too, had praised the efforts of the districts to protect those lands when the warrant article was first presented to the public in the review process over the past several months.
"The town is trying to establish a goal, and I think that's a good thing, because they're looking ahead," Neumann said.
For more on the town's current zoning, updated Comprehensive Plan and questions to come forward in 2007, visit www.yorkmaine.org and follow the links to the Planning Departmen
