York Town News
Grappling with growth and garbage
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YORK - From the town's growth cap to how to address an expected 100-percent increase in the cost of curbside garbage collection, the Board of Selectmen has plenty of work to do in the months ahead.
The board met on Monday, June 25, to tackle a full agenda that included a discussion of whether additional changes need to be made to the town's Residential Growth Ordinance to meet state law.
The voter-approved version of the ordinance from the May town referendum increases the number of residential building permits from 84 to 96 per year. However, the state has stated that number should be 110.
Town Planner Steve Burns offered the board suggestions to meet the state's requirement, including affordable housing units, pointing out that the town currently does make that many permits available because there is no limitation on building one-bedroom and efficiency accessory dwelling units (ADUs) to existing homes.
"If you have the 96, plus unlimited ADUs ... plus 25 for affordable housing ... you've created a wealth of possibilities for the town," Burns said.
The board is planning to seek advice from legal counsel on keeping the number at 96, with provisions for affordable housing and accessory units, and whether that would be legally defensible in case of a lawsuit.
"It's not fair for the voters to have to go to the higher number ... as long as there's a comfort level in defending the lower number," said Selectman Ted Little, pointing to the consistent renewal of the ordinance at the polls.
The risk, said Vice Chairman David Marshall, "was that someone being aggrieved by this long list - waiting in line - would challenge it,"
Selectwoman Kinley Gregg said she supports keeping the number at 96, but questioned the process of tearing down existing homes and rebuilding them to avoid waiting for a growth permit, and the board agreed the ordinance does, in fact, encourage that practice for those who can afford to do so.
Between 2000 and 2005, Burns said, the town averaged 23 tear-downs per year.
The board discussed possible future changes to address that issue, and looking into what types of homes have been demolished - and whether they were historic in nature - as the annual requirement to review the growth ordinance continues.
"In my view, many of those tear-downs ... are subtracting from the sense of place that many people ... claim to cherish," she said.
Selectmen Chairman Mike Estes said that while the ordinance is a needed tool, the town should consider a higher number of annual permits.
"I'm conscious of the people sitting there waiting to build a house," he said. "... The state has really told us that the number's 110... I think this gives us an opportunity to help some people," Estes said.
Selectman Dwight Bardwell and Marshall both praised Burns for thinking "outside the box" in a recent proposal to match the town's affordable needs within the growth ordinance. The board said that plan should receive further study by the Affordable Housing Committee as it continues its work on plans for an ordinance for next May.
Later in the meeting, the board heard an update from Public Works Director Bill Bray on the town's municipal solid waste removal contract with Waste Management of Rochester, N.H., which runs out in June of 2008.
The company has told Bray that York's current rate, as of July 1, of $747,372 per year is estimated by Waste Management to be worth between $1.3 and $1.5 million - meaning the town can expect to pay twice as much in the next fiscal year for what would amount to basically the same level of service.
According to Waste Management, the company serves just shy of 7,500 households in York.
Bray told the selectmen he asked the company about the cost reduction of such initiatives as a "pay-as-you-throw" or "pay-per-bag" program, and was told that such a contract could be expected to come in at about $1.1 million. Other alternatives might be the elimination of the town-funded "bulky waste" collection or the creation of a "pay-as-you-throw" system for those items - such as sofas and appliances - to offset the costs, as the price is affected by the number of tons of municipal solid waste collected.
Bardwell said the issue will clearly need some in-depth discussion, as the cost will be going up significantly, and it did not appear the "pay-as-you-throw" system would compensate for that increase unless the cost of bags could be determined to help offset the impact on taxes.
Little agreed that more discussion is needed, pointing out that an effort to bring a "pay-per-bag" program to York several years ago failed to win voter support.
Town Manager Rob Yandow noted that Waste Management is no longer the one company providing such services to municipalities, but added there are not many companies that offer municipal solid waste removal.
Bray confirmed that any plan agreed upon by the selectmen will be put out to a competitive bid.
Also at the meeting, Bray reviewed the paving and public works projects scheduled for the fiscal year ahead, which have been impacted negatively by the cost of asphalt as the price of oil continues to drive the market.
In other business, the selectmen voted to use $9,995 from the town's contingency fund for the York Police Department's microwave communications study to address emergency communication needs; approved new license applications for Scott Toney for Blue Sky on York Beach and Clara's Cupcake; renewed the license for Sweet Josie's Candy Shoppe, and made appointments to the Planning Board, Affordable Housing Committee and other volunteer boards in town.
See next week's edition of The Independent for more on the new appointments to the town's various boards and commissions.
