FORT FAIRFIELD, Maine — Fort Fairfield will replace two of its aging plow trucks, one of which is 25 years old.
Town councilors voted Wednesday to allow Public Works Director Darren Hanson to spend up to $140,000 from reserves to purchase two used plow trucks.
The department has dealt with trucks past their prime for too long and needs to devise a solid replacement plan, Hanson said.
“When you have a few weeks of a really tough winter like we’ve had, it really shows the issues with our aging fleet,” he said. “We need to do better for our taxpayers and we need to do better for our men.”
While the first part of winter saw little plowing, the second half showed heavy snow and frequent high winds, which affected the aging plow trucks, Hanson said.
Three are no longer operable, including a 2005 International with transmission issues that has never been completely reliable. Also sidelined are a 2002 Volvo with wiring issues, which Hanson thinks crews can repair and keep as a backup, and a 2000 Sterling that needs a radiator replacement.
As a result, crews have one truck left for plowing, a 2008 International Workstar 7600.
“We’re relying on one truck to keep 80 miles of road open,” Hanson said.
The department has found two used trucks it would like to purchase as replacements: a 2018 Freightliner from Vermont and a 2012 Kenworth. Neither are new, but would help the department get through the next couple of winters until a replacement plan is in place, he said.
Following the council’s vote, Public Works will use money from its reserves to pay up to $90,000 for the Freightliner and up to $50,000 for the Kenworth.
Councilors also voted to move ahead with a solar ordinance, and a public hearing will be scheduled.
Planning board members haven’t yet finalized the ordinance, but the draft includes, among other stipulations, that no arrays shall occupy more than 5 acres of prime farmland, solar companies must provide benefit statements for the town, and abutters of the land would have to approve construction, Town Manager Tim Goff said.
In other business, councilors voted to allow Goff and Tax Assessor Tony Levesque to send 45-day foreclosure notices to owners of several town properties on which back taxes are owed.
The town waived foreclosure on eight properties on which 2021 taxes were owed, five that were vacant and three that were land parcels only. One of the parcels will not move forward with foreclosure because the trailer that was on it has been hauled away, Goff said.
The number of properties with outstanding 2022 taxes has gone from 49 to 32; 17 are occupied, seven are vacant and eight are land only.
Councilors voted to accept a technical assistance award from the Maine Community Resilience Partnership Energy Efficiency Planning for Rural Communities program, which is part of the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future. Fort Fairfield is one of 14 towns, and the only one north of Ellsworth, selected.
Consultants will review the town office/community center complex and the public works garage and make money-saving energy recommendations, at no cost to the town, Goff said.
The council also authorized Goff to submit a request to the National Resources Conservation Service to offer planning assistance for two 60-year-old dams, located on the Libby Brook watershed. Planning help is free and grant funding is available, though the town would have to contribute 35 percent of the final cost.
The next council meeting is scheduled at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16, at the council chambers.
