WINDHAM – In the Windham Town Council’s first meeting since Vice Chairman Peter Busque died Sept. 28, a moment of silence was held to start the meeting.

“Let’s take a minute, a moment of silence, for our friend and colleague, Mr. Peter Busque, and his passing,” requested Council Chairman Scott Hayman. “I know that I am not the only one who sits at this desk who has a heavy heart. He will be greatly missed.”

Work day

Hayman said there will be a work day on Saturday, Oct. 15, at the bike park under construction behind the Windham Skate Park on Route 202. All those interested in helping should assemble at 8 a.m.

“We are trying to carry on what Councilor Busque has started and get that up and running for the guys and kids that did their part. And we’re trying to make that happen for them this fall,” Hayman said.

Park plans

Town Manager Tony Plante told councilors that design proposals for the Donna Beth Lippman Park on Chaffin Pond in North Windham was heard by an ad hoc committee Thursday, Oct. 13. The committee will forward its recommendation to the council within the next few weeks, Plante said.

G.A. in better shape

Plante said the town’s General Assistance account, which was once administered by People’s Regional Opportunity Program but came under local direction when the town hired a GA administrator this summer, is well below 2010 levels.

Through the first quarter of the fiscal year, July through September, Plante said Windham’s expenditures were about $13,000, compared with $80,000 during the same period last year.

Referring to GA administrator Rene Daniel and Assistant Town Manager Phyllis Moss, Plante said, “What that program needed was closer oversight, they’re providing it, and their efforts are showing results.”

Refinancing

Joseph Cuetera, senior vice president of Moors & Cabot Investments, who has worked with the town since 1987 on various bonding projects, met with the council to discuss refinancing of debt pertaining to road construction and high school renovations, the town’s only outstanding debt.

Cuetera got the go-ahead from councilors to draw up a proposal that could potentially save town and state taxpayers about $930,000, depending on the interest rates at closing. Councilors can opt out at any time prior to closing with no financial impact. Closing, Cuetera said, could take place as soon as Nov. 15, assuming rates stay low enough to make up for the associated costs of refinancing.

While Windham and school district taxpayers would see some benefit, most of the savings would be realized at the state level, since the state department of education and transportation supplied most of the funding for the projects.

No dice on rail project

The council unanimously agreed to let an order die that would have supported the town of Standish in its application for federal funds to restore the Mountain Division Rail Line.

Lou Stack, a member of the Standish Town Council, contacted Plante asking whether Windham would write a letter of support for the project, which would restore rail travel along the corridor.

In discussion of the matter, each of the councilors indicated the idea of rail restoration was a waste of taxpayer money.

“I’m totally against this. I don’t think it’s viable. In the end it’s going to cost us a lot of money. It’s going to be heavily subsidized, and we’re going to be paying for it,” said Councilor Tommy Gleason.

Piggybacking on Gleason’s comments, Councilor John MacKinnon said, “Nobody’s demonstrated anyway that this has the potential to be self-sustaining. I think it’s totally wrong to assume it’s OK to have the feds subsidize it. It’s a wrong strategy in this day and age with soaring deficits.”

When the matter came up for a vote later in the meeting, councilors didn’t take a vote, meaning the item died for lack of a motion.

Lowell Preserve

The council approved a 10-year forestry management plan for the Lowell Preserve that will selectively cut trees in order to ensure the long-term viability of the 308-acre heavily wooded town-owned preserve behind the East Windham Fire Station on Falmouth Road.

A neighbor, John Gallagher, took issue with the proposal during public comment, saying the property would be clear-cut and ruined for the hikers and bikers who use the trails. He was also concerned about the impact on the deer living on the acreage.

Councilors said the forestry management plan, which will cut the undergrowth and larger trees on the site, will be a “selective cut,” meaning not all trees will be removed. They also said more details need to be determined with whoever logs the site, and Gallagher’s concerns, including how logging trucks will access the site, will be addressed at that time.