HARPSWELL — The Board of Selectmen held an abridged meeting Dec. 28 after a snowstorm forced the closure of all town facilities the day before.

And because of the meeting’s short duration, the board scheduled another meeting on Thursday, Jan. 3, to act on remaining agenda items. The regular meeting schedule resumes Jan. 10.

Among the items discussed last week, selectmen approved a one-year waste removal contract with Casella Waste, ammended an agreement with Normandeau Associates for its work on proposed shoreland zoning changes, and accepted an $8,750 gift from Bowdoin College.

Under the contract with Casella Waste, the parent company of Pine Tree Waste, the town will pay the contractor $60 per ton and $160 per haul  for “acceptable waste” and tires, and $63 per ton and $145 per haul for mixed demolition debris.

These rates will amount to about $108,000 by the end of the year.

Parts of the Casella Waste contract were amended to include a section that allows the town to terminate the agreement or choose another disposal facility if the current one, Penobscot Energy Recovery Co., shuts down.

Another amended section clarifies that if the town decides to extend the contract for two years, Casella’s pricing will be based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index.

The Board of Selectmen also approved an amendment of an existing contract with Normandeau for the proposed shoreland zoning changes.

The amendment appropriates nearly $2,900 over the original contract of nearly $18,900, according to a memo from Town Planner Carol Eyerman.

The amount will cover travel expenses, along with “staff time to attend and support … additional meetings” for the proposed changes that will happen over the next few months.”

In addition to that appropriation, the board also unanimously approved an additional $6,000 from the town’s contingency fund for the existing animal control budget of nearly $25,000.

Additional costs include transportation and an encounter between a skunk, the town’s animal control officer and his vehicle.

“The animal control officer suffered  quite a bit of pain by that because he took a direct hit,” Deputy Town Administrator Terri Sawyer explained, adding that the vehicle was targeted, as well. “We had to have (the vehicle) cleaned in a very strong manner, and those type of things cause the budget to exceed.”

The $8,750 unrestricted gift from Bowdoin College is part of an annual donation.

“They don’t say it’s in lieu of taxes, but they do say they support the community where they have their (Coastal Studies Center),” Sawyer said.

Dylan Martin can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 100 or dmartin@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @DylanLJMartin.

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