RICHMOND — Voters spent nearly four hours Tuesday night chewing through 39 articles on the annual town meeting warrant. In the process, they dismissed, without discussion, a request to borrow as much as $300,000 for a new library and rejected a proposed ordinance to regulate use of consumer fireworks.

Town meeting voters also slammed the door on adoption of the state uniform building code and selectmen’s request to use up to $37,000 from a reserve account to build an addition onto the meeting room at the town office.

After electing Cliff Goodall as moderator and getting through Article 2, townspeople jumped to Articles 22 through 24, as requested by a resident who noted “some of the higher ticket items as far as cost goes, are on the back pages.”

Meeting participants debated for nearly 30 minutes about how much they should raise and appropriate for the capital outlay account in Article 22. Though selectmen requested $178,625, the third motion on the floor of $53,625 for the capital outlay account gained voters’ approval. This appropriation eliminates a $90,000 request for a new public works truck to replace a 2003 truck, and cut the paving line from $75,000 to $40,000.

Selectwoman Tracy Tuttle, speaking not as an official but as a Richmond taxpayer, said, “This article alone adds $90 to $100 per $1,000 of valuation of each taxpayer’s home. And it’s almost certain that the highway department will be getting a new wheeler truck with the pipeline TIF from the selectmen. … The paving, the patching that they want to do, I ride the roads of Richmond. I don’t think that it’s totally necessary this year.”

A resident who spoke next said he had asked the town manager last year why the tax rate increased during a recession.

“I’d like to have a new truck, but if we keep jacking taxes at the rate we’re jacking here, there aren’t any of us who are going to be able to afford anything,” he said.

Selectman Clarence Cummins said, “We have three large plow trucks and one small one, which is also used as a dump truck for work throughout the year. The truck is well worn.” Cummins added that, based on information from the public works director, he expects the truck to require significant maintenance this year.

Article 24 requested $88,000 for the reserve account, but voters only approved raising and appropriating $ 66,700. The reduction stemmed from a motion to reduce each reserve account line by the amount currently in those lines, with the exception of the police reserve account.

Voters also took Article 36 out of order to consider authorizing selectmen to issue up to $300,000 in general obligation bonds or notes for the construction of a new library at 86 Main St. Before any debate or discussion could start, a motion to dismiss the article was made and was seconded.

That action prevented debate on the article, according to Goodall, who said a “yes” vote would effectively kill the article. A show of hands vote was too close, so Goodall called for a count, which resulted in the article being dismissed by a vote of 71 to 66.

As in past years, voters debated the need for a police department at its current size. However, a majority ultimately approved selectmen’s requested funding amount, including $ 14,000 to be set aside to pay for the fourth year of a sixth officer as required by a federal grant funding the first three years.

The town also debated Article 13 for several minutes before approving the selectmen’s recommended $22,290 for summer recreation programs.

Voters rejected Article 37, which would have enacted or ordinance regulating the use of consumer fireworks.

Townspeople also voted against enacting the Maine Uniform Building Code, meaning Richmond now has no building code.

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