The Scarborough Town Council will decide next week whether to send three bond orders to the November ballot for referendum votes, the most highly debated being replenishing the town’s land acquisition fund with $6 million.
Public hearings were held on the three bonds last week; $996,000 for body and cruiser cameras for the Police Department; $1 million for a new pumper truck for the fire department; and the replenishment of the fund.
The land acquisition fund is used to help organizations and individual residents acquire and conserve land. These entities apply for funding and their requests are vetted and scored by the Parks and Conservation Land Board, which then provides a recommendation to the Town Council for final approval. Voters created the $1.5 million fund in 2000. In 2003, voters replenished it with $2.5 million; in 2009 with $1 million; and in 2019 with $2.5 million.
While some residents support the $6 million proposal, others take issue with the amount or don’t think the town should have a land acquisition fund at all.
At the public hearing, resident Alyson Bristol said with other hefty investments on the horizon, such as a school solution and a potential community center, “now is not the time to bond more, especially at the tune of $6 million.”
While any organization or community member can apply for funding, the Scarborough Land Trust has done so routinely.
“While I appreciate their good work, at this moment in time, I’d like to see the town support (the land trust’s) work in some other less expensive way,” Bristol said.
Resident Sue Hamill said people who don’t want to bear the burden shouldn’t have to. With the land trust being a frequent user, she argued those looking to contribute to the nonprofit’s efforts can make donations.
“I believe that the funding model that we’ve been using in Scarborough is not fair to the taxpayers and it’s not fair to the Scarborough Land Trust,” Hamill said, later adding, “Please don’t put this on the backs of taxpayers.”
Andrew Mackie, director of the land trust, said the fund has contributed to a long list of the nonprofit’s acquisitions, such as Broadturn Farm, Warren Woods and Blue Point Preserve. However, they don’t get access to that funding without approval of the board and the Town Council.
Scarborough Land Trust conserved Blue Point Preserve with funds from the town land acquisition fund. Contributed / Scarborough Land Trust
“I’d like to make clear that the land bond is a town program with a committee that makes funding recommendations to the Town Council, with the council reviewing, holding public hearings and making final funding decisions,” Mackie said.
He emphasized that the town is just one partner in those acquisitions, with the land trust also working with the Maine Farmland Trust, Scarborough Historical Society, Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Friends of Scarborough Marsh, and other organizations.
“I want to ask councilors, the individuals in this room and everyone watching from home to think what the town would be like without places like Broadturn Farm, Comstock Farm, Frith Farm, Warren Woods, Blue Point Preserve, Pleasant Hill Preserve, Beech Ridge School House, beach access at Higgins Beach and the Gervais property,” Mackie said. “Imagine these properties were not conserved and turned into other uses.”
Town Manager Tom Hall noted that councilors could make amendments at their final vote on Wednesday, such as changing the amount to be replenished.