Wiscasset voters on Dec. 9 will give the school committee a green or red light on closing Wiscasset Primary School next year. Selectmen set the referendum date at their Oct. 21 meeting.

“I’m glad it’s been scheduled for as soon as possible,” Committee Chairman Steve Smith said when reached afterward.

That will help maximize the time the committee has for planning the next year, after learning the vote’s outcome, Smith said.

The board also decided the secret ballot vote will take place at the municipal building.

The vote stems from a petition that Primary School and Wiscasset Middle School parent Andrea Main filed Oct. 15. Without a petition, a vote the school committee took Sept. 15 to close Wiscasset Primary after this school year would have stood, with no town vote being required, school department officials have said.