Alna moved closer Monday night to determining the future of its town office. Selectmen signed a $2,000 deal with a design firm to look at what it would take to keep the town office in the cape on Route 218 or move it into the fire station across the road.

The board hired Lincoln/Haney Engineering Associates with a $2,000 technical assistance grant the town won earlier this year from the Lincoln County Regional Planning Commission. Selectmen plan to contact the firm to arrange visits to both the town office and the fire station. Board members have predicted the cape would need some fixing up to continue serving as the town office, and they have said if the office stays put, they want a larger meeting room. Now when a crowd is anticipated, the board meets at the station.

Lincoln/Haney’s contract states in part, “Our goal for the evaluation will be to provide you meaningful advice that can assist you in deciding your next step for addressing your current and future needs ... Some recommendations may need to be revisited as part of a more focused study ...” Under the deal, the firm will look for any code issues at the buildings, review the current town office’s needs for additions or other changes, and evaluate the fire station basement as a potential town office. The firm does not expect to provide line-item costs for a project, according to the contract.

In March, voters narrowly agreed to put $10,000 toward exploring the town office issue. First Selectman David Abbott on Monday said if any portion of that goes unspent, the board could propose another use for it.

Also Monday, the board discussed resident and former town treasurer Aaron Miller’s proposal for a budget committee. Miller’s Nov. 14 letter states in part, “I believe a budget committee is a critical component in transparency of how we spend our tax dollars.”

Selectmen decided they will not propose one without a citizens’ petition for a town meeting warrant article. Both selectmen in attendance, Abbott and Third Selectman Doug Baston, recalled serving on one the town had previously. They said hard work was done over several meetings, and the only proposal the town ended up approving was a cut Baston supported making to the pay he was getting as planning board chairman.

The Wiscasset Newspaper left Miller a phone message Monday night.

Baston said the town’s negotiator on a cable franchise deal is asking Charter to expand access into Head Tide Village and nearby parts of routes 194 and 218. There are enough homes per mile to support it, Baston said. He said the negotiator, former Time Warner employee Mike Edgecomb, also wants the new deal to include a share of the cut Charter gets from sales on shopping channels.

Baston reiterated his support for the board’s decision to hire Edgecomb. “I would never have known that,” he said about the shopping sales.

The board set its next meeting for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30 at the town office.