And just like that, summer's over. Too fast, too soon, but luckily fall in Maine is dreamy too. Keep an eye out for deer and turkeys on the road and enjoy that crisp air! 

Property Tax Bills: Ashley had a busy week last week getting all our property tax bills in the mail. Look for yours soon, and if you don't see it for any reason, you can now look it up online! Check out our new Property Tax webpage that lays out the whole process and provides links to commitment books and bills. 

Special Town Meeting; Wednesday, Sept. 17, 6 p.m. Town Office, 6 Fowles Point Road: This Special Town Meeting is to properly establish our current Deputy CEO position and give the Select Board the authority to appoint an additional Deputy CEO. It's coming up now because of an offer from a qualified local to help with code enforcement, and the discovery that the town needs to establish our Deputy CEO positions, current and future, through a Town Meeting vote. This won't effect our current CEO and Deputy CEO. See the Warrant for details, and please note the location of the Town OFFICE, not the Town Hall, due to the ongoing repairs. If this meeting turns out to be wildly exciting and we have too many to fit in the Town Office, we will move it to the parking lot or the Fire Station as needed. 

Groundwater Study Presentation and Q&A: Hydrogeologist Carol White gave a rousing talk last week on our recently completed Groundwater Study. You can watch her talk on our YouTube channel, and stay tuned for future workshops on how residents can care for our water supply. Here's one easy way to protect the water supply: Do you have unwanted, obsolete, old or unusable pesticides or repellents? The state offers an annual program to dispose of pesticides and other nasty substances. This program is available to homeowners, gardeners, greenhouses, and family-owned farms. Register by September 26th to participate by emailing pesticides@maine.gov

A Message from Complaints HQ: The Select Board receives a lot of complaints about a lot of things! That's OK, that's their job, complain away. But please understand that on many matters - particularly policing matters - they don't have any authority. If you are bugged, hounded, harassed, aggravated, nuisanced, put out, aggrieved, or any of the above, please promptly report it to Lincoln County Sheriff's Department first, with pictures and plate numbers if possible! Sometimes it takes a few complaints to get the Sheriff's Department to take action, so make sure you report it to them as well as the Select Board. 

ATV Rules: Speaking of being nuisanced and aggrieved, there have been a lot of complaints lately about ATVs on roads. The state law regarding ATVs is no driving them more than 300 feet on a road, all riders under 18 must wear a helmet, and no one under 16 should be driving one. Please direct complaints to the Sheriff, and then to the Select Board. 

Deer, deer, everywhere: Deer are lovely, but enough is enough! They are eating the all the landscaping, jumping in front of cars, and generally becoming a nuisance. The Select Board is working on getting the state to do something, but in the meantime, consider allowing hunting on your property if you don't already, and send any pics of particularly egregious deer situations to the Select Board at selectboard@westportisland.gov to help them persuade the state it's worth a look. 

Bridge Work: Hoo-boy! The timing of that light is really testing my patience. Here's the deal with the bridge work: The DOT has contracted with a company to do the work. Their contract gives them until December to complete the work. Could be faster! But might not be. Try to channel your inner Buddha and if that fails, don't take your frustration out on your neighbors who are also stuck in line!  

WCA Daffodils are back! This delightful program gives daffodil bulbs to residents to plant in October for blooms in May. All they ask is that you plant them where others can see them passing by. Planted correctly, the flowers multiply year to year and where only one was before a dozen will bloom. AND...Deer don't eat daffodils! Contact Westport Community Association members or email Mary Denzer at mdenzer13@gmail.com with your name and address for October delivery.

Using Facebook Safely Class, Thursday, Sept. 18, 11 a.m. to noon, Town Office, 6 Fowles Point Road: Join local tech expert Marita Fairfield for a class on how to use Facebook without getting hacked or scammed. Register here. There are limited spaces, so grab yours now!  

Neighbor to Neighbor seeking donations: Neighbor to Neighbor has been formed to fill the big shoes left by Helping Hands, and the WCA is helping by handling the donations until they are set up to accept donations themselves. Fuel assistance is expected to be a big need this winter. Donations can be sent to the WCA at 6 Fowles Point Road, Westport Island, ME 04578. Checks should be made out to the Westport Community Association with "Fuel Assistance" on the memo line. The same folks are also looking for donations of adaptive equipment in good condition, such as crutches, walkers, commodes, etc. If you would like to donate, have questions, or are in need of assistance, email neighbortoneighborwi@gmail.com or call (978) 771-8012. 

Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): This vital program is available to Maine residents who struggle to heat their homes. If you or someone you know is in need, now is the time to apply! Find out more and get the process started here. 

Help and Support: In addition to those listed above, the town strives to keep a comprehensive list of local resources for food, fuel, home repairs, transportation, legal assistance, and more on our website. Check it out, and let us know if you know of any resources that are missing. 

See our website calendar for a full listing of upcoming meetings and events! While you're there, poke around the website, it's got a wealth of information on all things Westport Island. You can also follow us on Facebook. If you know any Westport Islanders who are not receiving these emails, feel free to forward this and let them know they can be added to the list by emailing townclerk@westportisland.gov. 

You can find us at the Town Office at 6 Fowles Point Rd. during our office hours of Tuesdays 10-6, Wednesdays 10-2 and Thursdays 10-2. Call us at 882-8477 or email us anytime!

All the best, 

April Thibodeau, Town Clerk, townclerk@westportisland.gov
Dedee Greenleaf-Hodgdon, Municipal Agent, excise@westportisland.gov
Ashley Murray, Tax Collector/Treasurer,treasurer@westportisland.gov
Select Board Members Donna Curry (Chair), Kim Lynch, and Lisa Jonassen, selectboard@westportisland.gov