Wiscasset appears to have an unexpected $500,000 cushion on its credit line for the costs to leave Regional School Unit 12, Selectmen's Chairman Ed Polewarczyk said January 21.

“I was shocked,” Polewarczyk said about learning days earlier that an estimated $1.5 million in withdrawal costs includes the money for teachers' upcoming summer salaries.

That means the $2 million voters authorized selectmen to borrow could turn out to be more than the town needs; but another factor in play may take up at least some of the remaining $500,000, town officials said.

“The fortunate part is that ($500,000) gives some flexibility,' Polewarczyk said.

The withdrawal deal with the school district calls for Wiscasset to cover its share of school district debts, including construction projects in Chelsea and Windsor, town officials said; those payments, which will be made over a number of years, are accounted for in the $1.5 million to withdraw. But there could be one more debt to pay into, a budget shortfall the district has been facing this year.

As a debt, the shortfall could tie back to the withdrawal deal, Town Manager Laurie Smith said. The selectmen should put a focus on the school district's efforts to shrink the shortfall, she said.

The district's board froze certain spending in October 2013, after learning the district was $1 million in the red.

On Tuesday night, the board agreed to let the school committee sign a contract of up to $50,000 with an interim superintendent. The committee was set to begin candidate interviews January 23.

Should next town manager have to live in town?

As selectmen worked on an ad for the next town manager January 21, they considered requiring the person hired to become a Wiscasset resident within two years.

“I think they need to be invested in the community,” Selectman Judith Colby said. Other members agreed, except Polewarczyk.

It would limit the number of people who would apply for the job, he said.

Resident Steve Mehrl expressed concern, too, after board members said the town manager's first contract would be for three years. “So you've got a three-year contract, with an expectation for them to sell their house and move here and buy a house,” Mehrl said.

“You're going to have a short candidate list.”

Selectmen settled on wording that would make their preference clear but not box the job into having a residency requirement.

That issue could be part of contract negotiations, selectmen said.

Also Tuesday, the board reviewed a schedule that could get a new town manager in place by late May.

The deadline for resumes will be February 18; interviews are planned for mid-March, followed by a second round of interviews for two or three finalists in early April, and then contract negotiations with the person the board picks. A town manager's start date is typically announced a month in advance, said Richard Metivier, of the Eaton Peabody consulting firm the board hired to help with the search.

Smith, of Auburn, has her last day on the job in Wiscasset February 7; she's becoming Kennebunkport's town manager. Don Gerrish will repeat as Wiscasset’s interim town manager, beginning February 10. He held the same temp slot in 2010.

Sold!

Selectmen agreed to sell 25 Middle Street to John Kennedy of Damariscotta for $35,000. Before putting the tax-acquired property on the market last year, the board had eyed it as a possible downtown parking lot.

Trash update

Wiscasset is keeping its options open for where it will take its waste if and when Penobscot Energy Recovery Company (PERC) shuts down.

Selectmen on January 21 passed a resolution that supports towns' efforts to pursue possible new landfills, including ones that might be a shorter haul for Wiscasset.

The new facilities would also help towns avoid paying more to keep the aging PERC plant running; and they could save money by doing a better job of sorting out recyclables, Lear said.

Approach to school committee discussed

Wiscasset selectmen hope to strike a balance in their approach to the town's new school committee.

They discussed wanting to work with the committee to help minimize the tax impact from creating a school department; but they also need to remember that the department and the school budget are the school committee's job, not theirs, selectmen said.

“I think it would be a mistake to step on their toes,” board member Pam Dunning said.

The board could suggest sharing staff or other resources with the school department, to try to save money, board members said.

The discussion came as the board mulled possible goals for the next year.