The first meeting of the Advisory Committee for Wiscasset’s Downtown Project included adopting a vision statement, but Monday evening’s discussion wasn’t without moments of disparity.

After calling the meeting to order, Town Manager Marian Anderson turned the floor over to Ernie Martin, project manager overseeing the Maine Department of Transportation’s planned $5 million project.

Martin began by asking the committee to consider two key questions: one addressing problems and concerns associated with the project; the other, identifying areas of special interest.

He offered a list he’d compiled identifying public safety, historical areas, sight distances, future maintenance and more. Martin then went around the table asking committee members to share their concerns and interests. These included street lighting, ADA access, directional signage, space for public restrooms and whether MDOT might consider including bicycle lanes.

When it was his turn, Seaver Leslie suggested the committee would have benefited if selectmen had appointed someone with construction experience. He also questioned why selectmen hadn’t appointed a member of the town’s historic preservation commission to the committee. Leslie warned not having a commission member directly participating in the discussions would be “a bone of contention” in the months ahead.

Anderson said the commission would serve as a resource to the committee. One member or the entire commission could attend any, or all, of the meetings she said.

Selectman David Cherry told Leslie a great deal of thought went into who was named to the committee. “We decided as a board how many members we felt were needed.” He went on to say the board couldn’t include someone from every group or special interest in town.

“There’s nothing wrong with having a few other people added to the committee,” Leslie continued.

Town Planner Ben Averill said not having a commission member could prove to be a detriment. “I do feel however, there are outlets for members of the historical commission to be heard,” he added.

Martin said MDOT had worked in many other communities with historical downtowns, adding he wouldn’t take those concerns lightly. “My three major considerations for this project are safety, mobility and historical. There’s no priority of one over another. Each of these will be discussed equally.”

With very little discussion, the committee then unanimously adopted a vision statement suggested by member Bill Maloney of Federal Street. The statement read: “To improve through traffic flow, increasing safety for pedestrians and vehicles while maintaining and enhancing the beauty and historical aspects and aesthetics of the community.”

Earlier in the meeting, Maloney had asked Martin if MDOT would provide ADA access into the downtown businesses. “We’re not required to provide ADA accessibility into private businesses but we’ll certainly do what we can to improve it,” responded Martin.

Anderson said the committee should be inclusive of all businesses in the community and not just ones downtown. “We’re getting a lot of feedback at the town office from other businesses on the outer corridors. You need to hear their concerns too.”

Martin hopes the committee can meet every two weeks. “Some meetings will be better than others and it’s going to be a long, long process,” he said.

Other committee members include Selectman Jeff Slack and fellow residents Susan Robson, Jamie Sonia, Steve Christiansen, Lonnie Kennedy-Patterson and Cynthia Davis.

The next meeting will be 5 p.m., Jan. 23 in the hearing room.