Woolwich selectmen resumed work on the town’s new personnel policy July 16. They met with the town administrator to discuss a list of revisions before their regular meeting. Among the changes are clarifying entitlements for employees including accrued hours for earned time off. Chairman David King Sr. remarked the document had grown to 37 pages since it was last updated eight years ago.

In an email to Wiscasset Newspaper following the meeting, Selectman Tommy Davis explained the changes are basically to keep the policy up to date with more recent legal requirements. Since the 2017 update, the town’s work week has changed from 40 to 34.5 hours per week.

“We were just looking to make the vacation and sick time accrual comport with the 5.5-hour shorter work week; i.e., if you work 34.5 hours per week, you get a week of vacation in your first year – rather than requiring 40 hours,” he wrote. Davis has been working on the revisions with Town Administrator Kim Dalton.

During their regular meeting, selectmen voted 4-0 (Selectman Allison Hepler was absent) to waive a public hearing and renew a liquor license for Taste of Maine Restaurant. In other business, they re-appointed Candace Conrad as deputy town clerk and signed off on the previously approved snow plowing contracts.

Selectman Jason Shaw announced the Planning and Events Committee had set Saturday, Aug. 16 aside for Woolwich Day – the community’s annual gathering featuring free grilled hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream, cotton candy and soft drinks. The event is held rain or shine under a tent alongside the firehouse on Nequasset Road on the lawn of Woolwich Historical Society’s 19 century farmhouse.

Regional School Unit 1 board member Jennifer Ritch-Smith said the state has placed RSU 1 first on its list for funding a new K-5 elementary school. The building will replace Dike-Newell School in Bath that suffered extensive fire damage in June 2022. No timeline for the construction has been set.

Selectman Davis said Consolidated Communications was planning to hold a ribbon-cutting party Thursday evening Aug. 14 at Wiscasset Community Center. Davis said the gathering featuring free pizza is to mark the roll-out of broadband internet service. Residents of Woolwich, Wiscasset and Dresden are invited to attend.

Davis said there had been some interest in posting information about the town’s cemeteries on the town’s website. In response, King pointed out just two of the cemeteries were town-owned. “All of the others are privately owned and maintained. I’d be in favor of doing this but I can see where it would probably open a can of worms,” he said.

Fire Chief Shaun Merrill said he’d gotten a quote from Northeast Emergency Apparatus in Auburn for needed repairs on Engine 4. The work includes replacing the fire truck’s leaking fuel tank; the estimate was $6,281. Selectmen authorized the fire chief to spend up to $7,000 for the work. In another matter, Merrill said the recent offer the fire department had received for its old compressor unit from Searsmont had fallen through.

In his bi-weekly report, EMS Director Danny Evarts said Woolwich ambulance had responded to 19 calls so far in July. Seventeen patients were seen, 10 transported, MC1 was called twice, and Woolwich ambulance was called to Dresden twice for mutual aid. “Both ambulances had thorough inspections, with no new issues found,” he said, adding, he was in the process of getting quotes for minor rust repair needed to Rescue 1.

Road Commissioner Jack Shaw said paving on Mountain Road had been completed along with most of the brush cutting along the roadsides and mowing of the former landfill.

Resident Tom Stoner asked when the next scheduled meeting of the town’s Climate Resilience Committee would be held. Selectman Davis said the committee meets the last Monday of the month. Stoner indicated he’d like to attend the meetings and asked to be placed on the committee’s email notification list. 

Dalton said nomination papers for town office will be available beginning July 28. Seats available include two on the selectboard.