ROCKPORT - Auditor Ron Smith spoke highly of the Town of Rockport’s municipal finances Monday, Jan. 28 during a meeting of the Select Board. Smith, who is the managing principal of Buxton-based RHR Smith, shared findings from an audit of the town’s assets he performed on June 30.

The meeting also saw the appointment of four members of the public to the newly formed Rockport Library Building Committee, and featured a discussion of a proposed food sovereignty ordinance which would allow the sale of home-prepared or home raised food without a commercial license.

Town audit

“Congratulations to the Town for putting forward what I think is a great effort for a document to go forward that you can adjust at any time.... On June 30, 2018, the financial condition of the town’s General Fund improved by about $600,000,” said Smith.

Smith said that Rockport’s carryover balance of unspent monies rose $3.2 million from $2.6 million the previous year. He attributed the $600,000 increase to municipal officials not spending all proposed budget appropriations in combination with significant property and excise tax collections. These tax collections contributed approximately $200,000 to the total increase of $600,000 from the audit performed on June 30, 2017.

Smith said that the town’s Fund Balance Policy states that Rockport will keep at least 12 percent of its operating budget in a reserve to provide tax relief or deal with unforeseen expenses within the municipality. Thanks to the influx of money from the previous year, he said that the town now has approximately 20 percent of its operating budget in the reserve. He estimated that a reserve of 12 percent of the town’s budget would carry the town for 45 days in case of an unforeseen emergency and that 20 percent would protect the town for up to 80 days.

The audit revealed that the town’s total net position for government activities increased by $472,000: from $13 million in 2017 to $13.4 in 2018. The town’s net position for business activities decreased by $629,000: from $4.6 million in 2017 to $3.9 million in 2018. Rockport’s total government assets as of June, 2018 were $16.4 million; in 2017 they were $15.8 million.

According to Smith, over the past year the town saw an operating loss of $600,000 in its wastewater or sewer department. Part of this loss was attributed to heavy wastewater users such as PenBay Medical Center upgrading its systems to become less wasteful or to use less water. Smith said that since these upgrades have now been reflected, going forward the town can better anticipate wastewater usage in coming years. Finance Director Megan Brackett said that wastewater treatment costs had also increased over the past year.

The town currently has $1.1 million in its reserve fund. This is comprised of approximately $400,000 in the public assistance fund and $600,000 in the town’s cemetery fund. The town has set aside another $1.1 in its capital reserve for equipment in departments such as fire, highways and wastewater, as well as the Rockport Opera House and the Rockport Public Library. 

Smith also discussed post-closure care costs in the future for the Mid-Coast Solid Waste (MCSW) facility in Rockport. He pointed to a $1.4 million settlement from Penobscot Energy Recovery Company (PERC) last year which was divided among Rockport, Camden, Hope and Lincolnville. Of this some $400,000 was distributed to Rockport. At the 2018 Town Meeting, Rockport residents voted to have this money placed in a reserve account for future post-closure care costs.

Library Building Committee

The Select Board voted unanimously to accept the applications of Richard Anderson, Ann Filley, Bill Chapman and Denise Munger to serve on the Rockport Library Building Committee at their Jan. 28 meeting. Acting Select Board chairman Ken McKinley proposed forming the new committee earlier this month.

McKinley suggested a committee of Rockport residents and Select Board Members would oversee various elements of decision making over the coming months as the construction of the new Rockport Public Library at 1 Limerock Street takes shape. Many of the design decisions made to date have been conceived by the project’s Design Team which includes the architect, Steve Smith, as well as the library’s director, Ben Blackmon. McKinley and Cole serve as Select Board representatives on the Design Team. Also on the design team is Charlie Frattini of Phi Builders, who serves as the owner’s representative for the project.

Among those appointed to the committee Monday night, Filley already serves on the Design Team, is the Treasurer of the Library Committee, the President of the Rockport Library Foundation and a member of the Friends of the Rockport Public Library.

McKinley pointed out that a new Building Committee would allow members of the public a chance to have their voices heard, and report finding directly to the Select Board. He said he anticipated the committee could include one or two Select Board members and three or four Rockport residents. At the Jan. 28 meeting McKinley and Selectman Doug Cole were appointed to the committee.

Unlike the Design Team, which is convened by the Town Manager and is considered private, meetings of the proposed committee would be held publicly and open to all. The Building Committee have their first meeting in tandem with the Library Design Team at a date to be determined.

Food sovereignty 

Rockport resident Marci Casas urged the Select Board to consider placing an ordinance on the town’s June ballot which would allow home food producers to sell their good directly to neighbors without licensing. She presented a copy of an ordinance which had been adopted by such towns as Rockland, titled “Local food and community self-governance ordinance of 2019.”

“The premise of the ordinance is that you could sell soup to your neighbor without having to license your kitchen, or in the case of our family farm, it’s about being able to sell more than just the produce – so if I wanted to sell dill pickles to my neighbors, I wouldn’t have to license my kitchen,” said Casas.

She explained that the ordinance was passed by the State during the 128th legislative session, and is an opt-in ordinance for municipalities. Towns such as Hope and cities such as Rockland have adopted the ordinance. Casas was joined by Jesse Watson, who was instrumental in the two-year process which resulted in Rockland’s City Council passing the ordinance.

“This [ordinance] codifies for roadside stands and farmers markets what you can produce in your home kitchen, and approximately 40 towns in Maine have joined.... It would create a legal space where the community has better food service resilience and emphasizes responsibility for the farmer and the producer,” said Watson. Meat and poultry would be excluded from the foods prepared for sale.

Selectman Jeff Hamilton asked how the ordinance would effect individuals who were currently operating with licensed kitchen, and Selectman Doug Cole asked how food safety would be monitored. Casas suggested that food producers would “police themselves” through word of mouth and social media outlets in the community.

The Select Board said that they would have the town attorney review the document.