Town of Boothbay
Selectmen say ‘goodbye’ to Scorcia
First-term board member’s term ends Monday
Three years ago, Desiree Scorcia defeated incumbent Chuck Cunningham, 206-201, to win a Boothbay selectman’s seat. On April 27, the board presented her with a potted plant in gratitude for her service. Cunningham ran again and won a selectman’s seat two years ago. He thanked Scorcia for her contributions to town government. “The board welcomed you three years ago, unfortunately at my expense, but we wanted to thank you for your contributions, and wish you well in your future endeavors,” he said.
Scoricia thanked her fellow board members for their gift. Scorcia decided against running for another term to spend more time with her two teenage daughters. “It’s been three great years and it wasn’t even a full year before COVID hit,” she said. “I wish I could stay on but my family needs me. I may be back in the future, and hopefully I can attend a few meetings.”
Boothbay will elect Scorcia’s successor on Monday, May 2 as Aaron Axelrod and Russell Pinkham are the only two selectmen’s candidates on the municipal ballot.
In other action, selectmen worked on a final draft of the town property rental agreement. Earlier this year, selectmen placed a moratorium on all town-owned property rentals. Selectmen wanted time to craft a formal policy before approving new rental requests this year. For years, the town manager was charged with vetting prospective renters. Boothbay Common has a long legacy of being used by Boothbay Civic Association and a local Farmers’ Market association. In March, selectmen approved a policy for these legacy organizations who rented Boothbay Common for one to two-day stays. But selectmen had trouble devising a policy for longer events, such as last winter’s Boothbay Winter Festival.
On April 27, selectmen seemingly reached a consensus on proposed language for longer term rental which was defined as three or more consecutive days. Selectmen directed Bryer to have legal counsel review the proposed application. Selectmen plan to vote on the policy next month. Bryer explained the new policy isn’t much different from the current one. “It’s mainly the same, except it’s more formal. Before, we didn’t have anything official written down and this will at least specify expectations.” Bryer said.
Selectmen held two public hearings for PGC2, LLC. The board unanimously approved a special Class A, B, C and D amusement permit for Boothbay Harbor Country Club. A second special Class A, B, C and D amusement permit was approved for Boothbay Harbor Country Club Wellness Center. The board also unanimously approved a wharf and wiers permit for Linda Jay Burly of 22 Linekin Bay. Earlier this month, Burly received planning board approval for her application requesting improvements to a pier, including widening it by one inch and raising the height by 2.5 inches, and adding a 12-foot by 4-foot ramp along with lengthening the runway by two feet.
The town received correspondence from Maine Lobstermen’s Association seeking help in its litigation against the federal government. Bryer reported the association is seeking financial help for legal fees over new right whale safety regulations. Selectman Steve Lewis suggested the board invite association representatives to a board meeting. Despite the new regulations coming out of Washington, D.C., Lewis characterized the battle as non-partisan. “What’s interesting about this is how important this is to the entire state. You have a past and possibly future governor and a current governor on the same side of the issue. And those two don’t generally agree on anything,” he said.
Selectmen meet next at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 11 in the conference room.
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