Belfast Council Backs Sauna Pilot, Church Street One-Way, Dangerous Building Order

[6:28] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): All right, good evening. The mic is on. Welcome to Belfast, City of Belfast Council Chambers, Belfast City Hall. Today is Tuesday, October 6, 2026. There was an executive session with no action at 6. At 6.15, there were two committee interviews. And then at 6.30, there was a council work session with the City Tree Committee, which just concluded. And now it's 7 o'clock, time for the regular council meeting. So good evening to everybody, and welcome. This is regular council meeting number six. We'll do a call to order. Mayor Eric Sanders present. Counselors Mary Mortier here, [7:06] City Manager Aaron Herbig: Neil Harkness, Dan Miller here, Chris Beitley here, Paul Dean, President. City Manager Aaron Herbe here, and Deputy City Manager Manda Cushman here. If you could all please rise for the pledge of allegiance. I [7:21] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. Thank you very much. Adoption of the agenda. I believe we're removing something, is that? Yes, we are. The request would be to remove item 10L, which was a request from the public health nurse regarding free public flu clinics, which they were discussed holding at the boathouse. However, they will be holding the free flu vaccine clinics in multiple locations, some in Stockton Springs, at the primary care in Brooks, at the Waldo County YMCA here in Belfast. They're doing four drive through clinics at the across from the Waldo County Hospital, and then three at the Belfast Soup Kitchen. All of this information we will make sure is shared on the city website and social media, so folks can know when it's happening. Thank you. So we'll be there's a motion to remove. That is there any other adjustments to the agenda? Seeing none, I'll look for a motion. We'll figure out the agenda as amended. Discussion? All in favor. Motion passes five to zero. Thank you, council. Thank you, City Manager Herbig. Acceptance of the minutes. This would be regular council meeting of September 15, 2026. Can I get a motion? Second. Discussion? Seeing none, I'll take it to a vote. All in favor. Motion passes five to zero. Thank you. Now we're going to go to open to the public. Public comment is provided at the discretion of the mayor and city council. Each speaker will be allowed three minutes uninterrupted to speak. If it's going to get close to three minutes, I sort of wait for you to breathe, and I let you know you're getting close. I'm as polite as can be. And all I ask is when you come to the podium, if you could give your name and city of residence, because often, and we open it up to any city or town, obviously. So at this point, I have my phone with the three minute timers. Anybody who wishes to speak to open to the public at this time, please step up. Carol, good evening. [9:49] Carol Good (public commenter, Friends of Belfast Parks): Good evening. My name is Carol Good. I live in Belfast. And I'm with the Friends of Belfast Parks. This is just a quick announcement to let the community know about an upcoming uplifting fundraising event that we have scheduled for Thursday, October 22nd. An author Robert Kowalski will be here in Belfast to share his book, Busco, We Are All Just Mutts After All. This is a dog story with a message for all of us about being lost and found, and about the importance of compassion and acceptance and love. We could use a lot of that. Mr. Kowalski is a philanthropist and has donated over 3,000 of his books to support animal shelters, children's hospitals, and public schools. And this event is appropriate for adults and children and is sponsored by the Friends of Belfast Parks and PAWS Animal Adoption Center, which of course serves Belfast, with the intention of raising funds for the Camden and Belfast Dog Parks. And I would note that in August we celebrated the 18th year of the Belfast Dog Park. If you can imagine that, it seems like just yesterday. So please come join us, hear him speak. It will be at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church on October 22nd at 5 o'clock. There you go. And since this is a fundraiser, we are asking for adults to pay $25 to come. Children are free. There will be snacks. There will be drinks. There will be merch and door prizes. So I hope to see as many of you here and as many people in the community who could come October 22nd. Thank you. Thank you, Carol. [11:40] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Henry will be there. Who's next? Anyone? I'll go. [11:50] Nicole Luttrell (public commenter): Good evening. Good evening Mayor Sanders, counselors, and city manager. I'm Nicole Luttrell and I'm a resident of East Belfast, a licensed Maine guide, and the owner-operator of Dory Woman Rowing and Salty, which sauna or sauna if you're finished. This summer. I celebrated my fifth anniversary of offering lessons and tours and my wooden dory on the Belfast waterfront. And I'm here tonight to formally request your approval for the seasonal pilot location agreement for Salty Witch Sauna to operate at the boathouse. I want to thank Adrian, Carolyn, and the Parks and Trail Committee for their hard work and their unanimous recommendation. And I deeply appreciate the time many of you have taken to speak with me over these past few weeks. Thank you. This whole thing actually started right here as a partnership with the City of Belfast and Selkie Sauna of Mount Desert Island for the 2025 Ice Fest. We offered the ice row plus sauna plus dip experience, and it was a huge hit. People kept asking me, why isn't there a wood-fired sauna here all the time? I took that question to heart. I applied for and won a grant to get that sauna and had a successful first season at 15 French Street. Folks of all ages, all walks of life, came out to heat up in the sauna, dip in the harbor, and play in the snow, proving how much our community craves warmth, wellness, and connection in colder months. Traditional wood-fired sauna paired with cold water immersion provides massive science-backed health benefits. This past June, I traveled to finland to study their time-honored traditions firsthand in over two weeks i visited 50 different saunas which i'm classifying as grueling academic research in finland saunas are celebrated as essential community spaces that bring people together to fight winter isolation that is exactly what i'm trying to build here as deputy director of the main office of outdoor recreation Nicole Lezour, who is also a Belfast resident, highlighted in her support letter, in your packet, this proposal comes at a time when sauna and cold water recreation are gaining momentum, right here in our communities. For Belfast, this represents an opportunity to participate in a distinctly Maine version of a growing recreational tradition, and importantly, would bring that experience directly to Belfast Waterfront. And then she goes on to note, This is more than simply adding another business or amenity to the waterfront. It is an opportunity to activate public space in a new way and encourage people to embrace our four seasons rather than retreat indoors for much of the winter. 20 seconds. Okay. I just was going to say, to be honest, preparing for tonight, I felt a little bit like Kevin Bacon in the movie Footloose when he stands before the town council. I'm not fighting for the right to dance, and I'm not going to quote the Bible, but I can't help but think of that phrase from the bird song to everything turn there is a season turn and a time for every purpose under heaven and a main winter is without a doubt the perfect season to [15:06] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): sauna thank you and you'll be interested to know that the Belfast High School musical this year is flash dance flash dance good [15:19] City Manager Aaron Herbig: evening good evening my name is Katherine Miles. I'm speaking tonight not only as a longtime and year-round resident of the area, but also as the author of the forthcoming Frommers' 2027 guidebooks, both for New England and for coastal Maine. My job is to look at what makes coastal communities distinctive, what will help them remain vibrant and economically healthy in the years ahead, and to choose what to recommend to visitors in our area. What strikes me about Salty Witch is how closely it fits Belfast's own vision for its sustainable future. Belfast's 2024 comprehensive plan calls for a diverse year-round economy, strong local businesses, a dynamic waterfront, and a walkable downtown. It specifically says that increased recreational opportunities contribute to Belfast's attractiveness as a destination. The plan also recognizes that this city's challenge isn't preventing change. Instead, it's managing change thoughtfully while protecting what makes Belfast special. That's exactly what Nicole Luttrell's proposal does. And to be clear, what we are talking about here is a movable, tastefully constructed eight by 14 foot wooden structure built by local craftspeople. In that regard, the visual footprint of the sauna is negligible. Moreover, it takes an existing asset, the harbor, and creates a new way to experience both for tourists and for local residents and at a time of year when Belfast most needs activity downtown. There is no better time for this kind of sustainable tourism. Conde Nast Traveler projects that the wellness travel market to exceed $1.4 trillion by 2027. It also identifies the rise of the social sauna culture as one of 2026's biggest travel trends. friends. Saunas are increasingly becoming places where people gather, connect with nature, and experience a particular place, not simply amenities at a luxury resort. In Salty Witch, Belfast has an appealing opportunity to capitalize on this growing market share. In Nicole Luttrell, you not only have a woman-owned business with a proven track record of success, but one who embodies the vision of Belfast's future. That's a huge reason why, when it came time for me to select which mid-coast attractions would appear in the two Frommer's guidebooks, I included Salty Witch Sauna and Dory Woman Rowing. Both bring people to the waterfront and give residents and visitors alike a reason to engage with the natural resources that make our community distinct. Sustainable growth doesn't mean freezing Belfast in place. It means making thoughtful, appropriately scaled additions that build on the assets we already have. That's precisely what Nicole has proposed, and I urge you to approve her proposal as written. Thank you. Thank you. Perfect. Thank you very much. [18:24] David Black (public commenter): good evening good evening mayor Sanders councillors and manager her big my name is David black I'm from I live in Belfast on Northport Avenue I'm here to offer some old-school, enthusiastic support for Nicole Luttrell's Salty Witch Sauna. I'm a lifelong resident of Belfast. I spent most of my time in the harbor area in Penobscot Bay, and I've seen a lot of changes on the waterfront, and I think a lot of those changes have been good. And I've known Nicole Luttrell for two or three years, and I found her to be a very capable and professional entrepreneur. And I look very positively on what she has to offer. And I hope you will consider her proposal tonight with your highest consideration and your approval. And thank you. Thanks, David. Good to see you, man. Mayor, [19:27] Lauren (public commenter): counselors, everyone. I'm asking permission, again. I'm asking permission to speak during the agenda item K, citizens' concerns on pickleball. All. [19:39] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Okay. Council? Yeah. Good with that? Yeah. Appropriate. There you go. Thank you. Jackie, good evening. It's a long walk across, so I figured I'd say hi. Thank you. [19:56] Jackie Gage (public commenter): Good evening, Mayor Sanders, council members, and Manager Herbig. My name is Jackie Gage, and I'm a retired Belfast school teacher and biologist, and I reside in Northport. I'm here tonight to raise awareness about the implications of the increased use of rodenticides in our community. Next Tuesday there will be a panel discussion at the Belfast Free Library to address this issue and discuss rodent concerns and control in the greater Belfast area. You're all invited and here's a flyer to pass around about that. Rodenticides are highly toxic poisons used to kill rodents. They have devastating effects on non-targeted wildlife species including pets. They come in a variety of forms and are designed to be highly appealing to rodents. These poisons are available in hardware stores and through certified licensed exterminators who generally put the poisons in black often unlabeled bait boxes outside buildings. Have you all seen those black bait boxes? Yeah because yeah. The baits attract and kill rodents, even if the rodent never entered a home or building. They poison any other small animal that can enter the holes. Rodents who eat these poisons often take days to die and then are consumed by predators who may, in turn, be poisoned as these toxins move through the food web. Thus, many of these rodenticides are killing or sickening rodents' natural predators, such as raptors, owls, foxes, and more. Many homeowners don't even know that their pest management systems use rodenticides. On Tuesday, October 13th, the Belfast Bay Watershed Coalition and the Rodenticide-Free Maine Coalition are cosponsoring a panel presentation, and we have guests from Maine Audubon, Maine Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, and Modern Pest Service that is a commonly used exterminator here in Belfast. And along with rodenticides, they have lots of alternatives to rodenticides that are very effective. Integrated pest management strategies will be presented along with displays of safe and effective rodenticide-free rodent control options. Following a brief presentation, we will open the room to Q&A discussion. The goal of the evening is to spread awareness of the rodenticide crises, learn about alternatives for safe and effective rodent control, and discuss rodent concerns and solutions within the greater Belfast area while keeping our wildlife and pets safe. The event will be held at the Belfast Library from 6 till 7.30, and we welcome you all to attend. [22:44] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Could you state that date again? Because you said the 13th, and the flyer says the 23rd. [22:48] Carol Herwig (public commenter): The flyer says the 23rd? Yes. [22:50] Jackie Gage (public commenter): Oh, my. Cross that off. [22:52] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Off it's the 13th okay thank you so much for catching that it's next tuesday and i'm going to be going so anybody's welcome all right thank you it'll be very interesting the presenters have [23:03] Jackie Gage (public commenter): all presented down at the camden library in june and they're excellent presenters so thank [23:10] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): you thank you jackie anyone [23:14] Speaker L (unidentified): else good [23:20] Debbie Hawkins Smith (public commenter): evening deb good evening my name is debbie hawkins smith I'm resident of Belfast generally I'm up here talking on behalf of the friends but tonight my remarks are my own they have nothing to do with the friends they're coming directly from me first of all I would like to lend my support enthusiastic support to Nicole for her sauna it'll be located right below where I live and I can hardly wait but I think it'll be a great asset in the especially in the winter time down on the waterfront so I meant to write a letter but I've been consumed with some other things but I do lend my support to that the other thing I wanted to talk about is pickleball but not from the friends perspective from my perspective I know there's a petition out there I think signed by about 250 pickleball players asking that the courts not be closed down until other courts can be found, and I know that's a topic of discussion tonight, but I read the comments. I read the petition. I read the comments. Petition I can kind of support because it says until suitable courts are found and installed, so I'm in support of that, but we can't wait forever, but in reading those comments, it occurred to me that overwhelmingly the comments are talking about the health benefits of pickleball i didn't find one well i think there was one that i read that addressed or that acknowledged that the noise problem is a serious health problem it's not an annoyance it's a serious health problem them so I think people are need to be educated so I'm handing out to you tonight each of you this is just came out in August this is fresh off the press the National Task Force on pickleball noise how to reduce pickleball noise what the research shows so I have a copy for each of you and I'll pass it around and i'm also hoping to put it out there else other ways the other thing i found quite interesting i only have one copy of this pickleball noise the psychological and physiological effects on nearby Residents, this is a very insightful and interesting article. Everyone should read this because pickleball again, it's a different noise, it's not an annoyance, it's a health issue, and I hope people take that to heart. 10 seconds. The other thing is an offer that I made, and somebody called it a stunt, but I'm making this as a serious offer. Since most residents don't live near the pickleball courts, I'm willing to take the pickleball noise to the neighborhoods hoods. So I would be glad to get in my vehicle and drive around and sit somewhere for eight hours and play pickleball noise to anyone who would like to offer. I would be willing to do that on my days off. So I'm putting it out there. I can start with you. Time is up. It's out there and I'm willing to do it. So it's an experiential education. Thank you, Deb. [26:56] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Your time is still up. Anyone else? Are we good? All right, I'm going to close open to the public. There'll be another one at the end of the meeting. We'll move on to any organization and department reports. Good to go? Communications, counsel, floor is yours. Good evening. Anybody wish to talk? It's a first. Paul? Paulie? The President I thought you were already gone. No, I'm back. [27:34] Councilor Paul Dean: This is a reminder about flu shots, and that is that they accept most insurance cards. And make sure you bring your insurance card when you get a flu shot. Those without insurance can receive flu vaccines at no cost. There are a couple this week. That's why I wanted to mention this, it's across from the hospital on Friday, October 9th, this Friday, from 10 to 2 o'clock. They're driving so they're easy to get your shot if you need one, and they recommend it from anybody six months and older. So there's also one on, let's see, it's up at the soup kitchen on Wednesday, October 7th, this week, and also the following October 14th and the 21st. And that's from 11 o'clock to noon. They're not going to, my understanding, is they're not going to be at the boathouse this year, which is a disappointment because I'm a creature of habit, and I like going down there and getting my booster shot. But anyway, they are available, and more information we put on the city website. So I want to thank everybody. On my way in today, I had a chance to vote. I have a sticker, and running low on stickers, so if you want to get a sticker to vote, you probably should rush right in tomorrow. But it was a very easy, just easy to do. You know, you walk up, they give you an envelope, you fill out the ballot, and then you have to seal it and sign your name to it. It's that easy. Very quick, and saves going over on, what is it? November 3rd, I think, is election day. So it's quite a benefit. This is the first time I've ever done that, and it was easy. So anyway, that's my communications tonight. The President Thank [29:41] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): you. Anyone else? I would just say there was an early voting good start yesterday. It was a candidates' night last Tuesday. The City Council, I know Neil and Mary were there, and the three other candidates were there, I think five in total, at Troy Howard. And it went very well. The next night was a candidate night for RSU71. Samantha Gayen Scott was there, and that lasted an hour. That was at the Abbott Room, which is open now. The library entrance is great. It was a huge two-and-a-half-inch rainstorm to celebrate the new concrete to make sure the drain worked, which it does. And I just wanted to say that we'll get to the pickleball thing, but out of love for the group, I did want to just take a moment to celebrate their greatness. We've had three meetings, and I know Paul is going to nod his head, and Neil wasn't at the last one, but he would agree with me. The four groups, which the city manager and I sort of came up with to work a working group for ideas and recommendations only. It's up to the council. But they've really put in the work together. And I think that's so important. Whether you're a neighbor or a pickleball player, I have found both groups to be exceedingly getting to know each other and try to help each other. And I think that's wonderful. The role of government, because there were three community members at the last meeting, The role of government, for me, is to make sure that every citizen feels that their health and safety is valued and is, you know, we try to do good by them. And the group is looking at the root cause only, really, which is the noise, which I Googled. Yes, it's a scientific fact that the repetitive stuff. I did not read the comments on the survey. I think, you know, my only thought would be that was never, that was always part of the plan. Is like, we don't know what's going to happen, but we do know that we're working on the noise. And there have been significant steps suggested by the group over the past six weeks, give or take, that have come through really well. So more work will be done. But bravo to the group for all the work they've done as they share it with the council tonight, or Paul does and Neil. And it's a, it's a particularly good issue for a community to work on together. And I, and I value that, and that includes the work that councils put into it and the city itself. So I just wanted to communicate that to everybody in the group. Fair, there you go. Any other communications? All right, let's go. All right, old business and city committee reports, consideration of [32:27] Councilor Mary Mortier: committee appointments. Mary, I'd like to make a motion that first of all, this is for the zoning board of appeals. We had two applicants for one vacancy. It is for an alternate position, and I would like to make a motion that we select Catherine Ludwig. All right, is there a second? [32:49] Speaker L (unidentified): Second from Neil. Any discussion? Just want to state that the other candidate was excellent. So I hope that person continues to make efforts to join our city in an active way. [33:04] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Well said. Yeah, I'll second that, and I'll say that we have seen over the last year or so the level of quality of people applying for city committees has gone up and up and up. I said, which committee did we do the last time they climbed? And I'm like, this is like, they're all qualified. I mean, it's just fantastic to get so many people. And I hear a lot about we don't listen to the community, we don't give community voice. And we have how many, Erin, how many committee members? 86 members of the community who volunteer their time to come and talk about important issues and advise the council and the staff. And I think that's great community engagement, and I really commend everybody involved. And it has been very impressive, the quality of people that have been stepping up. It's unbelievable. The President: All right. Thank you. We'll get a motion and a second. Any other discussion? All in favor? Motion passes five to zero. Thank you very much. Permits, petitions, licenses, consent agenda. Can I get a motion? Mr. Second. The President: All in favor? Five to zero. It passes. On to business. Business item A, request to appoint Robert J. Osgood III of Lincolnville as a truck driver laborer for the Public Works Department. Good evening, bud. I'm going to ask Mr. Osgood if he could come up to the podium, please. And we're also going to give his beautiful wife, Brittany, and the most perfect little baby I've ever seen, Cora. I think probably everybody feels that way after seeing how good she's been. They're just in my office right now, so we'll bring them in. Here they come. Awesome. So, unfortunately, our Public Works Director has come down with the terrible cold that is going around and could not be here tonight, certainly not with Cora here, but this is a request to appoint Robert, who goes by Jay Osgood. Actually, Richard. Richard. Oh, Richard. Yes. Jay, I apologize for that. It's all right. Yeah. Jay Osgood III of Lincolnville as a truck driver laborer for the Public Works Department. We advertised for this position back in August and held interviews later in September. We received a number of very well-qualified candidates for the position. I was able to sit on the hiring committee with the public works director, and Mr. Osgood very quickly rose to the top of our candidate pool. He is a graduate of Camden Hills High School. He has, as well as Washington County Community College, and he holds a Class A commercial driver's license in the state of Maine and has experience as a transportation worker with the Maine Department of Transportation, so comes to us with some very good experience. So the recommendation would be to appoint Jay Osgood of Lincolnville for this truck driver labor position in the Public Works Department. Again, I also just want to welcome his wife and his daughter here. Our Public Works crew, you know, they are members of our emergency response team. They are on call 24-7 when there is any type of weather, when it is cold, when the conditions on the roads are not ideal. Mr. Osgood will be out making sure that the roads are safe for our emergency vehicles and anyone that needs to get out there. Public Works doesn't always get the love that the rest of our emergency responders get. They pee at the police department and fire an ambulance, although they all deserve it. But Public Works is out there, and a lot of times they're there on holidays, late at night, over the weekends. So it is certainly a sacrifice that we're all so grateful that they are, that somebody like Mr. Osgood is willing to step up and take on this responsibility for the city. And also just want to thank his wife and his daughter because it is also a sacrifice on their part. And we're just grateful for the contribution that you all make to our community. So excited to have you join the team. Welcome aboard. Great, thank you. Yeah, I'd like to make a motion that we appoint Richard J. Richard J. Osgood the third of Lincolnville as a truck driver laborer for the Public Works Department, and I just want to say that the recommendation that we hire you that comes from KIPP has enormous weight with me. So I figure you probably were a shoe in for the job, but bringing the baby really putting yourself on the scale. Second. Got a motion and a second. Any other discussion? [37:42] Councilor Paul Dean: Paul? This is good for the city because we go into the season with a full crew. So it keeps overtime to a minimum. They still work a lot of overtime because of the weather and the circumstances. But, you know, it puts the city in a really good position. Thank you very much, city manager, for the efforts. [38:05] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Any other discussion or comments? Cigna? [38:09] Speaker P (unidentified): I'm sorry? Mr. Yeah, I'd like to pick your brain at some point about the, how you thought of the CDL program there in Washington County for my kid. But I'm really glad to have you. Mr. Yeah, thank you. Very cool. [38:25] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Let's take it to a vote. All in favor? Motion passes five to zero. Congratulations, sir. All right, we'll move on to item B, which is a presentation regarding proposed amendments to the City Code of Ordinances Chapter 58 Traffic and Vehicles, keeping in mind that B is the presentation, C is the public hearing, and then D is the second reading in any discussion before we either take it or don't to a vote. So right now it's the [39:08] Joel (Deputy Economic Development Director): PRESENTATION GOOD EVENING. GOOD EVENING JOEL AND WARREN, DEPUTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR. APPRECIATE YOU HAVING ME THIS EVENING FOR THIS presentation. The presentation is on behalf of the pedestrian transportation accessible accessibility committee, which we have Cara, Mark, Joey, and David here from that committee representing this petition, and the request is for the city council to approve the second reading of an ordinance amendment to chapter 58 traffic and vehicles converting Church Street out front here one way northerly between Main Street and Market Street, removing the stop sign controlled southbound on traffic in front of Key Bank and at the intersection of Main Street. On September 1st, 2026, the City Council unanimously approved the first reading of this amendment. The proposed ordinance language has not changed since the first reading, and the advertisement for the second reading was posted in the Midcoast Villager for two weeks consecutively, as noticed for the public hearing this evening. I do want to note the description has been presented previously and is included in the packet. I indicated that it's one way. It's a low-cost solution to a problem that solves a pinch point and a slight line distance at Main and Church Street, which we've talked about at length with the Pedestrian Transportation Committee, that it's really difficult going across, turning left or turning right from Church Street onto Main Street. And so as part of this, Glenn is not here this evening, but Glenn and I actually did go out after noticing all the providing public notice to all the property owners in this jurisdiction area. We actually went out in an afternoon and knocked on all the doors so that we'd be able to talk to tenants because building owners may live out of state, like Arizona is a large property owner. So we went to every single one of their tenants. We did not receive any negative comment in the two hours that we were out there knocking on the doors. In fact, the barbershops indicated that she sits there and sees near misses regularly, and that this is overdue for a solution. So I'm happy to answer any questions on the design and the public process. [41:31] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Thank you for the presentation. Absolutely. We'll go to the public hearing and then see if there's any questions after that for the second reading. Does that make sense, Joanna? Yes, thank you. So at this point we'll do a public hearing. Do we need to read the thing about the advertisement in the was that just not on this? Okay, Thomas has put that into my brain finally after what she did include that. Yeah, I did include it. It's not required because it's not grant funded. Okay, public hearing regarding proposed amendments to the city Code of Ordinances, Chapter 58, Traffic and Vehicles. I'm opening up to a public hearing. Is there anyone here who wishes to speak regarding this proposed amendment at this time? [42:21] Mike Curley (public commenter): Mike Curley, Belfast resident. I just want to say I think this is a fantastic thing. I have worked in the downtown for over 40 years. I've gone through this intersection a million times. And I think this is going to make it safer and way more predictable. I know it doesn't have a lot of accidents. What it is always is awkward. You're always like trying to get out without seeing what's coming up the hill. Meanwhile, you've got somebody coming from Church Street. They're turning uphill or they're going into the post office. So I think this is great. And I'm just gonna say you should try these things, you know. I would add, you know, you could put up a sawhorse down here saying detour and just see how it would have worked, but I don't think you need to do that. I support changing it right now. I just want to jump back one time I was in my office upstairs over Alexia's in the middle of the summer and the traffic light electricity all went out downtown and I said, oh, I want to see what does this do on this corner and I went out there, it worked better than the traffic light. People just pulled up, everybody stopped, they just went like this, there was no backup, no accidents. So again, I want to say I know you guys get a little bit of grief for four-way stops, I get a little grief for it, but I think it's great and I think this change in particular is as somebody said long overdue. Thank you. Thank you. Anyone else wish to speak? [44:13] Carol Herwig (public commenter): So I live right around the corner and I'm, this will be really good for me walking. If you can give your name too. Oh, sorry, Carol Herwig. I live on Waldo Avenue and doing this will be really good for me because I walk my dog there every morning and it can be a little hairy. So yes, [44:31] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): thank you. Anyone? Else seeing none, I'm going to close the public hearing now. We'll move on to second reading regarding proposed amendments to the city code of ordinances, chapter 58, traffic [44:49] Joel (Deputy Economic Development Director): and vehicles. So at this time for implementation, we ask that the city council approve the second reading of the proposed ordinance amendments to chapter 58, section 5811 and 5844, for one-way and stop signs, converting Church Street to one-way northerly travel between Main Street and Margaret Street, and removing the stop sign at Church Street and Main Street southbound. Mary, I'd like to make [45:17] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): a motion to head to discussion. Second. All right, get a motion, second, discussion. Mary, so this is a [45:27] Councilor Mary Mortier: case where a city committee, Pedestrian Transportation and Accessibility Committee, PTAC, was able to attain a grant. No, I think we paid for, we paid for it. They hired a professional organization to do a study and put together a really good report that they had a public launched out at the Boathouse a while back. And the committee has followed up with the report and many of the recommendations in the report and studied them and discussed them. And this is the beginning of kind of the five-way intersection. I'm going to call it the low-hanging fruit. It was a strong recommendation. It makes common sense. Sense, it's low cost in terms of budgeting. It's low hanging fruit in that way as well. It corrects and gives us a full van ADA parking space in front of City Hall. That's important. It adds one more parking place on the street, as well as safety factors on each end. So, in my book, this is a win-win, and you can't do better than that. [46:54] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Mr. Chris, thank you. The Press, thank you. [46:55] Speaker L (unidentified): When do we anticipate the changes? [46:58] Joel (Deputy Economic Development Director): Ms. We're planning to meet with Kip on Tuesday and Bobby, the police chief, thereafter. We'll do what we did with the Miller Street stop sign and having public, the electronic board saying that new intersection or whatever the language will be. Traffic pattern. Yeah, traffic pattern will be changing. And we'll pick a date based on the police chief and public works director. They're very busy right now. Public works is very busy right now. So we're just going to try to schedule around them. Again, it's really painting and signs. [47:34] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): You all pass it tonight so it can go into effect. In fact, the Public Works, particularly this time of year, has a lot of competing demands that will be as far as what day that it goes. But we will notice with those boards and let folks know. Folks may have noticed we've received a lot of questions about sidewalks that are being installed along Route 52 and then down here near McLeod's. We are waiting on the contractor to install the concrete curbing. So depending on the date of that and then the harbor floats will need to be hauled out. So we'll just be coordinating all of those things. But there will be lots of public notice to let folks know, and it would be a good coordination between multiple city boards. [48:15] Councilor Paul Dean: Paul? And we did. We had a unanimous vote at the last council meeting on this subject. It was hard for me to do that because a lot of times I come into Belfast, I come in on High Street, and I have a choice to go down to Church or go down to White. And in the summertime, that choice goes to Church Street because the light is quite busy. And I also have a choice to come off the overpass and take a left there, which is a challenge. So different ways I come in. Another way, I've learned that I could go down right by the big old shoe factory, swing it around and go down and come up to Main Street that way. So there are other alternates, things like that. that. But this will change things. Are they worth me voting differently tonight? Probably not. If I had come in on Church Street tonight to come into the council meeting, there would have been an older gentleman riding a bike back and forth for his exercise. That's what he does. And I've seen that for years being a councillor. And he won't be able to do that anymore if he actually follows the rules that the chief of police said at the last meeting that we're not that's a one-way street so he is supposed to follow traffic rules okay this is something that police chief said which I suspected so we'll turn this guy into a criminal and I don't think they'll bother with them but I saw him every time I came in and that was his way and you'll probably feel guilty about it no it's just the way it happens so this is a change. I will again vote yes tonight. Irritatedly. I'm very cautious about changes. And I think of how it affects people. That gentleman, I don't know his name to this day. He's out there with a smile on his face riding his bike. I just needed to say that. Thank you. [50:19] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): You're welcome. Any other discussion? Neil. Yeah, I just want to say I put, I respect Paul's position, and I've known Bill for 25 years. He won't feel at all guilty. I put enormous weight on what the police chief says on this. He knows a lot more about these things than I do, and I respect him. But I've said, and I said this at the last time, that Mike said that, you know, there may be not, maybe not actually be a lot of accidents there. And I will maintain my position that the number of accidents there is artificially lowered by the fact that so many locals avoid the intersection at all costs. So you've got to take with the statistics about the intersection, you've got to take with a grain of salt. But I don't see any significant inconvenience to anyone with all respect by this change, and I see it being safer and a more efficient. We should track it down. So I'm all for it. The President, I remember this will be the third winter of the stop sign in front of the library that people freaked out about having. It's still up. You know, the snowplows were going to destroy it every winter, and it's still there. The Miller Street, one way, turned out to make a lot of damn common sense after it happened, because now people can park on Miller Street and go up that street to church, the four-way stop at church. So it's, change is hard. We understand that. But I think common sense is also being utilized here. And as Mike and other people that, you know, the safety issue of creeping out year-round right out here is dangerous. And so I think it makes a lot of common sense. City Manager Herbick, then Dan. Ms. Yeah, just to, I want to sort of piggyback on what Councilor Mortier said in that this is a wonderful, I just want to shout out to the Pedestrian Transportation Accessibility Committee. We have a bunch of members here. We have 16 committees with 86 citizens who join these, who basically work on these ideas. They did a transportation plan. They went through a very public process. They engaged with business owners. You know, came to you all in the workshop and talked about how this could be help, ADA Accessibility, help with parking. It was low cost because it was just paint. The road was, you know, it sort of just all came together, but so much of that had to do with their citizen involvement in that. And so, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you all for your good work. We have a lot of good stuff coming out of PTAC right now. A lot of, I'd say second base hits, [53:09] Joel (Deputy Economic Development Director): the third base hits, really good stuff. [53:12] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): And still looking for grant matches for your big projects. So, we're still working hard at that. But I just want, in particular, to thank Kara Cushman, who's here, who's the chair, who's been really providing tremendous leadership for the committee. So, thank you to her, and thank you all for your good work. [53:28] Speaker P (unidentified): The President And that's where I was headed. [53:31] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Mr. All right. I got a motion and a second. The President No, we don't. We have a motion to discuss. Mr. No second. The President Oh, and a second to discuss. Okay. Can we have a motion then? Mr. Okay. The President Could we? Mr. All right. I motion to approve the second reading of the ordinance to chapter 28, sections 28-11, or 58, excuse me, 58, -11, and 58-44, covering Church Street to one-way northerly travel between Main Street and Market Street, and removing the stop sign at Church Street and Main Street southbound. We've had a motion for a motion. Is there a second for the motion? Okay. Any other discussion before we, okay, let's vote, all in favor? Motion, passes five to zero. Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you, Julie. Thank you, thank you for your time. All right, consideration of 333 High Street as a dangerous building presentation. Presentation. We're going to ask the attorney, Kristen Collins. All right. Kristen, are you, can you hear us? Give us just a second. Kristen, we can't hear you, so just bear with us. Thank you for your patience. Folks may remember we had a power surge yesterday, so that usually ends up – there we go. Can you hear us, Kristen? Got [56:59] Councilor Paul Dean: to be firm. You had to clear the court. Can [57:12] Carol Herwig (public commenter): you hear us now? Her audio is picking us up. Hello? So [58:07] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): she can hear us, but we can't hear her now. Give us just a little bit of patience, folks. If push comes to shove, we'll have to reschedule this. We're replacing all of our audio-visual equipment in this room in about two weeks. So... We may need to do this in two weeks, but it's okay. [59:23] Councilor Paul Dean: We'll figure it out. Or we won't. But we'll do it together. They're [1:00:34] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): giving up to sing and dance for the crowd. Nope. Usually, [1:00:44] Speaker S (unidentified): he wants to do it. Yeah. Mr. We sold the tickets. [1:00:55] Speaker P (unidentified): We got the butts in the seats. Ms. Hey, [1:01:41] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): can you hear us? She can hear us. Mr. We still can't hear you at the moment, Kristen, but you can hear us. [1:01:56] David Black (public commenter): So we'll... [1:01:57] Speaker L (unidentified): Mr. I can hear her really well. [1:02:00] Councilor Paul Dean: Mr. Test, [1:02:10] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Kristen? Can you hear me? Mr. Yes. There we go. All right, thank you everyone for your patience. Thank you very much. Thank you, Kristen. We're at agenda item E, consideration of 333 High Street as a dangerous building. Presentation. Hello. Can you hear me now, Mr. Kingsbury? Yet we're gonna wait for you until the public hearing. Okay, so happy you're here tonight. Thank you. All right, has Mr. Constable reappeared? Jeff, Mr. Kingsbury is in the waiting room. We're still waiting on Mr. Constable. Mr. Kingsbury, if you, if I was just saying, if you could let Mr. Constable know if he could sign, sort of have to sign back into the meeting, that would be helpful. I just did that. Oh, so he's trying. Oh, appreciate your help. Thank you. Gave [1:04:05] Speaker T (unidentified): him some additional instruction on how to rejoin the meeting. [1:04:08] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Oh, thank you. Really appreciate your help. [1:04:26] Speaker U (unidentified): Because you could move to the next agenda item while we wait and make back to this. [1:04:31] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Shall we do that? Absolutely. So this is the next three items. So perhaps we'll go to, I was going to say, jump to 10-H. Yeah, that's where I'm at. Everybody good with that? Presentation on the 2026-2027 General Assistance Ordinances. Sorry? Sorry. Well, we're starting this agenda item now, so we're gonna continue. And state-derived maximum benefits for general assistance requests. Good evening. [1:05:03] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): Good evening, councilors, mayor, city members, city manager and staff. For those who don't know me, I'm Christy Osgood, the general assistance administrator for the city of Belfast. I'm here this evening for the presentation of the general assistance maximums for the 26, 27 year. Each year the Maine Department of Health and Human Services reviews and updates the GA program maximums and ordinance. These updates are distributed to each municipality throughout the state of Maine. I have provided a chart for you outlining the changes. It's a one-page document. I'll review the changes established by the state that apply to our GA program. Number one being Appendix A, overall maximums. Depending on the household size, the monthly overall maximums will increase $62 to $318. Appendix B, food maximums. Depending on household size, the monthly food maximum will increase $8 to $52. Dollars. Appendix C, housing maximums. Depending on the household size, the monthly housing maximum will increase 44 to 419 dollars. And last but not least, Appendix G, the mileage rate will increase two cents per mile, from 54 cents to 56 cents. As for the GA ordinance recently received, the update, the updated version from the state, and there are no changes as of today. However, the state requests that we all municipalities adopt the current version of the ordinance. And that concludes my presentation. Yeah. [1:06:47] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Okay. All right, now we'll go on to the first reading on the 2026-2027 General Assistance Ordinance and State Derived Maximum Benefits for General Assistance Requests. This is where the council would be able to ask any questions and or, do we need to make a motion and pass the first reading, I presume? So I'll open it up to the council. Mary? [1:07:08] Councilor Mary Mortier: I'm ready to make a motion that we approve this as the first reading and to direct the staff to schedule the public hearing and second reading at the October 20th, 26th regular council meeting. [1:07:19] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Second. Got a motion and then second. Any discussion? Paul? [1:07:30] Councilor Paul Dean: Christy, what's the percentage of the benefit increases this year across the board? [1:07:35] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): I don't have a percentage. I went by numbers this year. Typically I do go per by percent, but I don't have that, and I will get that to you next time I am here, because I look at it as [1:07:47] Councilor Paul Dean: like a yearly cost of living increase, yes, and I have enough rough idea what it is on the federal [1:07:52] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): level, so I'd like that so I could compare it on local. Absolutely, yes, I will do percentage as well. [1:07:59] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): Thank you. Yeah, did you have something you wanted to? We actually need to go by November 4th council meeting. I'm not able to attend the October 20th, so if we [1:08:13] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): could, so my motion. Thank you. All right, so the motions been amended and seconds been amended. Any other discussion or questions for the sauce? Good. Just while you're here, is there anything you'd like to report, how things are going, what the volume, [1:08:30] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): what you're seeing with the community? Things are going well, I would say it's a struggle to meet the low expectations of general assistance. As of the numbers, overall maximums are pretty low, but the state does put them lower than SNAP benefits even. Sometimes if you come in and you qualify for SNAP, it doesn't necessarily mean that you qualify for general assistance, and sometimes that's difficult. I've been navigating this for four and a half years, and sometimes we don't, I don't have all the answers, but giving people other resources like Waldo Cap, the Soup Kitchen, things in the community that are available to them that they might not know, area churches that can help. So helping people navigate resources is what I'm finding I am doing more than maybe giving out assistance, [1:09:28] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): financial assistance. Yeah, I'd like to thank you for that because the first time I ran, that was a big issue that I ran on 12 years ago because we didn't do any of that. We had an administrator who didn't do any of that. And I think that it's general assistance should mean more than just this specific program. It should mean finding ways to help people. And from what I hear from people, you're doing a terrific job. From the people you're serving. Yeah. And from our perspective, I think you're doing a terrific job. [1:09:58] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): Thank you, Neil, I appreciate that. You're welcome. Paul. [1:10:01] Councilor Paul Dean: Christy, do you feel that you are helping people and that they are better off after they talk with you and giving them direction to go? [1:10:11] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): I would say 85% of the time. Sometimes we can't fix a problem that's ongoing. We do recommend some financial classes to people. It's hard when you're in a cycle, and it's hard to break that cycle sometimes. But we do the best we can with giving people resources to help them in the future. It's just whether they take that or not. I would say 85%. [1:10:41] Councilor Paul Dean: Well, I agree with Councilor Hackness that I think you're doing a wonderful job. Keep it up. You're welcome. [1:10:48] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Any other discussion or questions? We have a motion and a second. We'll stick it to a vote. All in favor? Motion passes, five to zero. [1:10:56] Christy Osgood (General Assistance Administrator): Great. I also want to say those voted stickers are on their way. They are ordered and coming Monday. Okay. [1:11:04] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Had to put the plug. Paul took a whole bunch. Paul always takes more than he should. He doesn't vote more than he should. All right, we're going to circle back now to Item E, I believe. Give us a moment here, which will be consideration of 333 High Street as a dangerous building presentation. [1:11:35] Speaker U (unidentified): I'm here. Can everyone hear me? Yes. Okay. Just so you know, the council's audio goes in and out quite a bit. So if we seem confused, it may be that we can't hear you. Okay. [1:11:50] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Okay. I'm saying it twice, so if it went in and out. [1:11:57] Speaker U (unidentified): Yeah, for instance, right now, I can't hear you, Mr. Mayor. Okay. Can you hear me now? [1:12:03] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Oh, boy. Okay. Well, it's a presentation, so we're going to let you present. No. Give us a moment, Kristen. [1:12:13] Speaker T (unidentified): I can hear you very well, Kristen, but I don't hear the city council office. [1:12:18] Speaker U (unidentified): Yeah, that's the issue. [1:12:46] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Again. All right. We had a we had a internet connectivity issue. Is that better now, Kristen? You're loud and clear. Great. Thank you for your patience again. All right, so we're gonna go to the presentation now, Kristen, if you can hear [1:13:08] Speaker T (unidentified): me. So [1:13:11] Speaker U (unidentified): we're going to start with Mr. Watson's presentation. Correct? Yes. [1:13:16] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Good [1:13:23] Speaker W (unidentified): evening, council, mayor, city manager, assistant city manager. This, we're here tonight. We've been here before with this building. We went, last time we were here, we were asking for permission to go to court with an adk action. Since that has happened, we have actually received a district court judgment in order on this building that declared this building a dangerous building, and the judge agreed with our findings on it. We also have so worked with Mr. Constable to get a dangerous, basically a settlement agreement with Mr. Constable. At this current time, we are invited. He is in violation of both of these documents, but in these documents, both the court has agreed that this is a dangerous building, and Mr. Constable has also agreed it's a dangerous building. What we are here tonight for is to get your declaration on the fact that this is a dangerous building under a statute, which will enable the city, should we need to, not saying we're going to knock the building down for a moment, should we need to, we can recoup both court fees, lawyer fees, and any expenses the city puts out on this property to get this issue cleared up. We are sitting on currently a application that came in. Mr. Constable has hired an engineer, a very capable engineer, the third time, to go through the building. I have copies of his report as part of this application. We have not reviewed it yet. We have some additional information we need to get, but our intent is to work with Mr. Constable if he will work with us, get an actual contractor, we'll get an actual permit, scope of work, and a timeline to continue the repairs to the building. But this will give us the ability to, if something goes south for some reason, to actually recoup the cost the city has got invested in this. Steve [1:15:26] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): thank you for the presentation, city manager Herbert, if you wouldn't mind just pausing, we're going to try a different a different wi-fi. Sure. Thank you, Steve. Okay, we're on a different network now. How's that, Kristin? So you are loud [1:15:58] Speaker U (unidentified): Loud and clear. The podium maybe has been the issue. Okay. So I will talk. Let me know if you have trouble hearing me. [1:16:13] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): We can hear you just fine. Yep. Loud and clear. Okay. [1:16:17] Speaker U (unidentified): And then the next person to speak in the room, I'll just try to give some indication of whether we can hear you again. So I just want to give you, I know this may be duplicative of some things that Mr. Wilson just said, but so you understand, and also so Mr. Constable and Mr. Kingsbury who are here can understand. What we're here to do tonight is for the council to officially approve a dangerous building order that has already been stipulated to by Mr. Constable. And the way that came to be is that there was the court proceeding on which Steve mentioned that resulted in a judgment and the judgment required Mr. Constable with this building to get all permits by August 31st. And he also imposed some penalties and legal fees. Mr. Constable appealed that order to the law court and then the city worked out through his counsel, a stipulated settlement agreement, which reduced some of his financial penalties and had him drop the appeal. But in exchange he agreed to the city's entry of this dangerous building order that's in front of you tonight. So in terms of whether this building is a dangerous building as it sits today, first we have a court judgment that says so and I understand the foundation has been addressed but there are still a myriad of other problems with the building and then the content of this dangerous building order has already been stipulated to, and he has agreed that he won't appeal the entry of this order. The only thing beyond this would be that the city, if it were to make good on the order by demolishing the building or doing something else to remedy the dangerous condition, is that we have to give him 30 days advance notice. So I know that Mr. Constable has submitted a lot of materials and argument and that he has a structural engineer here all to the end of arguing that the building is on its way to being improved and that permits are being sought. We're really glad to see that happening now but we will have to keep a very tight schedule on everything and we're going to be very careful to make sure that there is funding in place to bring the building up to a safe standard and that there are competent contractors engaged under contract to complete the work. And with that in place, even if this order is approved tonight as it should be, because it's already been stipulated to, we will give additional time to Mr. Constable to get his permit figured out here. And if that works and if there's a schedule we can agree to bring the building into compliance, great. rate if that process fails in any way over the next month or two then you know there is the authority under this order to proceed with doing what needs to be done to remedy the building or to take it down so i would suggest mr mayor that some limited comments be taken but as to the content of this order it's already been agreed to and the reason why we want to get that in place is because there are legal fees that need to be recovered and you need a dangerous building order to have been approved so that we can assess those penalties as a special tax if they remain unpaid. So that is why we wanted that as part of the settlement agreement and it is in place. So if there [1:19:59] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): are any questions I'm happy to answer them. Does anybody have any questions before we go to the public hearing aspect of this? I see none. I see no questions. So, Kristen, at this time, I'm going to go to the public hearing. And this is a public hearing regarding consideration of 333 High Street as a dangerous building. I don't know who is going to speak here. Mr. Kingsbury, is that correct? And Mr. Constable, I presume the two of you on Zoom are going to be part of the public comment. I'll open it up to either one of you. Is there anybody? But let me check the mood of the room first. Is there anybody here in the room that wishes to speak? I see none. So whoever wishes to speak, I'd like to offer up to, say, I don't know, seven minutes each. I'll keep the timer going just for record. But the floor is yours. If you could just introduce yourself, it'll be uninterrupted as a public hearing. are going to be part of the public comment i'll open it up to either one of you but let me check the mood of the room first is there anybody here in the room that wishes to speak i see none so whoever wishes to speak i'd i'd like to offer up to say i don't know seven minutes each i'll keep the timer going just for records but the floor is yours if you just introduce yourself Mr. Constable, you have, Mr. Constable, you must be streaming the meeting in another window on your computer, and what we're hearing is feedback. Let's see. Mr. Kingsbury may need you to be helpful again. It appears that he's most likely using a different window to also watch the meeting, and that's the feedback that we're getting. It's clearly coming from his microphone. [1:22:03] Speaker T (unidentified): So your microphone lights up, and they get an indicator of who's contributing background noise, the way the technology works. So if you were to mute the other sound, would you turn your microphone on? Yeah, I have. [1:22:14] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): My concern is that he won't be able to present if he continues, if he does not close that window. We want him to be able to. We won't be able to hear him, I guess is my point, if Mr. Constable plans on speaking. [1:22:29] Speaker T (unidentified): Give it a test, Mr. Constable. Just unmute yourself and make sure that there isn't any other audio playing in the background on any other device, so mute yourself in the Zoom workplace or Zoom browser window on your computer, or, okay, there you are. Can you hear me now? Yes, I can. Ken, can you hear me, sir? [1:23:03] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): All right. Okay. Mr. Constable, if you could introduce yourself. It's a public hearing. I'll give you up to seven minutes. [1:23:10] Speaker T (unidentified): I think they'd like you to speak on behalf of your case at this moment, and then I would support you with the engineering technical data. [1:23:18] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Up to seven minutes. Okay. [1:23:20] James Constable (public commenter): My name is James Constable of 333 High Street in Belfast, which is a house that we've gone to significant lengths to save. We have about 300,000 spent on it right now, 280 to, so the city of Belfast has the approval data of all the things that we have done. Whatever Steve Wilson has asked for, he has always gotten. The bank also has the checks to the contractors that have been paid so that they would be paid 100% on approved work. We have very large commitment and success on lifting the building, new basement, new walls, new stipulations, new pillars, new wood, new structures, new everything, so that we have rebuilt it so that it is essentially brand-new. We had a situation where whoever the previous person was, they had a chimney in the building built without any legal authority that we've been able to find. It was not part of the original structure. Mid-Coast Chimney of Camden removed it. They've done 450 of them. They removed this one. It was all, these things have been inspected, passed, and complied. We are now at a situation where that takes three tons of weight off the structure. So we have done a new basement, new foundation, new pillars, new structure, new everything. We have also removed things like that. We've had the roof examined and just everything on the property that you could possibly think of. And the as is only a house. It is fine as a house. It will be a good house. And we're really doing the work. So we've spent the money, we've hired the best people that we can find in the area. And with that, I would like to present to you Jeffrey, Jeff Kingsbury of Main Rising Quality Engineering LLC, and he would then conclude the presentation so that Ms. Collins knows, as does the court, that not only have we complied with the dangerous building order, we have eradicated it. As a matter of fact, we have exceeded compliance on everything that we have done. And we will continue to be in a situation of absolute quality. The city needs to know that because that is the only thing that they have seen from me and my team. Mr. Kingsbury is one of the very highly awarded engineer and he's worth your time. We've had the property inspected by third parties on the roof and on everything else. And the bottom line basically is that we can save this house. And so we intend to do so peacefully, happily. It is not a dangerous building. As a matter of fact, we have complied out of that with the approvals already. So the situation is that the contractors feel that they've also been notified of approved work. So the situation basically essentially is that we are probably the only people I know that are 100% going to permit. And we did something special and I want to share this with you to give you the example, the level of our quality, for the policemen and the firefighters, you know, we're governed by MUBEC and IEBC and grandfathering things. Those are very, strict laws. And the compliance order from the court, which Ms. Collins refers to, also refers to compliance with those laws. And we have done so. So the question then becomes, what do we do going forward on this thing. We intend to stay at Mubeckeri EBC, but as to the level of quality, we are not required to do anything at the electric. You know what we've done? We've put in a new rule, new pillars, new poles, new wires, new everything, new amps, new boxes, everything new copper. So the electric's 100% brand new, but we've also put in emergency life-saving equipment in the electrical systems for the police and for the firefighters and that's a 2026 2025 new code thing that I checked with people in Maine government we do not have to put in we're putting that in because we care about anybody that's in the property even if there's a fire the house will be a beautiful house when it's being done it's been done to absolutely spectacular quality and mr. Mr. Wilson has been a significant resource on how to deal with various types of Simpsons toys, fasteners, various curves. We've had things being custom made in Ohio in order to bring this house together. We're using the concrete nails. We're using the extra pillars. We're using the oversized beams. We're going to quality because we want safety. and this is what Belfast is getting so with that I wish to share with you the situation with Jeff Kingsbury because we had to do another engineering study and with that engineering study that's important because Belfast didn't have it and they only had the old one we had that we had to go through the whole thing again mr. Wilson and miss Collins made us do the inspection everything all over again. So we hired Mr. Kingsbury in order to do so. With that, my statement concludes except that we are equitably, absolutely doing the right thing. We are stopped from violations from other people that have been committed on this house that we did not do. We are subject to move back IEBC and the law, including the grandfathering positions, which means essentially we are much further along. Some people would think. here's mr kingsbury's statement we brought him on tonight to make sure we're clear [1:30:24] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): mr constable thank you very much thank you ma'am mr [1:30:29] Speaker T (unidentified): Kingsbury, I have gone in and evaluated and checked the structure of the building, and I put together a comprehensive report. The status with past images shows that the building was in extreme disrepair. What the mushroom engineering team did when they are the mushroom building lifting team did when they came in, they restabilized the building, they put up the lolly columns as James has said earlier, and I have prescribed any additional work that needs to be done to bring that to code compliance for the first floor. And I do not find anything at the building that makes it eminently unstable or unsafe to work in. It is a construction zone, so it's not ready for occupancy, but it is ready for the remaining work to be done. Jim, James only found me a month or so ago, and as I've been busy, I've given my time to do this job as I had the time to do it, and then as I understand of getting contractors come on site and understanding the permit process, so even yesterday I just stepped in with James on the phone and we went and we did the proper version of the permit that needs to be done, submitted that to Steve. And essentially there may be an existing order and a perceived legal standing to take a different action on this building, but now it would be undoing a lot of work that's already been done, and you'd be demolishing a building that is not structurally unsound. It's now structurally sound to continue progressing the work, and you know James has this contractor lined up, he has my work instructions with detail and he's been a good customer compliant and paying for services so i can only assume that 's going to be the continued progress forward and you know i think running this to conclusion to approve the permit that we requested for the continuation of the repair that I specified. Again, using all the Simpson Strong Tie connectors as specified by me, using the appropriate hardware. I don't see why the city council shouldn't approve moving forward, even though there was a previous order for unsafe demolition. I think now the building with this additional data, the right decision moving forward it is to approve continuation of work, and now that you have me as a resource to follow up with James, I think you know it's going to be a good execution. People will be happy with what is there, and it will be a safe single family home when it's done. Mr. Kingsbury, thank you very [1:33:24] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Much for your comments as well. Is there anyone else on the Zoom that wishes to speak? If not, I'll close the public hearing. Public hearing is closed. Thank you both. Now we'll go to item G, which is a consideration of 333 High Street as a dangerous building. We [1:33:49] Speaker T (unidentified): can't hear the room online. All [1:33:54] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): right, can you hear me now, Mr. Kingsbury? Okay, test. [Lauren (public commenter): Yep.] That's better. All right, so we are now at THE ITEM G, WHICH IS CONSIDERATION OF 333 HIGH STREET AS A DANGEROUS BUILDING. KRISTEN, WHAT ARE OUR STEPS FORWARD HERE? [1:34:24] Speaker U (unidentified): SO MY RECOMMENDATION IS THAT YOU GO AHEAD AND APPROVE THE ORDER AS STIPULATED. LIKE I SAID, THE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT REQUIRES THE CITY TO PROVIDE 30 DAYS NOTICE BEFORE TAKING ANY STEPS. I TALKED TO MR. WILSON TODAY AND OUR PLAN IS TO WORK WITH MR. Mr. Kingsbury, Mr. Constable, to make sure that a qualified contractor is selected, that there is money in the bank to do the work, and we'll give a limited period of time to get all of that work and the permit in place. And if that's successful, that would be wonderful. We would forestall any action on the dangerous building. If that's unsuccessful, then we would proceed. And I think it's important just to reiterate that there was an order of the court that required all of these performance to be in place by August 31st, and that was not done, so any extension that we're giving here is by the city's grace, and hopefully we can continue to work together and take all the [1:35:23] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): steps to make sure the project will be successful. Thank you very much. Anybody wish to make a motion? [1:35:32] Councilor Mary Mortier: I think we need a little guidance on the motion because we've got two different suggested motions that are quite different. [1:36:01] Speaker W (unidentified): I might be able to help clarify. What we're looking at is the structural standard which Mr. Kingsbury speaks of, to help a dangerous building, and then we have the statutory definition. Under the statutory definition, which is what the court agreed to and what the stipulated agreement states, the only The only standard you have is to adjudge a building to be a nuisance or dangerous. The municipal officers or county commissioners must find that the building is structurally unsafe, unstable, or unsanitary, constitutes a fire hazard, and is unsuitable or improper for the use and occupancy to which it is put. So basically, this building has no running water, no heat, no active electrical, and no sewer service. So just under those four items, which are destined to be repaired before this building is livable, this constitutes a dangerous building. So just trying to simplify things a little bit for this order, and that is separate from the structural issues. [1:37:05] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Okay, thank you. City Manager Herbig. Yeah, you'll see that in Exhibit A, which is following Mr. Wilson's memo here, you have this. This is the order here, which is the title, dangerous buildings, which goes through the order here. So this is pulled from, now therefore, the City Council hereby orders that the City Council accepts the findings of the code enforcement officer and of the Waldo County Court as stated as true and hereby accepts findings as its own. And that, would you like me to continue? Number two, the building is hereby declared to be a dangerous building as defined by 17 MRSA 2851, that is A, structurally unsafe, B, unsuitable for use or occupancy as a residential dwelling, and C, constitutes a safety hazard. Therefore, the building is adjudged to be a dangerous nuisance. Three, for the above reasons, the City Council hereby orders that the owner shall, in all respects, comply with the Waldo County District Court's judgment and order attached as Exhibit A, including all compliance deadlines set forth in said judgment and order. Four, if owner fails to comply with the above conditions or if the conditions constituting a dangerous nuisance are not corrected and abated within the time provided above, the city may, number one, secure the building, number two, abate the commit conditions and or three cause the building to be demolished and removed from the property. Number five, all expenses of the city relating to this order, including the cost of abatement, demolition and or removal of the building, shall be repaid to the city by the owner within 30 days after the city's demand, or a special tax may be assessed against the property, 333 High Street, Belfast, Maine, and identified on the city's tax max as property ID number 014-043 for the amount of the expenses, and that amount shall be included on the next annual warrant to the tax collector for collection and collected in the same manner as other city taxes are collected. Expenses to be recovered shall include, but are not limited to, the cost of title searches, location reports, service of process, reasonable attorney's freeze, and cost of abatement of the nuisance. Any costs incurred in securing the building pending abatement of the nuisance and all other costs incurred by the city, they're reasonably related to affecting this order. The city may also collect any expenses incurred by commencement of a civil action. Number six, if the city secures the building in accordance with section four above, the owner may request access to the building from a code enforcement officer for the sole purpose of performing the ordered remediation work thank you is there a second it's not good any other discussion Chris I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry man whoa can I'm sorry sir public hearing is closed thank you [1:40:00] Speaker L (unidentified): you Chris so let's presume the best and yeah work continues to get done how does what is the communication stream is it through Kristen or mr. Wilson or both it's some combination okay so there's email exchange you're going to do X by Y date and there's a series of these things yes Neil [1:40:27] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): yeah I'd like to say that what I would like to see is another single-family house and available I don't know if you tend to use it sell it or whatever I want to see the house built and prepare and my understanding is that what we're saying here is you can get it done or if not eventually we'll have to do something about it but I would say that with advice to city staff, we really would like to see the house rehabbed and not torn down. If it has to be torn down because there's not good faith here, that's another matter. I think there is good faith here. So generosity on our side to see that we can get this done with this stipulation that if it doesn't get done, we do have the ability to take action that's the way i see it am i right okay that's it paul i'm [1:41:33] Councilor Paul Dean: wondering if a couple of questions if mr kingsbury is a current licensed engineer and also has he [1:41:41] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): inspected the building yes he said he did inspect the building in terms of engineering i'm going to presume mr kingsbury is an engineer is that accurate you can find me online on the state of [1:41:53] Speaker T (unidentified): and Maine website for 14 years. Thank you, sir. [1:41:57] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Mr. Good. The President You good with that? Mr. Yep. The President Any other discussion? Seeing none, let's take it to a vote. All in favor? Motion passes 5-0. Thank you, gentlemen. Thank you, Kristen. We'll move on now to Item J, which is a request from Salty Witch Sana for use of the southeast lawn area of Steamboat Landing Park to conduct operations from October 15, 2026, just through March 31, 2027. I think that might be May 15th, but we'll get to that. Adrian, good evening. Good evening. I'm here to present the Parks, [1:42:37] Speaker S (unidentified): Trails, and Recreation Committee's recommendation regarding the sauna in the park proposal from Nicole Littrell of Salty Wig Sauna. The proposal is to operate a mobile sauna on the southeast lawn of Steamboat Landing Park, adjacent to the Belfast Boathouse. This will provide a seasonal wellness and recreational amenity while giving the city an opportunity to evaluate its operation within the park. The committee voted unanimously to recommend an initial operating period from mid-October through March 31st, 2027. Following a city evaluation on March 31st, the season could be extended through May 15, 2027. The proposed fee for the use of the part is 250 per month. Tonight we are asking the council to consider approving this seasonal agreement, including the proposed location, operating period, monthly fees, and the possibility of an extension following the city's evaluation. Thank you. Thank you. Any [1:43:44] Councilor Mary Mortier: discussion, questions, thoughts? Mary? Discussion. So I sit as a councillor on the Parks and Rec and Trails Committee and have been there for the discussions. And they were thorough discussions with the applicant present. Good discussions, thorough discussions. And some recommendations came out of the discussions that the applicant further investigated and resolved in part in your presentation that you received. The mobile song wheels, 8 by 14 feet, which is a little bit smaller than a single parking place. The reason I mention that is because one of the avenues that was discussed to come to the rental fee was looking at our curbside [Mike Curley (public commenter): restaurant fees] For winter months. And those are basically, I want to say it's 400 square feet, but it's two parking places you were taking. So this is half the size, a little smaller. Ms. Luttrell was very thorough in reviewing with the committee the various parts of her facility and her request and safety measures. And yes, she has provided us in our packet many supportive emails. A few people that are have questions and concerns and are not supported, but the vast majority are supported. She took it upon herself to go meet with the fire chief and have him come and review the facility, and he actually made a recommendation to put a screen on the exhaust vent from the little inside wood stove, just as an extra safety precaution, if there were a south southeast wind and a spark might go up out of the chimney. The boat house has a metal roof, but the building itself is wood clapboard, so she was very amenable to that. They had a good discussion. Like I said, he inspected, he inspected the sauna and everything about it, and you had that information in your [Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): package as] well as our insurance coverage that includes the city. The location that was recommended that the committee recommended also is on a small portion of the green lawn area that is, I'm thinking my direction's good, on the right side of the boathouse. The It's the tip of the end there of the land, and you have a nice, wide view of the water. There are parking places adjacent to that. Many people, including myself, have lunch there or just go to look at the water and the boats and the activity. The width of this sauna is eight feet wide. The view is this far on either side. If I'm going there to enjoy the view, have my sandwich, just look at the view, I'm losing eight feet of a hundred and eighty degree view. That's less than the width of the parking space that my car is sitting in. I can see the water all around this, so I have trouble with people who that is their concern. This is a trial, one of the, it's a pilot, the word is records pilot, this is a pilot project. Our Parks and Rec and Trails committee and organization is always trying to find a way to bring additional recreational wellness opportunities to the people of Belfast and beyond. This was something that was very successful on a small scale, one day ice festival. And as Nicole said in her opening information statement, got her wheels turning. There are some other facilities in neighboring towns, but Nicole is the one who came to us, well, she started with Parks and Rec a year and a half ago, and came back again in the last few months. And no one else has. She's the one who's stepped out. So after hearing and being a part of the discussions and seeing the additional legwork that Nicole put into this to make this be as safe a facility as is humanly possible and trying to present this with thorough information to make an informed decision, I am going to be very supportive of this undertaking, and I'm going to repeat, it's a pilot project, and one of the things that maybe people who read some of this lead-up information that might be confusing is the recommendation of the committee Was that it be for a time frame of October 15th to March 31st with a review on or before March 31st about extending it to May 15th. So if you really think about it, if it all goes well, this is October 15th through May 15th with a chance for us to review at the end [1:50:45] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Of March or just before. I'm going to stop there. Okay, thank you Dan. Yeah,, I agree with [1:50:56] Speaker P (unidentified): Everything Mary said and just, I also just want to say that, you know, I think that Ms. Latrose, she's jumped a lot of hoops, jumped a lot of hurdles, and through a lot of hoops, maybe more than we needed to lay out in front of her to make all this work. But I'm glad, I'm kind of glad we did, and I'm glad that you had to stick with it to push through this. In, so, you know, so far I know we're kind of closing in on it, but the, I think that we're, I have no doubt that you are going to make this work and I'm glad you chose to try to make it work here and that you've pushed as hard as you have and brought the rest of us on board. I look forward to hopefully passing this tonight and, you know, the, and being able to look at it in the spring, see how it worked, and seeing how, if this is a way, I know it's a limited resource, I know we can't cover the whole Waterfront in, small businesses, but I do think that there's a, having a revenue stream for the city, having a, you know, different opportunities for offerings for the community, I just think it's, I think it's great, and yeah, I'm for it. I really want to see, I'm looking forward to hopefully getting a chance to review it in the spring and Chris [1:52:44] Speaker L (unidentified): Yeah, I'm supportive. I think I think the pilot program is important. You know, obviously we're Nicole is I'm going to make the presumption that she's trying to succeed, but if it doesn't work for her, she won't do it next year either. So you know, she's trying the spot, the spot is getting tried out, you know, on behalf of the city. And I'm I just think it's a an interesting little sliver of culture to bring into public property, and I'm supportive of that. So I'm good with it. [1:53:26] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): I got Neil and then Paul. So this has been done. This is not a new thing. You were doing it on the Naren property and it was successful. You know, there's a market, you already have a clientele. This is not like, let's try it and see if anybody likes it. You already have that. I think that's very important. I think it's important that we have more things for people to do in the off season. You know, people want to go oh it's a you're a tourist town. Well, this is something for locals for the most part. Mary, I want to thank you for the comparison to the dining in the street. That's right, that's very apropos, because one thing I've heard from the people who don't like it is their appraisal. We established a precedent of allowing commercial businesses on city property. Well, we've not even done that with the business in the street. We've been running city property to Todd French for decades. So this is not establishing any kind of a precedent. So I think it's well, and as Chris was saying and Dan was saying, it's a trial. It doesn't work. Maybe we'll find another place for you if there's a problem there. You may find that you could have found a better spot. We'll see. So I will support it. I recognize the concerns of people in the area, but I think this is, we can all look at it as a chance to improve something that if it doesn't work out, we'll have an option for in the future. All right, thank you, Paul. And then everybody will have spoken and I'll look for a motion. [1:55:07] Councilor Paul Dean: Mr. Well, I haven't heard in this moment. It was said in the meeting. But this is a long-term rental. We did have one right next to the shipyard, which was a boat that was reworked. It was a maritime activity where the boat was stripped down, put back into working condition, and launched. You know, it's a little bit of a stretch saying this is a part of a maritime activity. It's supportive of it. But to say it's actually maritime, I mean, I'm looking at a black-and-white picture in my presentation information that shows the inside of the sauna, and I'm curious if this is a Powell wood. And I don't know if you saw the pictures, Bob or Adrian, they're in your packet on this particular towards the end of the documentation. It's the upper right hand picture, and it shows the door, entry door, coming and going from the sauna. And there appears to be a wood stove in that corner. And it looks like wood right there, next to the stove. I'm wondering, and I thought the fire chief went down and inspected it because it's been a while since I've had a wood stove, but having wood right next to a wood stove that you're going to be burning doesn't seem safe to me. Sorry. They actually frown on it, fire marshals, because a lot of people will take wet wood and dry it by putting it close to the stove. The problem with it, the wood still dries out, and therefore you could catch fire. And this is actually the exit of the building. So I question Adrian and all the code enforcement officers, is that a pile of wood right there by the door? You can see it, too. Wondering if that's safe. You know, it looks like it's actually leaning on the stove. Pictures are a little hard to interpret at times, but I'm concerned about the safety aspect. You know, if there's a garbage can right there, it'd be wonderful if the wood was in the garbage can. It would at least get it away from the stove. So I'm going to go and approve something. I don't want it to be a fire trap. It's just me as a councilman. And I'm observing what we have in front of us. I was wondering if anybody had some points about that. I don't know. [1:57:46] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Neil? Yeah, I'd like to ask, Nicole, was that wood there when the fire chief was there? Yes. So the fire chief approved this setup with the wood there? [1:57:59] Nicole Luttrell (public commenter): Exactly as it's pictured. [1:58:01] Councilor Paul Dean: So okay, I find that amazing. Thank you. Thank you, Nicole. Thanks. I don't know if it's helpful [1:58:08] Nicole Luttrell (public commenter): to say that there's someone always in, there's someone always in the sauna [1:58:13] Councilor Paul Dean: well do you have a fire extinguisher yes oh good absolutely thank you yeah any [1:58:22] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): other comments Paul or no okay what I had for questions thank you yeah any other discussion or can we get a motion? Would you like to make a motion? Let's make it. Let's go. [1:58:38] Speaker P (unidentified): Mr. I move we approve this as written. There you go. [1:58:45] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Mr. It's the easy way. Mr. Is there a second? Any other discussion? City Manager Herbig. City Manager Herbig Yes. So I just wanted to bring to your attention that the I know it was talked about process and we have not doing this before, but there is there is structure within our ordinance for how the council is to proceed with this type of a situation. In fact, it says, any concession wishing to operate between October 15th and May 15th shall be addressed by the city council on a case-by-case basis. This is happening today. After an owner has been awarded two consecutive, but basically what I would suggest for a recommended motion would be to authorize the city attorney to draft a concessions contract between the city of belfast and the salty witch sauna for use of public property adjacent to the belfast boathouse from mid-october through the end of march 2027 potential extension to be extended to may 15 2027 following an evaluation at that time for a fee of 250 per month leave it up to the city attorney we do concession basically what a concession contract is for any commercial activity the belfast boathouse area this is all governed in our marine activities ordinances regarding commercial stuff and so these are the sort of contracts that are put in place for like charter votes but this does apply in our ordinance for these areas as well so we just want to make sure so I would say that you know directing to work with the city attorney to draft a [2:00:11] Carol Good (public commenter, Friends of Belfast Parks): concessions contract so [2:00:14] Speaker P (unidentified): moved okay [2:00:17] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): seconded again somebody yeah okay any other discussion I just, I just, I hope that someday, in my lifetime, the bay freezes over again, like the old photos of the horses. And that I would imagine Steve Wilson and Bob would be busy with the number of ice shacks and ice fishing that would immediately spring up. I don't think they would be permitted, though. But I think it's an experiment of a pilot that Nicole has originally brought to us, I think, with an ice festival a couple of years ago. It was first used at the boat landing. I know the lobstermen use the public docks and things like that. There was a paddleboard business that used the docks at one point a few seasons back or something. So having commercial business around the shoreline is not new. But the winter aspect of what City Manager Herbig like I said, October through March, and case-by-case basis is what's happening tonight. So, at this point, we've got a motion and a second, and I'll take it to a vote. All in favor? Motion passes 5 to 0. So, you're all set? Now, we'll move on to Item K, which is further discussion in response to citizen concerns. Adrian, do you want to give up and speak to this, as well as maybe Karen will be around? Citizen concerns raised regarding pickleball courts city park. I know Adrian's got a memo he [2:01:55] Speaker S (unidentified): wrote here. Yeah, just to wrap up. Yeah, this is a summary of the moment of the memo that I wrote. So, the group's main recommendation was to discontinue the efforts towards courts at the YMCA and focus on PCHC as expects to a willingness to accommodate courts in its parking lot, but the terms and responsibilities still need to be confirmed in a written agreement. The parking lot would also require resurfacing and leveling. A preliminary estimate of approximately $50,000 was discussed for an outside company to complete an overlay. This is just an initial estimate, and we will need to work with Public Works to clarify the scope and develop a more detailed cost analysis. The group view the YMCA as a very short-term option and questioned whether the investment will be worthwhile, like all people actually going to be going out there to play, and the time constraint for permanent location. Walsh field remains an option of interest. Soil conditions and the need for an engineering assessment would have to be evaluated before moving forward. No permanent location or construction timeline has been established. The group also continued discussing noise concerns at City Park, including relocation and quieter foam balls. Our next steps is to coordinate with PCHC to talk about site preparation, cost agreement terms and a realistic timeline while continuing to evaluate options for permanent courts. So that's a quick summary. Yeah, if I could just fill [2:03:46] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): in a couple of those items for the group, I would like to. The group encouraged us originally at the first meeting, I think, was to reach out to the YMCA, and we did, and they were very supportive of a short term. Yes. And the Festival of Champions was this Saturday, for example, which was not only could, you know, you couldn't have played anything at the YMCA on Saturday because of the thousands of cars from the runners and the families and the buses. The horse stable across the street from the middle school was even available for parking. But the group thought it was very wonderful that the YMCA did step up and volunteer for a short term. But considering the weather, especially today with the wind and the sort of chill in the air, the group at the meeting said, you know, at this point, we hadn't ordered the nets, I don't believe so. At this point, instead of spending money at the Y, they said, hold on to that money. The group also then suggested reaching out to PCHC, which we did. I set up a meeting with Ed Marsh, who is very supportive of the idea of pickleball being played at PCHC with the view of one of the lanes of the parking lots, I'm trying to think, one of the sections being dedicated basically to pickleball parking and stacking the courts, etc. I think the $50,000 was something I mentioned, like it wouldn't even cost some money, but who knows. But the pickleballers said, well, the court section is flat, blah,, blah. So there's a lot of unknowns, right? But right now, the establishment of a relationship between Adrian, the city, and PCHC is the next step and the hope. And a lot of things to be worked out. [2:05:45] Speaker S (unidentified): Yeah, I had a chance to talk to Ed actually today. Good. So, we've set up a meeting tomorrow to go over to PCHC and walk and talk at the parking lot, parking location. So, he's going to be able to answer some of the questions that we have for them, like timeline and cost and equipment needs and whatnot. So, we're going to have that meeting tomorrow. That's awesome. [2:06:11] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): He did suggest, because I would, I'd point out to the, if it does go through, he did bring up the idea of portable lights, as in they would not mind people playing there at night, next, you know, not this winter, but next spring and stuff, and summer. But that, and I brought up security, and he said that 's just Bank of America's side of the parking lot. Their side, they were, you would be free to play. I don't know how that would all work. Lots of things to consider. None of which involves eliminating pickleball in City Park, though, which this petition was all about. But the focus of the group isn't really on petitions or things. It was on the root cause of noise and trying to allay that for the neighbors and the pickleballers who find the area too cramped. And so it looks like the direction of the group is happily pivoting towards you and the city working with PCHC to hopefully coming up with a solution, short or long term, who knows, et cetera, et cetera. But Adrian's been very helpful at the meetings and in presenting these memos. So the other suggestion that was brought up in terms of the, and you certainly don't need to make a decision tonight, counsel, but the idea of city park closes at some point in the winter. And I can't remember whether it's snow, frost, whether a decision is made to close the gates, I think. And there has been pickleballers playing in the winter occasionally. Occasionally, and so the recommendation, the consensus, not a recommendation, the consensus of the group was that the nets should go down in the winter mainly for safety, of the players on the courts, as in we have no idea if somebody broke an ankle how first responders would get them out if the parks closed and or the roads are snowed or muddy. Certainly you wouldn't know I'm a life flight, a pickleballer. But also, up on North Port Avenue, they park there. And in the winter, it's dark, and there's a hospital next door. And I'm sure the group would support the police chief weighing in, which I haven't asked him to or anything, but his thoughts on that. But parking and safety up there on the road, too, was the consensus of the group. So that's where we're at for now. We have another meeting scheduled for the 14th of October as a working group and I know Parks and Recreation is meeting on the 8th this Thursday and they're gonna be talking about you know things too so that's the update that I have from the group you Know yeah Carolyn's been working with the group and it kind of looked like she wants to you want to look like a little uneasier to see I just wonder if she had any comments she always looks uneasy I once wondered if she had any comments you'd like to add But I don't know here you go thank you Lauren you'd ask to speak here Adrian thank you very much and good luck with that take pictures too so that we know which parking lot he's looking at Lauren, you had something you wanted to say to the group? Yes, thank you. I didn't say this earlier, [2:09:35] Lauren (public commenter): but I'm Lauren and I live in Belfast. Yes, it was good to hear the discussion about addressing Church Street as a public health hazard as a consideration of change being made and needing to address, make changes in the city that accommodate health and safety. So I feel like this is a similar issue with the pickleball courts, and I also was interested at the candidates, I saw a few of you there and some candidates last Tuesday talk about the importance of making Belfast a welcoming and supportive community for young families, which this is also an issue related to. So the working group is going to talk about, is this a relocation? You just said the courts are not going to close. That's a conversation that's happening, but I'm going to address the idea that we are relocating the courts and the process of relocating the pickleball courts out of City Park and away from residents does something more fundamental than even making Belfast a welcoming community for young families. It protects the basic safety and well-being of children, families and elders in our own homes and neighborhood. Relocating the courts makes what is currently an unsafe home environment safe. It stops an ongoing and harmful health hazard and removing pickleball noise, however that is done, there are options, relocation, quiet balls, actual quiet balls, the quiet balls that are being used right now do not suffice, removing pickleball noise from Mayo Street gives our children, my children August and Amos, the opportunity to read books in their own living room and for baby Delphine who lives across the street to nap with her window open and toggle around in her yard. It gives our families and neighbors the ability to have conversations during dinner, sit on our decks and patios and enjoy and take care of our properties, teach our children to garden, rest in our homes and have a basic piece that allows our children to develop properly without chronically stressed bodies. Bodies. It makes it so that my one neighbor doesn't have to turn his hearing aids off inside his own home. And I just wanted to thank the city and the mayor and counselors Dean and Harkness for your time, energy and commitment to the working group that's been productive and a really a powerful community process and actually like kind of fun. Yeah, we have some [2:12:12] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Moments. We do we have moments. Yeah, it's okay. Because it's a safe space. Everybody can have their moments and get on with [2:12:19] Lauren (public commenter): Yeah there's been some real relationship building there that's great and I also want to thank Adrian and Carolyn for their expertise in this too and I have no doubt that the goodwill and collaboration of the working group will ripple positively into the community if it weren't for our children my husband Alex and I would not have had the courage to come forward on this issue as many of you know, something changes inside of you when you have kids, and you want nothing more in the world for them Than that they be safe, happy, and to grow well. And when they are suffering, you do anything you can to change that, and that's why I'm here tonight. So thank you for your time. [2:13:04] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): I think it's important to, I can't thank the group enough because I would not have thought, I would not have thought, And I'm looking at Ms. Kazarian in the back because she works over there. I would not, in my lifetime, had thought when I walked into that meeting with Ed that it would turn out the way it did in terms of them going, hey, we really would like to have pickleball over here. And guess what? There's no noise issue. Like, okay, well, that I couldn't talk there because I was swept off my feet. But we'll see what happens. It's a long winter. There's lots of stuff to proceed with and think about, but the working group continues. Paul, did you win away with it? You were, you sort of handled a third of the meeting. [2:13:51] Councilor Paul Dean: Mr. And it went well. It went very well. But Adrian was going to have a chance to speak with a contractor that builds pickleball courts. There were a couple pickleball players that had asked this guy to come to the community to get his input on some of the costs that could go into this new location that the pickleball group had discussed. So there's also some members that are working on an MOU, Memorandum of Understanding, to help the city council and the manager with some of the issues that we need to go through to get to a new place, including insurance and other subject matter. So it's a very engaged group that a lot of very engaging people, it's actually a lot of fun. It was a good time had by all. [2:14:59] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): So that's all I've got on this agenda item. I don't know if there are any questions or anything. That's the update. Chris? [2:15:07] Speaker L (unidentified): I have a question. I'm not trying to put a little, I can't think of the word. I want the analogy, but whatever. The, I mean, how comprehensively does the pickleball group represent pickleball players? [2:15:24] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Well, I would say that the pickleball group, as represented in the working group, in my opinion, not being pickleballed, are the pickleball experts of the group that have been with the program. David's nodding his head. Been with this court and since, you know, contributed the money. Don't forget they contributed money involved for the courts as well. So they're very, here's an example. For example, when we suggested PCHC, they had already been there three years ago, and they had detailed plans for the area that they didn't want, ultimately, way in the back where they store salt and mulch because it slopes down and things. And they had, they're very, they're very organized, very, professional, and very all-knowing. A lot of them play everywhere, not just at City Park. How representative I about as representative as and to answer that would be to say that all 250 signatures came from Belfast pickleballers, which I doubt. Does that make sense? It's a hard question to answer. They seem extremely on their game with all things pickleball, you know. Yeah, my impression is they are. They are leaders within, yeah, that community, and whether how accurate that is, I'll remind us all of the old say, the world is run by people who show up, and we've made it clear other people, if they don't feel represented, because it's obviously a broad, broader community than just this one group, and there's people come from all over the area, and I assume if they're, you know, if they come from Brooks to play pickleball, they're, they may not feel welcome joining into a city discussion, but I think. They're a pretty fair representation of the community writ large, is my impression. [2:17:28] Speaker L (unidentified): Yeah, that's all I'm asking. No, it's a good, very good question. I just want to make sure we don't, you know, a single person or two who has disagreement is reality, yeah, you know. You know, if 30% aren't represented, that's problematic. So I'm just asking. [2:17:46] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): I'd say they're fine. [2:17:49] Councilor Paul Dean: Paul? Well, I just want to add to the question. It's a large group of 12, 14, 16 people. There were three or four, or better, pickleball players, a couple of counselors, you know, the mayor, people that live in the neighborhood that had issues with the noise, which is where this came from. [2:18:12] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): And also, friends of the park, [2:18:16] Councilor Paul Dean: Friends of Belfast Park. Right, and Belfast, Friends of Belfast Park and the RECS department. So there's a broad spectrum of Belfast people with a vested interest in where and how we move forward. It's a lot of fun. That's why I mentioned it's fun because everybody's coming to the table from their core, per se. [2:18:39] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): The President. Oh, good one, Colin. Good one. The President is that. [2:18:42] Councilor Paul Dean: But they're coming with opinions that would work towards a solution to move forward. And that's the main thing. Something they can bring back to the council, say, there. Do it. Do with it as you must. [2:18:56] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Mr. What's been interesting to me, facilitating it, is watching the people and I think Lauren spoke to this, watching the people at the table. Well, I don't want to use the word. These are distinct groups of people. And I asked for only three of each group because to facilitate anything larger with the amount of free-spirited discussion that has been very organized and on point is very hard. That was my ask. And people have done a wonderful job. You had three neighbors at the last, at the full representation of the neighbors, full representation of pickleball players, full representation of Parks and Rec and Friends of Belfast Park, and we are going through the process which is very difficult and you don't need to be involved in it because it's painful, trust me, this is the most difficult part, but what is happening is the group is sort of slowly and sometimes quickly agreeing with each other about the root group cause, which is the noise, and how best to solution it for all the groups involved. Does that make sense? Mr. Sure. Mr. Very difficult to tread through that, like that eye on the needle. But that has been the most amazing part of this, is the amount of give and take that all of these fine people in this group have decided to work on, for lack of a better phrase. And so we'll bring our recommendations to the Council. Parks and Rec, obviously, is going to work hard with PCHC as the next short- or long-term, whatever that means. I have no idea, right? Because we're flying blind here. But I appreciate the group, and I appreciate the Council listening to the group. Because otherwise, why would we even have a group? So it's kind of like it continues on, and we're taking it seriously, and we hope everybody else understands that seriousness and therefore does the same thing. That's all we could ask, really. That's all I've got for now. Next meeting, we'll have more information and an update from Adrian with his meeting with Ed Marsh tomorrow, et cetera, and on and on. Good to go? All right. Lauren, thank you for being involved in that. All right, so the next item is a request. Oh, we moved that. okay request by the economic development director to accept the assistance to firefighters grant and initiate the procurement process joining us Thomas Kittredge economic development director city of Belfast Thomas good evening good [2:21:37] Speaker Y (unidentified): evening I believe at this point you are familiar with the assistance of firefighters grant program this is out of the federal emergency management agency with funding to enhance the safety of the public and firefighters fighters with respect to fire and fire-related hazards, and provides direct financial assistance directly to eligible fire departments. We have previously been successful in receiving grants to this program the past two cycles. In fiscal year 2023, we secured $310,952.38, which we used to purchase three power lift systems, a rapid intervention team pack, and 22 self-contained breathing apparatus units. And in fiscal year 2024, we received eighty thousand eight hundred and fifty eight dollars and forty eight cents, which were used to purchase three automatic chest compression devices. At your meeting of June 16th, you authorized the submission of a grant application to this program. Funds, if awarded, were anticipated to be used to pay for the purchase delivery installation and setup of one commercial grade turnout gear washer extractor one turnout out gear drying cabinet one set of airflow glove hangers one set of airflow boot hangers and three sets of four door hook racks currently the fire department has substandard machinery for keeping their gear clean their drying rack is being used as a storage cabinet because it doesn't work anymore it hasn't worked for some time and their washing machine is undersized and underpowered for their needs. And this has a lot of consequences for, you know, preserving health and safety of firefighters and not having properly clean gear for next time there's a call. So there's a real need to have upgraded this equipment. On September 22nd, we learned that we had been selected for a grant award from the program in the amount of $26,317.23. This grant amount, they'll have a required match of 5% of the grant amount, which is $1,315.87. When you authorize the application, we discussed using account 720-002 as the likely source of the required matching funds. However, in discussions with the city manager and the finance director, we believe it's better to actually instead utilize account 210-535, which is the fire department purchase of equipment account as the source of matching funds. As this is an operational account and not a capital improvement program account, this account is a current balance of twelve thousand five hundred sixty dollars and twenty six cents. We also have completed our environmental review process for this grant, so we believe if you accept the grant and commit the matching funds, we can immediately proceed to procurement and solicitation of cost estimates. [2:24:26] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Mary? I'd like to make a motion in three parts. [2:24:29] Councilor Mary Mortier: One, that we formally accept the awarded assistance to firefighters grant. Two, that we allocate matching funds in the amount of $4,315.87 from city account 210-535. And three, that we authorize undertaking of a procurement process for the items that comprise the grant's scope [2:24:55] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): of work. Thank you. Is there a second? Second. All right. Discussion? All in favor? Motion passes 5-0. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Good work. Yep. Item N, request to remove one city street tree located on Elm Street. I'd like to address this. Oh, listen. You're the tree warden. [2:25:19] Carol Herwig (public commenter): So introduce yourself. Yes, my name is Carol Herwig, I'm the city tree warden, I live on Waldo Avenue. This is a, this is sort of an exceptional tree, it's a silver maple that has by neighbors accounts been a treasure for years. Two years ago when we went out, when the twig tree working group went out to do the inventory, we came to that tree, measured it in all, also knew that it was, you know, on the downward side. People came out and said don't touch this tree, we love this tree. Didn't love it as much when a big chunk of it fell down about three weeks ago, but they still, those residents still, I mean, you got a letter from Janice Hogan, Lisa Keys, who has a pottery studio, contacted me and said her three-year-old son was in tears when he saw this indication that it should come down. So what I'm asking for is to do a little bit different, and now that we have a different, a different person cutting the trees down, this might work. Come in, take the big, long stem, see if it can be milled, maybe turned into city benches at some point. Take the trunk, which is 70-some inches in diameter and has two significant burrows that all the woodworkers in town are lusting after. Do something that way. I mean, Janice Hogan suggested cutting it and making like a bench at the bottom. There's clearly, whenever I go by that corner, there are always chairs out there. There's a cluster of six or seven chairs, and apparently there's a group of neighborhood people who hang out there on a regular basis. So what I would like to propose is that it does need we do need to take that long stem down it isn't safe i don't think there's a problem with the trunk anymore we can take our time with that but if i could work with the little field people and see what we could do in terms of making a little bit more out of this tree [2:27:54] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): So I take your questions. Well, that's your recommendation. So that's my recommendation. Turn with the council, Neil. I think it's fantastic idea to use the wood. Yeah, I mean, it may be that [2:28:04] Carol Herwig (public commenter): it's rotted and there's, and it's not there, but the burls are definitely good. Yeah, I, if it can [2:28:10] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): be, if it can be made in the benches or something, I think that's a fantastic idea. Who would be in [2:28:14] Carol Herwig (public commenter): charge of that process? Good question. Yeah, I think we would have to, I mean, I'd have to talk to Littlefield and come and maybe come back to you. I don't know if it would be public works that would be it, or I mean, I don't think I'm the procurement person, you know, that we [2:28:34] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): well, this would be new territory for us. I think that, I think that is appropriate as the tree warden for you to have a conversation about what the possibilities might be. Why don't we start with a conversation with Little Field? Okay, then why don't we bring it back to the right, bring it back to the [2:28:58] Carol Herwig (public commenter): City Council. Yeah, that's fine. Yeah, I mean, yeah, we definitely want to do that, and we definitely want to get that tall piece because it's unbalanced. Motion would be to remove [2:29:08] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): one limb at this time, right, and review with Little Fields the rest of the structure of the tree, right. [2:29:16] Carol Herwig (public commenter): And come back to the council and if they can use that limb too if they can milk if they can get that to a mill that is my understanding there are two local mills Viking has one and the cabinet Bennett Maker, I forget their names, not Brooks Brothers or whatever. Block Brothers has a mill as well. So, I mean, there are mills in town. [2:29:38] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Right, I'll make that as a motion. Yeah, I think in the meantime, Carol, it wouldn't hurt for you to reach out to folks like that. You know more about these, this is your level of expertise as the tree warden. So about what the tree is and what it may have to offer. So I think having, I think also having those sorts of conversations as to what those possibilities might look like to help facilitate something like that would be incredibly helpful. Okay. Sure. Happy to do that. Got a motion and a second. Any other discussion? [2:30:07] Speaker L (unidentified): Chris? I'll just throw out a little free library because they're really cute. I like them. Sure. [2:30:13] Carol Herwig (public commenter): Just throw it out. Sure. Those are actually kits. They're kits? Mm-hmm. Okay. Well. But that's just not that it couldn't happen. [2:30:25] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): But most of those are our kids okay yeah we get a motion as a second not on the alternatives [2:30:30] Carol Herwig (public commenter): On the agenda yeah I'll come back with you know there you go a lot of the old so we're going to [2:30:35] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): Be like a gentleman who was here to Waldo Literacy Project who handmade them himself [2:30:41] Speaker P (unidentified): When he passed away yeah Dan I kind of so you know I think the minimum as I understand language you were talking about the you're just making it safe right now and yes we definitely want to make it safe I sort of wonder if Waterfall Arts could help essentially you know have like a contest of brainstorming or something that would be that tomorrow I can talk to yeah artistic yeah just if the enough people in the community that had an opportunity to make [2:31:16] Mayor Eric Sanders (chair): And you can bring it in front of the pickleball court working group if you wish but creative budget at your own danger all right so we've got a motion in a second everybody good with this all in favor motion all right great thank you guys thank you item O is a proclamation recognizing September 25 as Dolly Parton Imagination Library Day which should be easy to do since it's already passed. Ms. So, this was a presentation from a former city councilor from Ward 5, Nancy Hamilton, that made it very open to the public at the September 15th meeting concerning Imagination Library and positive impacts it has on our community. Councilor Harkness requested that this be put into proclamation that this is something that has been that has occurred nationwide in cities following the unfortunate passing of Ms. Barton earlier this year. So essentially, a recommended motion would be to approve a proclamation recognizing September 5th, 2026 as Dolly Parton's imagination. All right. Is there a second? Discussion? Yeah. Could we get an update on the fundraising to continue the program in Waldo County? I CAN ABSOLUTELY GET THAT INFORMATION, SEE IF I CAN GET SOME UPDATED INFORMATION TO YOU GUYS FROM THE LIBRARY DIRECTOR. GREAT. THANK YOU. GOOD QUESTION. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? SEEING NONE, I'LL TAKE IT TO A VOTE. ALL IN FAVOR? MOTION PASSES 5-0. SIGNING OF COUNCIL ORDERS. COMMUNICATIONS? OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. THERE'S NO ONE HERE. MOTION TO ADJOURN. SO MOVED. Mr. Second. Mr. Discussion? All in favor? Motion passes 5-0. Good meeting, folks.