Bangor council rejects indefinite postponement of immigration enforcement ordinance

We are live. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. Welcome to the regular meeting of the Bangor City Council. It's June 22nd. It is 700 p.m. Is Chief Pellier in the hall? Would you do the pledge for us? Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America which stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Hey, stupid words. Okay, this is the portion of the meeting set aside for general public comment directly related to city business for matters that do not appear on this evening's agenda. Public comment requires a person to state your name and whether you are a resident of Bangor. The city council has adopted a public comment policy that we will adhere to. Statements during public comment should respect the dignity and seriousness of the proceeding and individuals will be restricted to speaking once. Obscene, truly threatening or overly repetitive comments will be deemed out of order and will be interrupted and removed. Topics that are considered out of order also include matters that are in litigation, individual employees or employee groups discussing matters for which complaint or grievance procedures are in place, personal disputes between the speaker and another resident not gerine to city business. support for or opposition to any candidate for political office and personal complaints pertaining to individual city, excuse me, city employees. Pardon me. There is a time limit of three minutes per speaker and the total time allowed for general public comment regarding city business will be limited to no more than one hour. The public comment period is for city council members to listen and not to respond or debate with persons. If you do not live in Bangor or own property in Bangor, please allow those who do to have the opportunity to speak first. Sorry. If you'd like to offer comment on any item directly related to city business not appearing on the regular agenda, you may approach the podium. Individuals who have appropriately pre-registered to give public comment via remote means will be given the opportunity to participate remotely. Alternatively, counselors may be reached via email at counselorsbangormain.gov. A link to the adopted public policy comment can be found on the city's website. Um I would ask that when speakers are up here um and speaking please if the gallery would not have private conversations going on it gets disruptive for the speakers and we can't hear up here as well. Um there will be two opportunities to speak on the city budget. Um the first one would be resolve 26204 when we get there. That will be the first city budget resolve and they'll also take public comment on the school results. So those will be the two times that you can speak. I think there was a question to that effect. Okay. All right. Um we are going to we have cut off in the past um couple of meetings some of the people that were on remote. So, we're going to go to the remote um speaker. >> Oh, the proclamation first. Yeah, we'll do that. >> Can you get the remote one ready and we'll do the proclamation? >> I will. The the remote speaker currently isn't online, but they might be by the time >> Oh, okay. All right. Good. >> Councelor Carson. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. Proclaiming June as Pride Month. Whereas Pride Month commemorates the Stonewall riots in June 1969 and works to achieve equal justice and equal opportunity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, interex, asexual, and two-spirit people. And whereas on June 28th, 1970, the first Pride march was held, marking the first anniversary of the uprising. These Pride marches continue today throughout the nation every June. And whereas July 7th will mark the 42nd anniversary of the death of Charlie Howard, a 23-year-old gay man who was murdered for his sexuality in 1984. His death has spurred citizens of Bangor to hold vigils, memorials, and protests in his memory. And whereas the city of Bangor is committed to treating all people fairly and equally and with dignity and respect. And together, we will continue to work toward full equality with our LGBTQ plus family, friends, and neighbors. And whereas the city of Bangor upholds the state of Maine's protections for the LGBTQ plus community that were passed in 2005. These include protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, education, medical treatment, and public accommodations. And whereas Pride Month is an opportunity to celebrate and be supportive of the hard work of the thriving Bangor LGBTQ plus community in fighting for their rights, acceptance, and to acknowledge the ongoing work of the citizens of Bangor to advocate for equal rights. And whereas during the month of June, the city of Bangor hosts Bangor Pride, a dayong celebration starting June 27th with events throughout the day, including a pride parade and festival. And whereas the city of Bangor thanks the volunteers and sponsors in the community for working hard to make Bangor Pride 2026 representative engaging and affirming. Now therefore I Daniel Carson on behalf of Susan M. Pause the mayor of the city of Bangor and on behalf of the city council and the citizens of Bangor do hereby proclaim June as pride month in the city of Bangor and urge all community members to be respectful and supportive of their fellow citizens regardless of race, gender, age, gender identity or sexual orientation for this 56th year of pride given this the 22nd day of June 2026. And I do believe we have uh Patricia Neoen Campbell and Julie Plamer to receive this proclamation. >> Please Hello everyone. My name is Petraor Neland Campbell. My pronouns are they them and I am the co-chair of the Bangor Pride board of directors. On behalf of the Bangor Pride board of directors and our community members, I'd like to thank the Bangor City Council for proclaiming June as Pride Month. We value the relationship we have with the we have with the various city of Bangor departments and truly appreciate all the work you do for our organization and for our community members not just in June but throughout the whole year. In a time when our community is increasingly targeted when more towns and cities are choosing not to proclaim June as pride month the city of Bangor and the city council makes us feel supported and like we can move forward together. Thank you for ensuring Bangor remains a vibrant and diverse place and for your continued support of Bangor pride in our community. Thank you. Is public comment open? Yes. >> I'm going to time myself. >> Okay. >> I'm sure you will be too. >> Be sure and um tell us who you are. >> Good evening. My name is Hal Wheeler. I live on Silver Road and I've been a resident of Bangor since 1946. Now my calculator tells me that that's a good solid 80 years. So I think I can claim the status of a senior citizen of Bangor and I want to know when that's going to get me a discount on my tax bill. But seriously, I love this city and I am deeply grateful for having lived here and for the many advantages of not only living here but receiving my education here and establishing my business and my family here. And I'm especially grateful for having served two terms on the planning board and two terms on the city council. At your last meeting, I witnessed some good citizens of Bangor making statements only to be gled down because the chair didn't want to hear what they had to say. Now, that broke my heart. During my two terms on the council, I and my colleagues held firmly to one particular principle, and that is that the public comes first. This is the people's chamber. The city councilors occupy it only temporarily and with the permission of the people. The gavl is not a weapon of censorship. It is a tool for the legislative process. We have an issue in this community of a certain vacant property that has remained unregistered and the mandated fees not paid. I have nothing to say about that. I assume that the law will take its course. But I do have this to say. I want to ask this council, what is your position on the fact that the code enforcement office and the city solicitor's office were fully aware, fully aware of this unregistered property for 2 years or more and took no action to resolve it. It has resulted in a mess, an embarrassment that could have been avoided. This city, this city council is the de facto employer of all city staff and so this negligence should be unacceptable to you and there must be full accountability for it. The citizens and taxpayers and especially all of the vacant property owners here expect you to do your duty. I thank you for hearing me out. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. My name is Joe Bowman and I'm a resident of Bangor. I'll be brief because this honestly the city keeps spending too much time talking about the same problems instead of solving them. and I got a birthday party to get to. Um, first of all, when councelor Fuoon uses her Facebook page to speak about city b business, she's not just simply posting as a private person. Whether she intends to or not, that platform functions as a public voice tied to the council and how issues are framed there matters for the whole city. Second, there are serious ethics concerns when counselors or committee members vote on matters tied to their employers or other personal interests that should require recusal. That's not abstract. Inconsistent application of the rules erodess trust and opens the doors to accusations of corruptions that are now spreading all over the city. Related to that, if an ordinary resident would be held accountable for failing to register an empty property, then a counselor who fails to do so should be also equally held accountable. It undermines confidence in city government. Third, while we argue about the process and personalities, the city is not getting measurably better. We keep hearing the same two camps. Housing first and harm reduction don't work here versus the national data shows that they do work. But the real failure is implementation. The strategies themselves are not the only issue. This council is showing that it's just not very good at implementing these strategies in this city. Part of why implementation fails is for fragmentation. There are too many service providers that are operating independently with different goals, different metrics metrics and limited data sharing. This means money and effort are duplicated, gaps remain, and no one can reliably no one can show reliably what is or isn't working. We don't even know how many homeless are here. The city has the authority and leverage to change that, require centralized coordination of funding and services, insist on common outcome metrics, and tie those city grants or contracts to participation in a unified case management system. That's not micromanagement. It's called responsible governance. And of course, some of this will be clipped, replayed, turned into content by people in this room because our dysfunction is profitable to everybody except for the residents who have to live with it. But the rest of us, we need results. Finally, forming another committee to solve the problem is not a solution. We need decisions, shared data, coordinated execution. Start by creating a single coordinated service framework with clear metrics, shared case management, and transparent public reporting on outcomes. Because if you can't show us progress in measurable terms, then all the talk about civility and tone is just a distraction. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. This is my first time doing this, so is this the button I need to press or Okay. Um, here we go. >> Could you give your name? >> Okay, >> there we are. All right. My name is Rachel Ortiz. I am a Bangor resident, educator, caregiver, taxpayer, and someone who deeply cares about the future of this city. I live on the tree streets a mere three blocks from where I work. There was a time when I enjoyed walking to work. Today, I drive. After being assaulted twice, chased home, having my life threatened, I no longer feel safe walking those three blocks. In a thriving city, living three blocks from your workplace should be a blessing. Today, for me, it is not. I share that not because my experience is unique, but because it reflects what Bangor residents have been seeing for years. Residents have watched public drug use become increasingly visible. As an educator, I have personally found and photographed hundreds of discarded needles on school property. These are not statistics to me. These are places where children learn, walk, gather every day. Recently, a public official stated during their extensive walks throughout Bangor that they had never encountered a discarded needle. I'm genuinely glad that's been their experience, but for many residents, we don't share that good fortune. And the fact that one person has not encountered a problem does not mean the problem does not exist. When residents tell you that they found needles, witnessed public drug use, altered their routines, or avoided parts of the city they once enjoyed, they deserve to be heard, not dismissed. I want to be clear about something. Compassion and accountability are not opposites. We should absolutely help people struggling with addiction, mental illness, and homelessness. They are human beings deserve dignity, support, and opportunities to rebuild their lives. But compassion also means protecting the public spaces that belong to all of us. For many residents, frustration is not only about what they see. It is also about whether the significant taxpayer investments being made are producing measurable results. How much money has Bangor spent addressing homelessness over the last 5 years? and what measurable outcomes have taxpayers received from those investments? What benchmarks are being used to determine success? As a teacher, I would never accept we tried as evidence of success. I would ask for results. Bangor taxpayers deserve the same standard. Before I close, I want to leave you with one final thought. We can deeply we can care deeply about those struggling on our streets while also demanding safe spaces for our students, for our children. The protection of Bangor's youngest citizens should never be controversial or bipartisan. [gasps] It should be common ground. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> My name is Tyler Shanahan and I am a Bangor resident. Um, we cannot talk about fixing Bangor without confronting the stark reality of what is happening on our streets right now. Our parks, sidewalks, and business storefronts have become a backdrop for a severe compounding humanitarian crisis. We are witnessing open air drug use, public exposure, vandalism, and individuals defecating in business doorways. This isn't a violation of munipal ordinances. It is the visible agon agonizing breakdown of public order and human dignity. We have to admit a hard truth. The current status quo is treating our county jail as our primary substance abuse and mental health holding facility. That is an undeniable fact. Nationwide and locally, upwards of 95% of inmate crimes are directly related to substance abuse. We are already using the justice system as a catchall, but we are doing it in an outdated infrastructure that lacks the capacity to truly intervene. I urge this council to support the proposal for a new jail, not as a monument to mass incarceration, but as a modern, high-capacity facility equipped to handle the reality of 2026. A new jail with dedicated treatment capacity provides a vital secure infrastructure to house and treat our most vulnerable, chronically homeless population. When someone is in the deep destructive grip of severe substance use disorder, they are completely incapable of making rational choices of their for for their own survival. Uh in those extreme moments, being arrested isn't just a legal consequence. It can literally be a rescue from the misery of drug addiction. It is force. Yes, excuse me. It is a forced pause on a slow motion suicide. If we have a modern facility with the proper capacity and integrated clinical programs, we can transform a cell from a holding box into a structured gateway to recovery. We can get people off the asphalt, out of the freezing elements, away from the dealers, and into a controlled environment where treatment is immediate and mandatory. We cannot expect our local businesses to keep absorbing the cost of vandalism and biohazards. and we cannot expect our families to seed our public parks. Uh, true compassion means stopping the cycle of enablement. Supporting a new treatment capable jail gives our law enforcement and recovery systems the tools and they desperately need to end the misery on our streets. Restore accountability and bring safety back to Bangor. Let's stop giving active drug addicts what they want and give them what they need. um and stop feeling so much with our hearts and start thinking more with our heads. >> Well, thank you. >> All right. So, uh good evening. My name is Philip Henry. I'm a resident and business owner in Bangor. Uh I'm asking this statement to be uh entered into the record and I have provided a written copy to the clerk or I will be providing. I'm here about a new advisory committee on homelessness that was appointed on May 27th. This committee will write the strategic plan that guides how Bangor spends millions of dollars on homelessness and addiction for the next decade. My concern is about process, not any individual, and about how the committee is built. Of the nine seats, nearly everyone is held by someone that is currently employed by an organization that receives city homelessness or opioid funding, including the operators of Hope House, which received city opioid grants in March. I understand why this happens in a city of this size, the people that are perceived to have the expertise in this matter. Um but a committee with few or no independent voices cannot by design recommend much other than more of the same and the public has no way to see whose interests are shaping the plan. This matters right now for three reasons. Bangor expects to receive well has $2 million of unspent opioid settlement funds and money that this plan will help to steer. uh federal homelessness funding criteria shifted in early June away from permanent housing which the um home for good program is steered towards including Prebble Street and main housing and the project that's existing and it's going towards treatment and transitional services and Ponobskot County was the only county in Maine where overdose deaths rose last year from 64 to 67 While the state overall fell more than 20% likely because we had 2 million in opioid funds that were staying unspent, we are about to lock a long-term plan with public money at the very moment that evidence is saying that the funding rules are changing. So, I'm asking the council to do three things specifically before this committee writes its plan. First, direct that all nine members file written conflicts of interest disclosures with the city clerk as chapter 33 and main title 3A contemplate. Second, I ask that the city solicitor advise publicly on which members should recuse themselves from affecting their own employers. Third, appoint two or three additional members that have no financial stake in the homeless uh in the homelessness services ecosystem. So there is independent judgment in the room. None of this stops the committee's work. It makes it credible. I respectfully request a written response to these three requests and I ask the council take them up at a future meeting. Thank you very much. Uh what do I have time? I still have more time. The other the other thing I wanted to say was um I'm a I'm a big supporter of Pride. I'm I I think that everyone should be treated equally and have the same rights as everybody. However, I do also believe that the if the city allocates tax funding for uh for painting uh sidewalks when when you can't even leave 11 central and you don't even know what lane you're in because those lines aren't painted. I I think that those funds should be allocated to city projects and not for uh not for specific organizations because I mean again I think we're all we're all equal. I think and quite frankly people in the northeast are the most accepting loving people uh in all of North America in my opinion. So um I would just ask you to consider that as well. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hello. Excuse me. My name is Michael Norton. 83 Elma Street Bangor is where I live. I've lived in Bangor for about eight years almost. I'm a movie and television director by hobby for most of my life. And I just wanted to take three minutes I have on the floor here this evening to thank the past and present city councils and the residents of Bangor and our online audiences for listening and hearing me and others but me personally here voice my opinion and expression. throughout the past eight years. I remember there was a January winter many years ago in that period where I was sitting in one or the first or second row and I had quite a seasonal cold. [laughter] I couldn't keep my nose from running. I was sneezing. My sinuses were swollen up. You know, congestion. And the room was packed. There were like 30 or 40 people and they were cold too because it was winter. But um that was right before COVID broke out. So we've come a long way since then and I am headed out to my roots again and I'm going to try and promote Los Angeles becoming a 51st state of the United States with Hollywood as capital. >> [laughter] >> just there's a lot of people out there who believe it should be two states. Why not? Uh but that's not why I'm here tonight. I'm here to thank you and you you the online audience and Mr. Morer, Councilman, thank you for this book, Astronomy 365. I'll read it cover to cover and I just wonder who's going to give me a gift called Physics 365. Thank you very much. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. My name is Scott Party and I'm a resident of Bangor. Uh tonight I'm going to talk about an ongoing Whoops. Yeah. taxpayer funded failure sitting on our city sidewalks. The downtown public outouses. Let's call them what they actually are. Expensive glorified outhouses. They are completely disgusting. When this council fasttracked a4 million dollars in ARPA funding to purchase and install these steel units, the public was promised a solution to downtown hygiene. Instead, we were handed a public health hazard. They are germy, unsanitary, and a blight on our city. Let's be honest, these structured never should never have passed local building or safety codes in the first place. Not one single person sitting on this council would ever step foot in one of them today. Yet you expect the citizens of Bangor and visitors of Bangor to walk past them and into them every single day. When when these were approved, the narrative was that they would be cheap to maintain. But look at the reality today. Between emergency cleanings, constant repairs, and outside contractors, these outhouses are draining hundreds of thousands of dollars in a year in taxpayer money. We are sinking immense funding into a failed equipment just to keep with rampant just to keep up with rampant vandalism. Worse, these units are being heavily used for open drug use, tracking dozens of police calls and non-fatal overdoses right in our public parks. And what and [clears throat] what was the city's grand response to these metal boxes becoming an eyesore? You decided to pay for a beautifification and art campaign to paint murals on them. Let's call it exactly what it is. putting lipstick on a pig. You cannot paint over a biohazard and call it progress. We are in the middle of a massive fiscal squeeze. We see double-digit property tax revaluations, skyrocketing utility rates, and massive increases in everything. Residents are being asked to tighten their belts until they choke. Yet, the city is happily throwing good money after bad to maintain drug add vandalized steel outhouses. That was a mouthful. True leadership means having the courage to admit when an experiment has failed. This one has failed. The murals didn't fix it. Extra cleanings aren't fixing it. And throwing more money at it won't fix it. Stop wasting our taxpayer dollars to sanitize a mistake. Make our city appealing, clean, and safe again. Do your watch. Do your job as watchd dogs of our money. Cut the funding. pull the concrete pads and remove these outhouses from Bangor immediately. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> My name is Jacqueline Smallwood. I'm a resident of Bangor and I'd like these um responses to be part of the record as well. On June 10th, residents filed nine Freedom of Access Act requests and six formal ethics complaints with the city of Bangor. The most important being conflict disclosure forms. To date, we have received only acknowledgements of receipt. I respectfully ask each counselor to inquire independently with the city manager and the city solicitor and report findings back to the public. Regarding councelor Beck's resolution 26-225 on tonight's agenda, the council is being asked to accept a million dollars in over a million dollars in federal HUD funds for the Bangor Rental Association or assistance program. a housing first program serving 73 households on June 1st had formally issued a new $4 billion notice of funding opportunity for the continuum of care program stating that the housing first experiment failed Americans by warehousing the vulnerable without results. Bangor is a prime example of that failure. The new guidelines explicitly depprioritize housing first, requiring treatment and recovery orientation as a condition of funding and open $1.3 billion to new applicants prioritizing transitional housing. This is not a proposal. It's a published active funding framework. The new application deadline is August 26th. The information this information is critical and largely missing from this resolution. Yellen Pines, as reported this morning in Bangor Daily News, is already facing a funding gap of up up to a million dollars at $373,000 per unit. Where's the oversight? And was there a rigorous bidding process? This project and every other housing first model in the pipeline is now misaligned with the federal framework that will govern future funding. When current grant cycles expire, communities that fail to adapt will be left behind and the shortfall will [clears throat] fall to local taxpayers. I would like to note for the record that this counselor championed um and the formation of the homelessness advisory committee and advocates for housing first knowing that potential conflicts of interest exist and organizations that operate within and benefit from those funding in this funding ecosystem. In this case, Bangor Housing and Prebble Street, both already embedded in the Yelen Pines project. Bangor Housing as the lead agency and Prebble Street as the contracted service provider. There are two members of the homelessness advisory committee employed by these senior organizations. One from Bankor Housing who will be managing the units and one from Prebble Street who will be providing the services. Where is the process? Ad advancing this resolution to government operations on July 6 without a complete briefing on the new HUD guidelines is self-s serving and irresponsible and puts this city and its taxpayers at financial risk. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Good evening, council. Um, my name is Grace Nichols and I'm here representing a community group ACT UP Bangor and uh and I work in mental health. Um, so we wanted to put in a good word for the ordinance under um review tonight 261 194 um amending the code of city of Bangor to modify the mission of the advisory committee on homelessness. And and the reason is because we feel that any barriers to acting immediately for transitional housing um should be removed. >> Agenda item >> and um we know Grace just one second please. I'm sorry. >> Um this is an agenda item. >> Okay. >> So comment. >> It's an agenda item. So, if you want to um speak when that item comes up, it it would be on the agenda at that time. Okay. Can I speak in terms of the need for housing and HIV being connection now? Okay. But you'd rather I not support a specific agenda item. Is that what you're saying? >> Yes. >> Okay. Thank you. Sorry, it's not a problem. >> Other city councils. Okay. Not a problem. All right. So, um, >> speaking more broadly, um, >> the, [clears throat] uh, speaking more broadly, there was recently a report that I'm sure you all have seen from the federal CDC saying that while we have had extraordinary success in treating, successfully treating the known cases of HIV, we also know by principles of public health that there are a lot of other cases out And we also know that we're facing a tremendous epidemic of heepsi. In fact, it's the highest incidence in the country outside of West Virginia. Right? So with those realities, they directly said that the scattering of the homeless by various encampment um breaking up encampments was a cause of the spread of HIV. And currently the homeless because of policing of public spaces are being uh scattered and there's really no legal place for them to be. And so I would like to see the committee on homelessness empowered to act to put in a supervised campground that can connect people up with case management while we're developing a and funding uh permanent housing plan that will also provide voluntary social services to people. But I I think we want to recognize that um Maine Family Planning, Maine CDC, the city of Bangor, Needle Point Sanctuary together by using the science were able to treat to untransmittable the known cases of HIV and that's a tremendous success we should all be proud of. Thank you. Okay, Grace. Grace, are you a resident? >> Am I a resident? >> No. Yes. On H Avenue. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hello. My name is Rich Trot. I'm a Bangor taxpayer and property owner and I've lived here my entire life and I'm here to speak about the ordinance 26-106, the ICE ordinance introduced by the councelor Beck earlier this year. I want to be clear, this is not a >> point of order, chair. This is a >> yes >> agenda item. Sir, this is also an agenda item. So, if you want to come back, >> yes, ma'am. >> This is not an agenda item. It's my first time. Um, good evening. I'm a resident of Bangor. My name is Rebecca Campbell. I'm a parent of three young children. My husband and I are currently weighing the decision of whether to invest heavily in our 1895 historic home or eventually move. Over the past year, my family has experienced trespassing on our property, inappropriate behavior in front of our children, some involving open bottles of alcohol, and nighttime approaches to our home. There have also been multiple documented reports of discarded needles in parks where children play, including Broadway Park, where my children practice soccer twice a week. The library, once a safe family destination, has become a place where we hear obscenities and witness inappropriate behavior. Downtown has become rife with open drug use and intoxication and decent exposure and inappropriate behaviors of many kinds. We don't take family walks and bike rides to the many downtown businesses that we would like to frequent. Given the time limit, I'll keep this brief, but here are two recent examples that illustrate my concern. Despite spending very little time downtown, I recently had to explain to my [clears throat] 11-year-old what that man was doing with a needle. And my six-year-old's hockey league, which volunteers parking cars during waterfront concerts, has had to be warned not to wear Crocs or play in the bushes. Adults did not tell them the reason was that needles had been found there. Pancot County is experiencing Maine's largest HIV outbreak, yet visible disorder and needle litter continue in our public spaces. I respectfully urge the council and administration to take the following actions. One, enforce public order laws consistently in parks around the library and other shared spaces to restore safe access for families. Two, prioritize dedicated, appropriate daytime services so the library can return to its role as a family and community resource. Three, require and publish clear performance data and independent oversight for all homelessness and SSP contracts, including robust thirdparty needle disposal tracking and outcomes tied to the ongoing HIV outbreak response. Number four, ensure full transparency on committee appointments, conflict disclosures, and funding relationships consistent with 30A MRSA section 2605, including independent review of any potential conflicts. and five, reconsider the proposal for a temporary moratorium on new syringe service program locations which was voted down in early June in light of the ongoing needle litter in public spaces and the active HIV outbreak in Ponobskot County. I also want to be clear that current outcomes are falling short of treating unhoused individuals with compassion and dignity. I believe that ensuring community safety and offering meaningful help rooted in genuine empathy are not opposing goals and that we can and should pursue both. They are absolutely not mutually exclusive. However, accountability will be required for either to succeed. Thank you for your time. >> Thank you. >> My name is Richard Chaucer. I'm a resident at the 183 Harllo Street, Cham, put money in that building. We're still experiencing like on the third floor. On the third floor, we had two individuals in there sneaking drugs and a drug out. I myself, we had an individual had we had we had a retired vet nurse come in. She came in and this one individual known drug user snuck in behind the person. I ran out and said the person, "Get the hell off the property. You don't live here. You don't belong here." This individual was in a hurry was with another individual that rides that bike that's on a sex offender list. Told them to leave. That still goes on. And then that individual that individual was visiting that person and gave him the key. And that person had the key. This is lenthally told the manager. So the management came after me and said, "It wasn't your responsibility." And I said, and I said, "Right here in the lease, even though the lease is listed in 1988, it's from preservation management out of out of Portland. They're [snorts] the ones that are calling all the rules up here." It says, "A president doesn't live here, don't allow them in. Don't allow them in unless they're buzzed in. Our buzzes doesn't work. We have cameras. Cameras are ineffective. They don't record it." That it is bad over there. It is getting bad. I've escorted three individuals out of the front entrance area, corridor area from shooting needles. I've escorted two two you two two individuals from behind that where we have a uh utility that at uh whatever it's called. It was sprayed painted. I cleaned that up. We tore two people out of there also. [sighs] Um and yes, and we still had the same problem. People coming in the building, sneaking in the building, and sleeping there. Oh, sleeping there. or they'll say, "Oh, I'm here visiting. I'm here visiting." Why didn't the person let you in? Why are you sleeping? Why are you sleeping in our in our in our in our laundry room areas? Why? Why? Why isn't that being addressed? This is provided by CHOs. This is your taxpayer money. Your taxpayer our taxpayer money. Where is our funding source? Where? And why are they evicting people? Why not go to kick people out that are buying these rules? I don't take a lot of these subsidies that these people get free from. I bust my ass and almost bust our bust our tails over there. Ma'am, counselors, please get somebody over there to help us out. We only have one We have one maintenance guy. He's excellent. Ed's been there for years. He's a godsend. It wasn't for him, I wouldn't know what to do. And And we have people in there. We have We have one management. It comes in maybe once every other day. We have a camera used visually. We don't have any um [snorts] um maybe it's lack of budget or what. I don't know. But I'm I I moved up here because I they put that money back in the building. I moved a thousand miles back and I've been here for 26 years. I used to live in Brunswick. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hi, my name is Katie Co. I'm a resident and property owner in the city of Bangor. I I am surprised to find out that we don't have any homophobia in the city, especially since we've been, you know, experiencing slurs and making space for slurs at every council meeting from our wonderful Zoom participants. I'm delighted to find out that we don't have homophobia when we have people desecrating the pride crosswalk. I I find it very frustrating that we have not repainted the Pride crosswalk. I do also find it frustrating that we subcontract out our line painting activities and don't have those as good public works jobs. I understand it's because we don't have the equipment and therefore it's subcontractors that are doing it and they are doing it late and slow every year which is would attend to some of that gentleman's concerns. We don't do that inhouse. We do the pride crosswalk inhouse and it should be redone. We did the pride proclamation. You said that this is something that you believe in. We did the junth proclamation. You said that these are things that we believe in, that these are fundamentals of what the city is, that we believe in diversity, that we believe in inclusion, that we want our community members to feel safe, and I'd just like it if we could invest our time and effort into the things that we say we believe in. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hello, my name is Trisha Quirk. I'm a resident of Bangor. I just want to take a few minutes to say thank you to um businesses like the Bang & Whoopi. I don't know if anybody has driven down Main Street in the last few days, but they've decorated their outdoor space with um black and white umbrellas, um new black furniture. they are um showing pride of place in in a location that has been a difficult location in our city. Um, also the new uh move for Bangor Sandwich. Um, and to be in that um, place of pride right there on the corner of Central and State Streets and to be able to come down Main Street and to see that although we have our struggles in this city, we're also seeing people that are willing to make new investment and to make our city beautiful. So, I just want to say thank you to those business owners and I'm going to be here uh trying to my best to help the council and to help the city make this a better place to live. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> That's city council. So, >> okay. >> Private. Uh so, this actually relates. So I I've essentially just two comments to make regarding the public process rules and generally how we've been enforcing those rules. >> Yes, this is my name is Joshua Fier. I everyone knows me anyway. I live on 30 West Street. Um I'm a Bangor resident and have been for quite a long time. Um when we are listening to individuals speak, it is often very very clear whether or not when they're speaking they're speaking about agenda items. Um, it's happened several times tonight where individuals have been speaking about agenda items, but they've been allowed to do so. And then when someone has spoken, say, in favor of an agenda item rather than opposing to one, they have been called out and asked them to change the way that they I don't know if that's intentional. I'm guessing it's not, but I think we need to be a little bit better and more responsive when someone's speaking about agenda item so it doesn't give the appearance that we're selectively enforcing the rule and allowing some people to say speak in in opposition to something, but not allowing someone to speak in support of something. Um, the other that I would say is we probably want to also add a line or at least several lines in the uh opening statement for public comment to ensure individuals understand what the rules are for recording both likeness and voice. So that's video recording as opposed to the individual cameras that we already have in the audience. So whether or not you need to have a credentialed say a credentialed member of the press in order to record or if this is a public space and therefore anyone can record at any time any for any reason I think that would be very very helpful for me especially because again I just let this gentleman know that he does not have my permission to record my likeness or to record my my voice. Um and that can be for a number of reasons and I don't necessarily know why he is. Uh so that's something that we should be aware of. The other thing I would say too is that u generally speaking when we're talking about and having these public comment periods um one of the things that I've noticed as well is that individuals within the gallery as you had asked not to make comment um have been and I think it would be helpful for you to maybe reiterate that during um individual comments so people are aware that that's not necessarily appropriate and I know I spoke out at one point because I thought uh it was a bit unfair for an individual to u be asked to change the way they were speaking after literally the person right before them had been speaking on an agenda and they were not challenged for doing so. Uh so I apologize uh for that. Uh but I will try [snorts] to keep those comments to myself. Those are the that's just feedback as to how we could maybe better administrate the public comment period which I think would be helpful um so that it doesn't contractive enforcement of the rules. >> Thank you. >> Hi, I'm Patricia Huntley and I live in Bangor. been here since 1982 and I was hoping to kind of shed some light on something different outside of the box. We have a lot of funding that helps clean up all these encampments and things and I mean and I've seen pictures and it's totally a mess. I haven't seen all the needles but they're out there. So I've seen the unhoused folks or some folks carrying bags of like five- cent bottles, you know, to get their monies. So, why can't we just kind of put it out there? We have the funding for some of this cleanup. Why can't we just say, "Well, we'll give you a nickel for everyone you bring back and then they put it in a container and bring it back." Of course, we're not going to recount them, but we can make an estimate. Sharps containers have certain amounts. You can call the companies of Sharp containers, say, "How many fit in here?" and say, "All right, there's 100. We'll give you five cents for every needle you bring back." and they're going to be having some incentive to pick them up if you're giving them money and they're going to get the money and that was kind of an idea I had and I don't know if that will work but it certainly couldn't hurt. It couldn't hurt to try because maybe that will in you know give them a benefit to pick them up and it'll clean up the mess and they know where they are because there's a hundred here and there's a hundred there and I'm like I'm going to take that and I'm going to get some money. So that was kind of an idea I had. So thank you. >> Thank you. Anyone else? Is our remote person on? Okay, >> go ahead. My name is Susette Furrow. I'm a resident of Bangor. I'm speaking on my own behalf, not part of any committee I belong to. I wanted to read a little bit from uh a book called the how the spectre of communism is ruling our world. I think we have a couple generations of people who aren't aware of what communism is and some members of the council that advocate for communism. So one of the tenants is high taxes and welfare. High taxation is a covert way to gradually phase out the system of private ownership. The end result of high taxation is the same as the state ownership and egalitarianism imposed by communist regimes with the only difference being whether nationalization is affected before or after production. In the west, production is controlled privately but the revenue is converted into state assets via taxes and redistribution schemes. The wealth taken is achieved legally through democracy and legislation rather than through killing and violence. An important feature of the communist and socialist econ economics seen in western countries is robust social welfare. I hear them name the ad the adjective robust used often when I listen to meetings which is used to gradually erode moral wisdom and freedom. While some government aid is reasonable, such as social security for victims of disasters or accidents, it is easy for welfare to become a convenient instrument of deception, its positive aspects become the excuse for increasing taxes and government control. In this regard, generous welfare has already achieved the same destructive consequences for people, society, and moral values as do overtly communist e economics without a need for violent revolution. I would also like to read about the communists and um the drug legalizing drugs. Um, the legalization of drugs is an additional step toward encouraging people to lose their inhibitions and cut themselves off from the divine. As society experiences turmoil and economic downturns, communists seize opportunities to gain political power. So, I'd ask that we all notice what communism is and how we see it in our own community. Thank you. >> Thank you. Okay, seeing no one else, I guess we will move on. Consent agenda, please. >> Minutes of Vangu City Council regular meeting of June 8th, 2026. 26-213 order authorizing the execution of a municipal quick claim deed for real estate located at 303 Hammond Street. 26-214 order authorizing the execution of a municipal quick claim deed for real estate located at 517 Essex Street. 26-215 order authorizing the sale of property addressed at 117 Fourth Street to Shannon D. Galant Smith for $7,200. 26-216 order authorizing the sale of property addressed at 45 Allen Street to Todd Latlip for $50,000. 26-217 order authorizing the city manager to execute a temporary land lease for two lots to General Electric Company. 26-218 order authorizing waiver of the bid process and awarding a contract for the X1 FBO software platform to support operations and aircraft handling activities for the fixed space operator operations at Bangor International Airport. 26-219 order authorizing the city manager's appointment of Jeffrey Courtney as information technology director. 26-220 order authorizing the city manager to execute a collective bargaining agreement between the city of Bangor and American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Local 926, Council 93, representing the public works employees. 26-221 resolve acknowledging receipt of the official results of the June 9th 2026 primary election. >> Madam Chair, I move approval of the consent agenda. >> Second. >> The consent agenda has been moved and seconded. Is there any further discussion? Seeing none, can we do a roll call? >> Everybody's here. >> Okay. >> Unless you want a roll call. >> Um, no. But we'll save that for the budget. >> Okay, it does have passage referrals to committee and first reading 26-22 ordinance amending the code of the city of Banga to modify the duties and responsibilities of the legislative committee. First reading 26-223 ordinance amending chapter 165 land development code by adding flexibility for manufactured home parks existing as of January 1st 2026 first reading and referral to planning board on July 7th 2026 26-224 resolve accepting and appropriating a housing opportunity program municipal ordinance development grant from the main office of community affairs in the amount of $10,000 first reading 26-225 resolve accepting and appropriating grant funds from United States Housing and Urban Development for the purpose of funding the Bangor Rental Assistance Program in the amount of 1,144,879. First reading and referral to government operations committee meeting on July 6, 2026. >> I move these items be referred. Second. >> These items have been referred to committee in first reading. If there is no objection, they will be referred. Unfinished business. >> 26-095 ordinance amending the code of the city of Bangor to establish chapter 46 employee authority in immigration matters. Councelor Beck. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This ordinance establishes clear limits on the city of Bangor's involvement in federal immigration enforcement consistent with federal and state law in order to prioritize public safety, community trust, and the responsible use of municipal resources. The ordinance makes explicit that Bangor does not operate its departments, programs, or public safety services for the purpose of enforcing federal civil immigration laws. It affirms that city employees will continue to comply with all valid federal and state laws, judicial warrants, subpoenas, and court orders, and will continue to cooperate fully in the investigation and prosecution of criminal activity. What this ordinance does is draw a firm line between local public safety responsibilities and federal civil immigration enforcement. The ordinance is grounded in a public safety rationale. When residents are afraid their routine interactions with local government could expose them or their family members to immigration enforcement, they are less likely to report crimes, seek emergency assistance, cooperate with investigations, or access basic city services. This ordinance is intended to preserve trust between the city and the people it serves, which is essential to effective policing, emergency response, and community well-being. Furthermore, this policy ensures that Bangor's limited tax dollars are reserved for local safety priorities rather than being diverted to unfunded federal enforcement mandates. This ordinance affirms that Bangor's role is to keep residents safe, uphold the law, and ensure transparency and accountability in the use of public resources, not to serve as an extension of federal civil immigration enforcement. The community, I'm sorry, the government operations committee discussed this draft ordinance at its March 2nd, 2026 meeting. After discussion, the committee voted not to recommend passion passage of this draft ordinance due to the legal concerns and administrative challenges with the city implementing a distinct local framework governing employee engagement with immigration enforcement officials when a new similar state law is expected to take effect in July 2026. Instead, the committee recommended council pass an order directing the city to begin complying with state law immediately and to formalize a written procedure to assist staff via council order 2611. Uh council order 26110 was passed on March 9th, 2026. Madam Chair, I move passage of ordinance 26095. >> Second. Uh, Madam Chair, uh, I also move to amend ordinance 26095 by substitution with the version that was emailed to the council on May 27th, 2026 and provided uh, to councilors tonight. >> Second. >> Okay. The ordinance has been uh, moved and seconded and then it was amended to uh, include the report that was given to us tonight. Correct. >> The language. Yeah, language. The language wasitted. >> Is there any further discussion? >> Madame chair, I move uh for indefinite postponement of um um ordinance 26-095. >> Excuse me. Uh point of order. Uh there was a motion to amend by substitution on the table. Mhm. >> Um >> should that not be um discussed before? >> Yes, >> this motion. This is a a third motion on an item. >> I think that the item can have the motion to amend by substitution. I don't know that a third motion could be added. >> Not until we do the first one. >> Until you do the motion to amend by substitution. We were looking at the one that council effected to um amended by substitution >> which has been seconded >> and it has been seconded. Yes. And we were looking for discussion on that. >> So I would I would suggest that the the motion that councelor Fish is offering be u made after that the discussion and vote on the motion to amend by substitution. >> General I will remove my um motion to uh postpone indefinitely until after the discussion. >> Okay. >> Discussion on the ordinance 26095. Seeing none, >> we do need >> to amend. >> He did. He did the vote to amend. >> You should take a vote on the motion to amend by substitution. >> Second. >> We're going to do a roll call. >> Please. Council Beck. >> Yes. >> Council Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. >> Council Foon. >> Yes. >> Council Fish. >> Yes. Councelor Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mer, >> yes. >> Councelor Walker, >> yes. >> Councelor Haw, >> yes. >> Nine, yes. Zero, no. >> Okay. Ordinance 26095. Um 9 yes, zero, no. It does have um passage >> as amended. >> No, no, for the amendment >> has been amended by substitution. >> Right. Okay. Next, >> Madame Clerk. >> Madame Chair, I now propose that we indefinitely postpone ordinance 26-095. >> Second. Okay, it has been moved and seconded to indefinitely postpone uh 26-095 >> there any discussion? >> Uh just one quick point of order. Just the motion to postpone is as amended, right? >> Yeah. Okay. >> Councel Beck, did you have something you wanted to add? Uh the motion currently is to uh uh postpone indefinitely. Is that saying? >> As Yeah. >> Yeah. >> As amended. >> I don't know what she's saying. I don't hear. >> I don't know. Somebody want to speak? Yes. >> Is that Mr. Henry? Oh, is this a time to comment on the on the ordinance or is this It is okay. Um, just wait till Definitely. >> Wait till everyone's ready and tell me when when it's okay to speak. >> Stay right there for a minute. >> Sure. >> We're just going to vote to um rather we're going to move this indefinitely and then you can speak. >> Perfect. Thank you. >> Yes, please. Council Beck, >> no. >> Council Carson, >> no. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> no. >> Council Fish, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> no. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> no. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> Four, yes. Five, no. Okay. Four yes. Five, no. So the motion um does not carry. >> Okay, thank you. Um so again, Philip Henry, Bangor taxpayer, property owner and uh just here to speak about this ordinance. Um the ICE ordinance that was introduced by councelor Beck earlier this year. I want to be clear, this is not about immigration policy. Uh reasonable people disagree on that. This is about fiscal responsibility, federal funding, and the process by which this council uses taxpayer time and resources. Bangor International Airport received uh 27 million in FAA funding for its runway project. The city receives $830,000 every year in HUD community development block grant. These are real dollars that pay for real services in the city. On May 25th, just weeks ago, um DHS Secretary Mullen specifically threatened to withdraw Customs and Border Protection officers from airports in sanctuary cities. The US Travel Association called that move devastating. Even transportation said it was a bad idea. But before um this ordinance was introduced and advanced five to five before by this council, uh was any analysis done to identify what federal funding was at risk? Um, and if I have not been able to find one, if it exists, I'm asking that it be made public today. Uh, the process that produced this ordinance also raises serious questions. Councelor Beck's own words in a published interview with the main campus on March 9th, confirms that the advisory committee on racial equity, inclusion, and human rights, a city advisory body, advised me and others on how to get this ordinance through. Um there was no constituent petition, no public survey, no documented request from Bangor residents. The order, the ordinance originated from a city advisory committee, was introduced by the counselor that committee advised, advanced through a committee chaired by that same counselor, and consumed multiple counselor sessions and city solicitor time for review, all at the taxpayers's expense before it failed. That is not how representative government is supposed to work. So, I'm just asking uh three things on public record. One, produce and publish a federal funding impact analysis for future ordinances that touches immigration enforcement before it advances to a vote. And two, require counselors to disclose advisory relationships with city committees before introducing legislation that those committees have requested. And three, tell the taxpayers of Bangor what this ordinance cost in staff time and legal review and what steps the city has taken to pro protect Bangor International Airport's federal funding relationships. And and I also think about the return on investment. I'd love I'd love to know how much police time has been spent um at no charge working in coordination with Immigration's Customs Enforcement, which quite frankly is a more efficient, more effective way to work together. We want our law enforcement uh community to work together. It's more efficient. It's it's safer. And uh I don't understand um why that wouldn't be the case. Thank you. >> Thank you. Hi, my name is Tim Reed. I'm a longtime resident of Bangalore and I just want to speak on this ordinance. U I can't believe the amount of time, money, and energy that's been dedicated to this nonsense. This is political grandstanding and its best. It it amounts to nothing. Uh Council Beck's own words and people people want this. People want issues addressed, safety concerns when they can't walk downtown because of because of bumps. And that's just plain fact. And things have gone too far in the city. And this is a colossal example of it. And it's just I don't know. It's unbelievable. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hi, Rich Trot uh resident of Bangor. I think simply put this comes down to reasonable effectiveness versus financial accountability. There's a five paragraph eloquently worded diet tribe about something that makes us feel good, feels like we're doing something. How much is reasonably going to be changed by this ordinance versus what are the financial ramifications specifically to the city of Bangor and subsequently the residents. That is the only thing that should be the concern of this ordinance. At the end of the day, regardless whether or not you agree with some federal regulations or you don't, there has to be a mindset from the city council as it pertains to the financial responsibilities to its citizens which could be dramatically impacted by uh Mr. Henry's outline of the financial burden that could be taken on by the taxpayers by passing this. What is the effectiveness of it? Sounds great. Makes you feel good. Feels like you did something. This does nothing except create extreme liability for the taxpayers of the city. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hi, I'm Katie Co. I'm a resident and homeowner in the city of Bangor. The city of Bangor has a responsibility to be a welcoming environment. We're home to residents of diverse backgrounds, including immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, and mixed status families, all of whom are integral to the city's social, culture, and cultural and economic life. Our city is home to Mayors from all over the world. We must protect them. The city of Bangor has a responsibility to be a community where we feel safe. Local public safety is strengthened, not weakened, when municipal governments maintain clear boundaries between local law enforcement and federal civil immigration enforcement. We've all seen videos of the horrendous crimes of ICE. When people think that is what will happen to them when they talk to law enforcement, they may put themselves and police officers at risk in their effort e efforts to avoid that fate. The city of Bangor has a responsibility to be fiscally responsible. Our city's employees paid for by our taxes do not get paid enough to get involved in federal law enforcement. We will not be getting additional funding for working for them. We They will not be paying for our workers comp if our employees are harmed. They will not be paying for the lawsuits that will inevitably follow their illegal actions. The city of Bangor has a responsibility to be a good employer. City employees deserve to have these policies in writing. They took these jobs expecting to do city work, looking for reliable jobs, not to be an arm of federal civil immigration enforcement. Let them do their jobs. The city of Bangor has the opportunity to be a leader in Maine. Passing this ordinance will move Bangar forward in efforts to improve local governance as that is something we should be proud of. Let's set an example of democracy in action for our state. Thank you. >> Thank you. LD1 1971, a measure that restricts state, county, and local law enforcement from participating in or dedicating resources to federal civil immigration enforcement. This is a state law which enforces throughout our state this very ordinance that we've been so um insistent on passing. And we've spent so much time over the last few months trying to rewrite the ordinance so that we're not going to get in trouble. Our own city solicitor has warned us against the ramifications of this ordinance, but we're reaching out to the, you know, to to other law and and civil rights um attorneys to be able to get information on this ordinance that's already covered by state law LD1971. Now, please, why would we take a chance of losing federal funding for our our airport, which is one of the one of the greatest uh business economic uh sources that we have in our city? Why would we take chances of losing this funding by reiterating a law that already exists for the whole state of Maine? Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Uh Adam Baker, Bangor, proud Bangor resident and uh all my words and opinions are my own and do not reflect any committee. Um, I'm here I've been here many times for support for this ordinance, but um, I do want to give some sympathy that this has been dragged out for far too long and for my own personal experience of watching all of them, it seems like it gets pushed and then my own perspective that nothing really materates from it. you know, work gets on it and then that's why it's felt like it's been pushed back so far. And and also just you can't put a price tag on protecting people and human rights. I'm sorry, that's just my own opinion and it's disheartening when we see it that way. And no matter how you vote, this is your litmus test for moral rights. So, thank you. >> Thank you. Good evening. Uh my name is Maryanne Larson and I'm a property owner here in Bangor. I urge you to finally pass the ICE ordinance so that city employees have clear directives in writing that delineate their expectations. It's likely that there'll be an increase in ICE presence as they recently received an additional $70 billion and Homeland Security Director Homeman has promised increased activity. If the Bangor police begin cooperating with ICE agents, you can expect the community's trust in law enforcement to suffer. That damage could take decades to restore. If citizens are afraid for their own safety related to ICE, they'll be less likely to reach out to law enforcement to help in general. that makes all of us less safe. As a property taxpayer in Bangor, I'm concerned about possible lawsuits related to ICE activity that the city would be fiscally responsible for. The federal government is not not offering any additional monies for cooperating with ICE. So any workman's comp claims or something like that arising from involvement with ICE will be paid for by bank taxpayers. All of this is unacceptable. Finally, and certainly not least, our immigrant friends are an integral part of the fabric of this city. Is this really the reputation we want for Bangor? Let's join Lewon and Rocklin and find the courage to pass this ordinance finally. Thank you. >> Thank you, Council Flu. >> Thank you. Um I just wanted to make a comment if that's okay. Um courts have repeatedly um ruled that blocking broadly blocking federal funding is unconstitutional. Um it's h it's happened multiple times. There have been no cases in which a court yeah there are still some some cases pending but um there haven't been any cases at least from what I can um find that have ruled that it is constitutional to block this federal funding. Also, Leonard, >> I'm not going to rehash everything that I've talked about uh this particular ordinance and ICE in general, but um I will say just where my perspective comes from this. So, in case none of you know, I uh swore an oath to defend our Constitution in the United States Army as a army officer. And I take that oath still to this day very seriously. And ICE is an organization right now that has a written memorandum of understanding where the now previous director told his ICE officers, you can just ignore the Fourth Amendment. That's unacceptable to me. But the thing that's really deplorable to me that makes this incredibly horrifying I'm glad you're here, by the way. >> [laughter] >> Um, there are now 23 concentration camps that ICE has where they put people into these concentration camps. Sometimes we don't even know where they end up. They will split up their family members. But this is the part that really gets me. Some of those children that go to those concentration camps, somehow these adolescent girls get pregnant all of the sudden. And then those pregnant adolescent girls, for some odd reason, when they get pregnant in these uh ICE concentration camps, they all then get moved to a single concentration camp where they allocate all of these now little girls that came into these ICE concentration camps not pregnant, now they are pregnant. That's a big issue for me. I take a huge issue with that. This is a criminal organization, but I don't expect our rapist, pedophile, fascist president to take any consideration to this whatsoever. So, I will proudly vote in favor of this ordinance. You don't have point of orders here. It's the council who does. >> Exactly. So, figure it out. >> Not for long. >> Is that funny? You work for us. >> Point of order, Madam Chair. >> Yes. >> Uh Galley is being unruly. >> It's the leadership of our city right there. >> Yeah. >> Sir, he works for us. >> He should pay attention. >> No, he doesn't. He works for himself and their political beliefs. >> Yeah. >> Point of order. Can we call everything back to order? >> Okay. If we could come back to order. We're going to proceed to the next item. >> Believe we have to take a roll. Well, we have a motion. >> We'd already done it. Yeah. >> Yep. So, we have the now the motion stands of the amended version whether to pass or not. Uh can can I be rehead? >> Sure. I just I'm not going to rehash the arguments. You mean we've been having them since February. There's not much more you can see on either side other than this. Uh most recently, council was reminded of an executive order uh that was passed or put forward back in October, I believe, of last year. Uh stating that, you know, uh cities could be named as sanctuary cities and have funding removed from them. Uh, I would say that this this list has not been updated since October, even though a number of communities have taken measures to protect their fourth and 10th amendment rights. Uh there's been lawsuits, the federal government has lost on these lawsuits every time. But there's also been lawsuits filed by folks who were uh wrapped up in this that had gotten uh enforcement actions taken against them that you know they're American citizens and they were wrongly accused and they sued the municipality and the federal government and because the municipality cooperated uh they were um held liable. Uh I I would not have put this forward if it did not offer in my view protection for the city of Bangor. And by not cooperating where it's, you know, not volunteering to cooperate, but only volunteering where it's legally required, it removes that liability to us. So that if ICE takes action against somebody who is a legal resident and was done wrong, Bangor is not on the hook for the bill. So it's a gamble. We all have to decide a gamble here. Do we believe the threats of the federal government which have been consistently held to be illegal? Or do we vote on the evidence in front of us that municipalities are losing hundreds of thousands of dollars and sometimes cases of millions of dollars because they're getting sued because they're doing the bidding of the federal government and doing the federal government's work. So that said, because I feel it protects Bangor, I'll be voting in favor of this. Okay, we do need um >> make a comment. >> Yes, >> I feel that because our legal counsel advised us not to vote for it that I will be voting against it. I mean, I think we have a legal counsel for a purpose and he's given us advice and I think it's advice worth taking. Why take a chance on losing the money at the airport for a few weeks? Because it's going to become a state law in June, in July anyway. So, I will be voting in favor of defeating or in I I will not be supporting this item. I I think it needs to be voted down. >> We still need a motion and a second on this. Uh it it received it originally and then it was passed to be uh amended and then now the question before us is shall it pass as amended. >> It's for the amended. >> Yeah. >> Uh just as a point of order. I just want to make sure I don't think there's been a motion to pass as amended and a second. I just I could I there's been a lot of motions but I don't think that motion's been made. And if it has been made I apologize but I just want to make sure that it has been made and that there's been a second. >> Sure. I would move to pass this ordinance 26095 as amended. >> Second. >> Okay, it's been moved and seconded for 26095 to um as amended. Any discussion? >> Just a point of order. I believe councelor fish had left the I believe she has a return for the vote under the charter. has to return to for a vote. >> I don't know where she is or how to get her to return. >> She's gone. >> So, >> okay. >> All right. We're ready. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> no. >> Council Dean, >> no. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. Council Walker, >> no. >> Council Haw, >> no. >> Three yes. Five, no. >> Okay. 3, five, no. Ordinance 2695 um has been defeated as amended. Next item, please. 26-177 ordinance amending chapter 148 of the code of the city of Bangor by including Broadway Park, Chapen Park and Davenport Park as historic sites. Council Malor. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. This proposed change would update chapter 148 of the city's code of ordinance to add Broadway Park, Chapen Park, and Davenport Park to the listing of historic sites. Broadway Park and Chapen Park are two of the oldest green spaces in Bangor. They were designed within the context of their surrounding neighborhoods and had the purpose of providing residents with a place of respit to enjoy fresh air. They were set aside as public parks in the n in the 1830s and later redesigned by Boston landscape architect Franklin M. Blazeville. Frank M. Blazeville. Uh Davenport Park is the remaining piece of an earlier public square located on Main Street known as Davenport Square. The park also contains the battleship main monument which commemorates ships that sank during the Spanishame War and which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Historic Preservation Commission and the Parks and Recreation Director have expressed interest in lo local designation of these parks. This item was reviewed and recommended for approval by a vote of three in favor and one opposed at the Historic Preservation Commission's meeting of June 11th, 2026. I move passage of this ordinance. >> Second. >> Ordinance 26-1 177 has been moved and seconded. Um, is there any discussion? Seeing none. >> Councelor Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Councelor Dean, >> yes. >> Councelor Foon, >> yes. >> Councelor Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> 8 yes, zero no. Ordinance 26-177. Um, 8 yes, zero no has passage. Next item, please. >> 26-190 ordinance amending the land development code section 16530 to add a new accessory use for farm stands and to exempt agricultural and outdoor recreational uses from paving requirements. Council. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. Madam Chair, I move passage of item number 26-190. >> Second. This ordinance uh amendment would add a farm stand section to the accessory use and structures section of the land development code to allow for smallcale retail sales of food or non-food crops grown on a site excluding cannabis. The amendments would require this use to be 200 square ft or less in area and would exempt it from land development permitting. This use would be allowed in the rural residents and agriculture or RRNA neighborhood neighborhood service districts NSD and urban service districts USD. The amendments would also remove the requirement to pave the driveway and parking areas of agricultural and outdoor recreation uh of agricultural and outdoor recreational uses. These changes align with guidance in the 2022 comprehensive plan to revise zoning to provide flexibility for agricultural uses and the sale of agricultural products, including in urban areas. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for approval at the planning board meeting on June 16, 2026. Ordinance 26-190 has been moved and seconded. Is there any further discussion? Roll call, please. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Councelor Carson, >> yes. >> Councelor Dean, >> yes. >> Councelor Foon, >> yes. >> Councelor Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> 8 yes, zero no. >> Ordinance 26-190. Um 8 yes, zero no has passage. Next item, >> 26-191, Ordinance amending Chapter 148, Historic Preservation Code, by adding flexibility and clarity to the process for certain types of alterations to historic structures. Councelor Leonard. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. Uh the proposed changes would update the city's historic preservation code to add flexibility and clarity on process for certain types of alterations to historic structures such as changing materials, reducing the review requirement for installation of certain mechanical equipment like heat pumps and allowing for demolition in case of fire or natural disaster. The amendments also provide examples of information that can be provided for hardship applications and lengthens the time allowed for completion of historic projects. These changes align with comprehensive plan policy 47 to promote and enhance the viability of the historic and architectural resources for their continued use or for new uses. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for approval at the Historic Preservation Commission meeting on June 11th, 2026. Madame Chair, I move uh passage of uh ordinance 26-19. >> Second. >> Ordinance 26-19 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Good evening. My name is Rick Violet. I'm a general contractor in Bangor. I've worked with a number of historic properties and I'm also a shareholder in a company that owns an historic property in on Broadway in Bangor. And while I applaud the efforts of the Historic Preservation Commission to try to fix the ordinance to some degree, um the group of historic property owners that I've been working with uh urges you not to pass at this point in time. For one thing, we asked months ago when I came before the council and presented some proposed ordinances that the historic property owners group that I've been working with uh have suggested. We we wanted some input as stakeholders in this process. have some workshops, have some discussion about what uh changes that we thought would be helpful in the ordinance and that didn't happen. Uh we were able to come when we had public hearings, but at that point the ordinance was written and it just simply moved forward from there. The biggest problem, well, there's a couple of problems we have. I'll touch on a minor one. First of all, there is a provision in the proposed ordinance that suggests that third party reviewers with applicable expertise review materials provided by the applicant and prepare a report on their analysis of the application materials. If you look at the placement of that language in the ordinance, it is under that part of the ordinance that talks about exceptional circumstances and undue hardship. So my question is why does the Historic Preservation Commission need a third party to assess or to assist it in assessing whether an applicant meets the criteria for having proven an undue hardship. It's not contained in a section of the ordinance where it's asking the commission to review the review standards, whether the review standards have been met. The commission has a consultant, Mike Pullen, who already assists them in doing that. This provision is put in the ordinance in a place where it's talking about undue hardships. So my question is, are we looking at some third party who is an economist to tell us whether or not there's an undue hardship? Because the provisions only relate to the undue hardship. It doesn't relate to whether or not the standards of the ordinance have been met. There's no limitation on what a property owner might be asked to pay this third party. We're not exactly sure what this third party is going to be assessing in its review of application materials. Much more significantly, we're trying to figure out when >> Okay. Sir, your time, your three minutes was up. As far as answering your questions, do we send that back to the preservation commission or >> so typically we don't answer questions in public comment. So it would be if council efforts in those answers, okay, then that would be the process. >> Did you hear? >> No. But I'm sure it doesn't matter at this point. Uh no, do not. Okay. >> So it has been moved and seconded. Correct. >> Yes. >> Okay. Is there any other discussion? >> Okay. >> Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> no. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Fume, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. >> Five, yes. Three, no. Ordinance 26191 um has five yes, three no. It does have passage. Next item, >> 26-192, ordinance amending the land development code section 165-26 to add a new seasonal storage use and to add flexibility for temporary storage uses. Councelor Carson. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This ordinance amendment would add a new seasonal storage use to accommodate temporary storage uses that may not be present in a location year round, but may require the flexibility to be placed on a lot for more than 2 years since the current ordinance on temporary storage limits this use to being placed for a maximum of 2 years. Additionally, for temporary storage uses, the requirement to receive approval from the board of appeals is unusual for a use in land development code and ownorous for applicants. Some of the limitations on temporary storage are also either redundant or subjective and therefore difficult to enforce. Therefore, these amendments propose to amend the approval process and remove some limitations on this use that have been determined to be unnecessary or unenforcable. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for approval at the planning board meeting on June 16th, 2026. Madame Chair, I move passage of council ordinance 26-192. >> Second. >> Okay. The ordinance has been moved and seconded. Um, is there any discussion? Seeing none. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Meer, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> 8 yes, zero, no. >> Ordinance 26192. Um, 8 yes, zero no. It does have passage. Next item, please. >> 26-193 ordinance amending the code of the city of Bangor to grant the city manager authority to apply for grants. Uh this was assigned to council fish. I'll take it. >> Go ahead, councelor Dean. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. I will take that one. This ordinance will amend chapter 28, article 6, section 28-21, by granting the city manager authority to apply for grants. During recent conversations regarding the efficiency of city operations, council heard information regarding the challenges of obtaining council approval prior to applying for grants. Oftentimes, grant application timelines are short and the added step of getting council pre-authorization also adds to staff workload. Furthermore, in the event that the city receives a grant award, the city charter requires that council vote to appropriate that award via resolve requiring two separate readings. Meaning that council retains oversight over the underlying city activities and the appropriation of resources to those activities even if council does not pre-authorize the application for a grant. To support efficiencies in city operations and to decrease the number of times a grant application must be considered by council, staff are suggesting that the code of ordinances be amended to give the city manager the authority to approve grant applications. Council retains the authority contained within the city's charter to approve acceptance and appropriation of the grant should the city receive it. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for approval at the June 1st, 2026 government operations committee meeting. I move passage of council ordinance 26-193. >> Second. >> Ordinance 26-193 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? No. He's just moving around. >> Saying none. >> Council Beck. >> Yes. >> Council Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. >> Council Foon. >> Yes. >> Council Leonard. Yes. >> Council Mor. >> Yes. >> Councel Walker. >> Yes. >> Council Hos. >> Yes. >> 8. Yes. Zero. No. >> Ordinance 26-193. 8. Yes. Z no. Um, does have passage. Next item. >> 26-194. Ordinance amending the code of the city of Bangor to modify the mission of the advisory committee on homelessness. Council Walker. >> Thank Oops. Thank you, Madam Clerk. The ordinance. This ordinance will amend the code of the city of Bangor to modify the mission of the advisory committee on homelessness. On March 23rd, 20126, the Bangor city council established an advisory committee on homelessness as part of the city's effort to respond more comprehensively and strategically to the effects of homelessness in the city. When established, the committee's initial charge was to create a strategic plan for the city's response to homelessness. After discussion, council wishes to expand the advisory committee's initial charge to include the creation of a stab stabilization plan to address immediate issues. Council also wishes to include within the advisory committee's initial charge the ability for council to refer specific issues to them for immediate consideration. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for approval at the June 1st, 2026 government oper operations committee meeting. Um, Madame Chair, I move passage of 26-194. >> Second. >> Ordinance 26-194 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> My name is Richard Chaucer. I'm resident here. >> [gasps] >> I have many many years dealing with homelessness. I was on the advisory comm commander in a large metropolitan city, 1708 Uclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio. We had seven floors. It is still outnumbers. We had the they still have the highest success rate compared to what other states do. Now we're getting down to what here's in Bangor. I've been here in Banganger off and on in Brunswick for some 26 years. We keep doing the same thing expecting different results. Isn't that what we tell people in 12step programs? Something's got to change. Well, I don't know of anybody that's on these boards that you have that's actually experienced homelessness that's knows the fiscal side of it, that knows the economic pack of it, knows the family sides of it, knows the different the different the different facets it covers. It isn't just someone using drugs. Uh-uh. It's people getting behind on mortgages. It's women escaping sexual abuse, abusive husbands. There's a lot of different lot of different man and I don't see anybody on this council that's that's on that council that you have that's going to represent this represent these have doesn't have a special interest in it. We don't see anybody on some of these on some of these I think it should be expanded to someone has to get people on here experience like women trying to get out of an abusive relationship. some of these housing entities from Portland from I'm not going to mention from Portland area that come up here say we're going to fix the homelessness. They don't know the cultural difference. They don't know the building the buildings that we have there. There there isn't any touch. It's all about fiscal fiscal fiscal fiscal. And I really feel you should get more more people in the community that have lived here for a long time on this board. I also believe you need to include include like that building there. You t I didn't pay this kind of money that you guys have paid. You paid millions of dollars in there and we don't even have a manager in there. You got to call on a phone. Then we get the manager. It's conflict because the camera system's outdated. There's no that there are a lot of challenges in there. I watch outside. I watch the rats go from the uh from the um um library to the one side of our building. And that's just that building. I'm sure there's other properties and buildings around here have the same challenges. But what my what my my key is folk is just get some people on there that've lived this experiences. males, females, different culturals, Native Americans, African-Americans. Let's get people entered to have lived. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. 26-194 ordinance. You did move it, correct? It's been moved and seconded. Um, is there any further discussion? Seeing none, Counc. Yes. >> Council Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. >> Council Fu. >> Yes. >> Council Leonard. >> Yes. >> Council Mor. >> Yes. >> Council Walker. >> Yes. >> Council Haw. >> Yes. >> Eight. Yes. Zero. No. >> Ordinance 26194 has um eight yes. It does have passage. Next item. 26-195 resolve making an appropriation for the total school budget for the Bangor school department as required by 20A MRSA section 156904A councelor B. >> Thank you madam clerk. This resolve will appropriate the total school budget in the amount of 65,57,21 as required by 20A MRSA section 156904A. This appropriation represents the total annual budget for funding public education from preK to grade 12. This article does not provide money unless the other articles are approved. Madam Chair, I move passage of resolve 26195. >> Second. >> Resolve 26195 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, the resolve does that passage. >> Roll call. >> Do you want to roll call? >> Yes. >> Did you doubt it? >> Yes. >> It's been doubted. >> Yes. Yes. >> Yes. >> No. >> Yes. Seven yes, one no. Resolve 26195 does have passage. Next item 26-196 resolve approving school department estimates of revenue and budget trust and agency fund. Councelor Fu. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. Madame Chair, I move passage of item 26-196. This resolve will approve the school department's trust and agency budget of $3,298,082. >> Second. >> Okay. Resolve 26196 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Roll call, please. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. Councel Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> Seven yes, one no. >> Resolve 26196 has um seven yes and one one no. Is that correct? Uh it does have passage. Next item, please. 26-197 resolve approving school department estimates of revenue from state sources and budget enterprise fund. Council Dean. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This resolve will approve the school department's enterprise fund budget in the amount of 2,769,227 for the period of July 1st, 2026 to June 30th, 2027. If approved, the fund includes $2,693177 for the food services program and $76,50 for adult ed enrichment. I move passage of council resolve 26-197. >> Second. >> Resolve 26197 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Is there a doubt? Roll call vote. Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Fish, I'm sorry. Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> 8 yes, [snorts] zero, no. >> Resolve 26197 8. Yes. Z no. It does have passage. Next item. >> 26-198. Resolve approving school department estimates of revenue from state sources and budget special revenue fund. Council Dean. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. This resolve will approve the school department special revenue fund in the amount of three 3 million $349,968. These special revenues are used to support a variety of educational activities as detailed in the resolve. I move passage of council resolve 26-198. >> Second. Resolve 26198 does ha has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, roll call, please. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Haw, >> yes. >> Seven yes, one no. >> Resolve 26198. Seven yes, one no. It does have passage. Next item, please. >> 26-199 resolve making an appropriation of 579,462 for adult education for the Bangor School Department as required by 28A MRS section 8603 A1. Councelor Morer. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. Exa. Uh, this resolve will appropriate funding for adult education in the amount of $579,462, the local share of which is $275,000. I move passage of resolve 26-199. >> Second. >> Resolve 26199 does have um has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, >> I'll make I just want to make a comment because I was a an adult education instructor and I think the more we can provide for the adult community, the better. I will be voting in favor of this. >> Okay. Roll call. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Haw, >> yes. Eight yes, zero no. Resolve 26199. Um 8 yes, zero no. It does have passage. Next item, please. 26-2000. Resolve appropriation for vocational education region number four pursuant to title 20A chapter 60615601 to 15619 main revised statutes. Council of Beck. >> Thank you madam clerk. This resolve will approve expenditures as required by title 20A MRSA for the vocational education region 4 operating budget in the amount of $6,156,935 and the local share for adult education of $17,842.73. Madam Chair, I move passage of resolve 262000. >> Second. Resolve 262000 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Seeing none. Roll call, please. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Haw, >> yes. >> 8 yes, zero, no. >> Eight yes, zero, no. Resolve 262000 has passage. Next item >> 26-201 resolve making an appropriation of $2,380,000 for non-state funded debt service allocation for the Bangor school department as required by 28 MRS section 156902A. Council Walker. Thank you, Madam Chair. I mean, Madame Clerk, I'm so sorry. Um I Let's see. This resolve will appropriate the non-state funded debt service allocation in the amount of $2,380,000. Non-state funded debt service is the amount of money needed for the payments of school department long-term debt for major capital construction projects and/or minal minor capital renovation projects that are not approved for state subsidy. The issuance of this long-term debt was previously approved by the Bangor City Council. Um, Madame Chair, I move passage of 26-201. >> Second, excuse me. >> Resolve 26-201 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Roll call, please. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Yes. Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> yes. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> 8 yes, zero no. >> Resolve 26-021. 8 Yes. Z no. It does have passage. Next item, please. >> 26-202. Resolve making an appropriation for the Bangor School Department in excess of the minimum spending target established by 20A MRSA section 15671A4. Councelor Leonard. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This resolve will authorize the appropriation of local funds in excess of the minimum spending target limit in the amount of 11,237,21. The Bangor School Committee recommends 11,237,21 of additional funds and gives the following reasons for exceeding the state's essential programs and services funding model by 11,237,21. Special education 2,731,362. Transportation $242,735. CO and extracurricular activities 1,580,89 technology $927,524 and employee benefits 5,755,491. Uh Madame Chair, I move passage of uh resolve 26-202. >> Second. >> Resolve 26-202 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Seeing none. Roll call, please. Council >> Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. Council >> Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> Seven yes, one no. >> Resolve 26-20. Uh, seven yes, one no. It does have passage. Next for um next item >> 26-203 resolve making an appropriation of $19,698,980 for the school district contribution to the total cost of funding public education from prek to grade 12 as required by 20 MRSA section 156901AB. Councelor Carson. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This resolve will appropriate the local share of the total cost of essential programs and services funding model in the amount of 19,698,980. Madam chair, I move passage of council resolve 26-203. >> Second. >> Resolve 26-203 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Seeing none, roll call. >> Council Beck, >> yes. Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Meer, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> Seven yes, one no. >> Resolve 26-203. 7 yes, one no. Um, does have passage. Next item. 26-204 resolve appropriation for municipal year 2027. Councelor Carson. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. The amended resolve will appropriate funding for the fiscal year 2027 municipal budget. This amendment includes all changes recommended by the city council and city manager since the submission of the city manager's recommended budget. The budget needs to be amended by substitution to reflect council requested changes made since April. Madame Chair, I move passage of council resolve 26-204. >> Second. >> Resolve 26-024 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Councelor Flynn. Hold on. >> I have a couple more motions. >> Mr. Party. >> Good evening. My name is Scott Party and I'm a citizen of Bangor. I want to talk about the silence coming from this council council. Earlier today, I sent you a formal letter breaking down the tax assessor's numbers. An 11% spike in single family homes, 15% for apartments, and 19% for mobile homes. But what those numbers hide is the human cost. You're looking at spreadsheets. Our elderly and our renters are looking at financial ruin. This isn't happening in a vacuum. Over the last year, the city has watched basic utility, food prices, gasoline, little lit, literally everything balloon. Every single arm of local government is taking a bigger bite out of fixed incomes. And just recently, a citizen stood at this very microphone and spoke of a tax revolt. You shouldn't dismiss that. When proud, hardworking people are backed into a corner where they have to choose between prescription medication, heating oil, or paying their property taxes, compliance stops being an option. A tax revolt happens when the system breaks the people first. You took an oath to protect the citizens of Bangor, not the budget of Bangor. You are supposed to be our watchd dogss. If you sit on your hands and allow these soaring valuations to lock to lock in without aggressively cutting the mill rate to offset them, you're choosing the government over the people. Read the letter I sent you. Look at the data and drop the mill rate before you price your own voters out of the city. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Hillary Simmons, resident of Bangor. I would like to address a question that many taxpayers may be asking as they review municipal budgets across Maine. Why does it appear that some cities are making difficult decisions to control spending while Bangor continues continues to expand their budget? When we look at Augusta and Lewon, we see concrete examples of communities that have had painful but necessary conversations about budget constraints. In Augusta, the city council agreed to cut 6.6 6 million from its proposed city and school budgets, arriving at approximately 91 million total budget. In Lewon, city administrators entered the budget process having already reduced department requests by 4.1 million before presenting a single number to the council. This raises an important question for Bangor. As inflation, rising property taxes, and increased costs continue to affect residents and businesses, what step did Bangor take to identify efficiencies, reduce unnecessary expenditure, and prioritize core services before adding new spending initiatives. Additionally, I would like to understand the rationale behind the city's decision to use approximately 10 million from its unassigned fund balance to support the budget. Unassigned fund balance are a financial safeguard against economic turndowns, emergencies, and unexpected revenue shortages. Augustine Lewon exhausted every other option before touching reserves, cutting positions, freezing hiring, eliminating programs, and asking voters to weigh in directly. If Bangor is drawing 10 million from its unreserves, residents deserve a clear explanation of why that approach was chosen, whether it is sustainable. Many taxpayers are concerned that relying on reserve funds to support ongoing operations simply postpones difficult decisions. If these funds are used today, what is the plan when those dollars are no longer available? Will taxpayers face larger increases later, or will the city be forced into the kind of cuts Augusta Lewon are making right now, but from a weaker financial position? Taxpayers understand that certain investments are necessary, but public safety, infrastructure, economic development, and the quality of life improvements are all have value. However, the residents also expect city government to exercise the same financial discipline that families and businesses must practice every day. This issue is not whether Bangor should invest in its future. The issue is whether every existing expense has been carefully examined before asking taxpayers to support additional spending. Have all departments been asked to identify efficiencies? Have programs been evaluated for effectiveness? There are reasonable questions especially at the time when many residents are struggling with the cost of housing, utilities, food, and property taxes. >> Thank you. >> Thank you, >> Madam Chair. I wish to amend uh council resolve 26-204 by substitution replacing the budget here with appropriation for municipal year 2027 which is in the packet. Second. Okay. And >> Madame Chair, I wish to move passage of council resolve 26-204 as amended. >> As amended. Okay. Resolve 26204 has been moved and seconded. >> Excuse me. As amended. >> Point of order. I think we have to make sure that the motion and the second to amend passes first. Right. I just said we had it and we were going to vote. >> But I don't want but there's been another motion in >> there was no >> I just want to make sure we're all clear on what we're voting on what you're voting on. >> Do it again. >> But Madame Chair, yes. >> I wish to amend council resolve 26-204 replace by substitution. Okay. Replacing the budget with appropriation for municipal year 2027 which is in the packet. Second. >> Okay. So, it has been moved and seconded resolve 26204 by substitution with the um 2027 that's in the packet. That correct? Okay. Any discussion? Yes. Um, I have some comments on the budget, but should I make that now or after this vote? Before we vote on passing the budget. Okay, I will hold off until after this vote. Okay. Is there any other discussion on this item 26204? >> Yes. >> Council Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. as with the >> just to clarify, we're voting on the amendment, right? We're not actually voting whether or not to pass the amended version. Okay. Yes. >> Right. >> Council Leonard. >> Yes. >> Council Mor. >> Yes. >> Council Walker. >> Yes. >> Council Hos. >> Yes. >> Eight yes. Zero no. >> Okay. Resolve 26204 has been um 8 yes zero no. and it has been um amended by substitution. >> Madame Chair, >> yes. >> I move passage of council resolve 26-204 as amended. >> Second. >> Okay. Resolve 26204 has been moved and seconded for passage as amended. >> Yes. >> Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, I can't in good conscience vote to approve this budget tonight. Um, don't get me wrong, I I think it includes a lot of really good investments that I support, including new positions that will add efficiencies um that will likely pay for themselves over time and it will provide some long overdue relief to departments that have been chronically understaffed and underpaid. But when we started this process, we were told that the proposal was a starting point. Um, and department heads were told to include everything they wanted and then we would work through it. Um, and that there would likely be some cuts, but ultimately only three positions didn't make it in and one was already a part-time position that would have become a full-time position and then $200,000 for the Bangor Mall development. Um, that was removed. So beyond that, the budget largely looks the same as it was when it was originally presented. So while the overall tax burden was reduced from what was originally proposed, that largely happened by shuffling money, not by eliminating expenses. So the average residential property owner is looking at roughly $540 more dollars a year. That's for a property that's valued at about $280,000. Um, so that it looks better than what originally we were looking at, which was approximately $815, but I just don't believe taxpayers can absorb that right now given given the state of the economy. Um, throughout this process, I repeatedly asked where we could cut or delay spending. And you know, we can't do everything in one year. I I know that we there were some things that we really really needed, but taxpayers I don't believe should be the only ones to make sacrifices. There really has to be a balance. Um so voting no tonight is not against our staff. It's not um a no on investing in our community in our future, but I I think we can do better by the people who pay for everything that we do. So thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. When this budget process started, I was not on board. Came in skeptical. I was ready to fight for a zero increase. I believed, like many probably do, that if this council had just had the discipline to say no, we could hold the line and spare our residents a tax increase. And then I started doing the math. To simply collect the same total revenue as last year, we need to cut $4 million from this amended budget. That still amounts to a tax increase for the average homeowner. To get to a zero increase tax bill for those same homeowners, we'd have to drop the mill rate to roughly 15.20, which means cutting $8 million from what we have in front of us tonight. But here's what makes that number so striking. A 15.20 20 mill rate would not just hold even with last year. It would put the city nearly $4 million below the revenue we collected in fiscal year 26. That's not a freeze, that's a crater. But let me go further than that because the just cut it argument always skips one step. What exactly do we cut? I've heard a lot of frustration about this budget. What I have not heard is a specific answer to that question. People tell us their electric bills went up, their gas went up, their groceries went up. They want their taxes to stay flat. I understand completely my family is in the exact same boat. But I want to point out that municipalities are not immune to those same pressures. Energy, insurance, materials, wages. Bangor's costs go up, too. And on top of all of it, county taxes increase by 911 uh,000 this year. That's not a decision this council makes. Even if we simply maintain the exact same level of service as last year, that is still a tax increase. Main law also requires us to keep property assessments current, which means assessed values will move regardless of what we do with the mill rate. There is no magic lever that freezes all of it. What we can cut is staff and services. But I want to be clear about what that Bangor looks like. Because this is not a matter of trimming a little fat here and there to find millions of dollars in cuts, every single department feels it. You not get to $8 million by shaving around the edges. You get there by hollowing out the people who show up every day to keep the city running. Whose sidewalk doesn't get plowed? Which streets fall off the paving list? How much longer do you wait for police or fire response? How many more potholes do you dodge because we couldn't get a crew out? How many calls go to voicemail because there's nobody left to answer? How much longer does it take to get a permit process, a payment posted, a problem resolved? when the people doing that work are already stretched thin and we just asked them to do more with less because we were already short before tonight. Municipal positions were gutted during debt restructuring after the cross insurance center was approved by residents and we never fully rebuild. We have been running short for over a decade. This increase costs the average taxpayer about $546 this year or about $46 a month. That's down from the $813 figure we started with. And for context, that's based on a taxable value of $285,000. That is real money, and I am not immune to it. It affects my family, too. Of that, the new positions were approving tonight account for just 2.7% of the mill rate. And I want to explain what that slice of your bill is actually investing in. Eight firefighter paramedics and a training officer. Better response times, less reliance on mutual aid, and crews that can sustain this work without burning out. Two fleet mechanics kept in house. We stopped paying a premium to outside vendors and get our public works and community connector vehicles back on the road faster. An administrative clerk in the treasury and one in the clerk's office. We have all heard the complaints. Shortened hours, backlogs, and wait times. These positions restore service hours and get money processed faster so it earns interest for the city instead of sitting in envelopes. An IT cyber security analyst and a finance staff accountant. A single ransomware attack could bring Bangor to a halt and cost millions. This analyst is insurance. The accountant means tighter controls and better oversight of our tax dollars. A code enforcement inspector, a second city assistant city solicitor, and a part-time parallegal. And I want to say something about these positions specifically. They don't just cost money, they generate it. Bangor is a backlog of properties not in compliance, not registered, not contributing what they owe. Every property brought into compliance is revenue coming back to the city. Everyone that slips through the cracks is money left on the table. These positions close that gap and reduce our reliance on costly outside legal work. A housing support navigator, a homeless response coordinator, and a housing rehabilitation coordinator. And I want to address these directly because I know homelessness is a source of real frustration for many residents. I hear the concern that Bangor is carrying too much of this burden. I think that concern is legitimate. But I also want to gently push back on the idea that this is primarily an outside problem that arrived at our doorstep. Many of the people we are talking about have been in Bangor for years. Many of them started here, were housed here, and because the support systems weren't there when they needed them, they ended up back on the street. And here's the hard truth. Looking away is not free. The cost of managing this thoughtfully is a fraction of what we pay when we don't. in emergency response, in hospital diversions, in police calls, and the slow erosion of public spaces everyone deserves to enjoy. Choosing not to invest is still a choice and is the most expensive one. This council is taking steps on both fronts. We're investing in these positions to house and keep people housed, which is far less expensive than homelessness. The housing support navigator alone is currently working to keep nearly 100 people housed and counting. At the same time, we're building the infrastructure to make Bangor's voice louder on the statewide issue. Our new legislative committee exists precisely to establish relationships in Augusta put forward legislation and advocate for the policy changes that no single city can achieve on its own. Our advisory committee on homelessness and soon our advisory committee on housing will develop the strategic plans we need and put actionable items in front of this council to pass and in the case of larger policy to champion at the state level. We're not just spending money. We're building a strategy. A park ranger moving to full-time. Bangor's parks are a source of real pride for this community. Places where families gather, kids play, and residents decompress. A full-time ranger means those spaces stay clean, safe, and welcoming for everyone who uses them. That is not a luxury. That is a quality of life investment for every resident in this city. Full-time transit drivers, reliable Saturday service, and protection against having to abruptly cut weekday routes when staff turns over. an engineering inspector, which frees up our engineering director to focus on major in infrastructure rather than spending his days in the field doing inspections, keeping us far or keeping us from farming that work out to expensive outside firms. Before I close, I want to say something about where we go from here. I see this budget as a floor, not a ceiling. Holding the line on property taxes in the long run requires a real strategy and I believe we need to be explicit about what that strategy look like look looks like and as I see it there's four levers available to us. The first growing the tax base more taxpayers mean the burden is shared more broadly and our business and economic development team is working on this every day. We must support and encourage that work. The second is reducing our cost trajectory and this budget actually takes that seriously. Many of the capital items we are funding through the unassigned fund balance pay for themselves over time by saving staff hours and avoiding outsourcing. The new positions we're approving tonight are investments. They reduce turnover, generate revenue through fees and fines and registrations, and they move us away from the expensive cycle of constantly backfilling depleted teams. The third lever is diversifying our revenue away from property tax wherever we can. We have enterprise funds, the airport, the golf course, cross insurance center, our property portfolio. Right now, they largely break even. We should be asking harder questions about how these assets can start contributing to the general fund rather than simply sustaining themselves. And as I mentioned, the compliance and code enforcement investments in this budget are part of that lever, too. The fourth and final lever is reducing service levels. There's always room to use it thoughtfully and we should. But pulling it as our only strategy before we have seriously invested in the other three is not fiscal discipline. It's just making Bangor smaller and hoping for the best. I want to close with this. Some people say this council is not listening. I want to push back on that directly. Every position in this budget is a direct answer to something we have heard from residents. slow emergency response, short staff shortages, long wait times, unsafe parks, unreliable buses, housing instability. We listened and we prioritized and we heard you on taxes, too. The total tax levy started as an 18.1% increase. We landed at 5.9%. That's not nothing. And this budget reflects both what you asked us to fund and what you asked us to watch. This is not a perfect budget. No budget is. When I look at where we started, the work that happened in between, and where we landed, this budget reflects Bangor's values, the education of our children, the safety of our residents, and the availability of services we count on every day. I will be voting in favor of this amended budget, and I urge my colleagues to do the same. Thank you. Did that one hurt? Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> no. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. >> Was that a no? Thank you. What do I got here? 1 2 3 4 5 3 2-204 uh five yes, three no. Correct. >> Yes. >> Okay, it does have passage. Next item. 26-205 resolve appropriating funds for various capital purposes utilizing various reserves, trust and agency accounts and other funds for expenditures to be made during fiscal year 2027. Council Dean. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. I move to amend by substitution the capital budget resolve that is in this packet for the one that was before the council at the last council meeting. >> Second. Resolve 26-025 has been moved um and seconded by substitution for what was in at the last council meeting. Correct. Okay. Is there any discussion? Seeing none. Council >> Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. Council Foon, >> yes. >> Councelor Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> yes. >> Seven yes, one no. >> Resolve 26205. Uh, 7 yes, one no. It does have passage. Next item. I will be reading the amended. >> What? >> It's been amended. >> It's been amended >> by substitution. >> Right. Hasn't been passed as amended. >> Right. >> No, I need to read. >> She's doing resolve. >> Yeah, she's doing it now. >> This resolve will make appropriations from various sources to fund programs or purchases identified in the fiscal year 2027 proposed budget. Over the past two months, the city council has reviewed all requests for various capital and operational needs. The attachment identifies the purchases and funding source to be used. The following summarizes the recommended appropriations and the source from which they are to come. State Lap funding 350,000. Unassigned fund balance 10,838,099. Community connector reserve 300,000. Total 11,488,099. This item is being amended by substitution so that the capital and new program request attachment reflects all council recommended changes. I move passage of amended council resolve 26-205. >> Second. >> Okay. Resolve 26205 has been moved and seconded as amended for passage. Any discussion? Beck. What? Oh, Hillary Simmons, resident of Bangor. I encourage city leaders to pro provide greater transparency regarding the use of this 10 million in reser unreserved funds. Explain the long-term financial strategy behind the decision and demonstrate that all reasonable cost-saving measures have been explored the way Augusta Lewon were forced to do before expend expending spending or heavily drawing on the city's unassigned funds. And to me, it's funny that councelor Beck talks about cuts. That I believe is what the city addressed to the county to make cuts. And here in the city, there were no cuts made. >> That's true. >> Any other discussion? Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Poon, >> no. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. >> Five, yes. Three, no. >> Resolve 26-205. Uh, five yes, three no. It does have passage. Next item, please. >> 26-206 resolve appropriating downtown TIF funds for expenditures to be made in fiscal year 2027. Council Dean. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. I move to amend by substitution council resolve 26-206 that is in this packet for the one that was before the council at the last council meeting. >> Second. Resolve 26-206 has been moved and seconded by substitution as what was presented at the last meeting. [clears throat] Is there any discussion? >> See none. Council >> Beck. >> Yes. >> Council Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. >> Council Foon. >> Yes. >> Council Leonard. >> Yes. >> Council Mor. >> Yes. >> Council Walker. >> Yes. Laaz, >> yes. >> 8 yes, zero no. >> Resolve 26-026. A yes, Z no. It does have passage. Next item. >> I would like to Yeah. >> Did we have passage on the amended version or we just amended the version? >> Just amended it. >> I was under the impression >> we've substituted. We haven't yet voted on. >> It was substituted. >> Okay. So now we have to vote on the She's going to do the wrap. >> Just wanted to be sure. >> Thank you. This resolve will appropriate 5,195,185 in funds for expenditures to be made from the downtown tiff program. During the fiscal year 2027 budget process, the city council reviewed all requests for various capital and operational needs, some of which were recommended for funding from the downtown developmental district TIFF funds. These funds may only be expended for purposes identified within the TIFF application as previously approved by the city council in the main department of economic and community development. Allowable projects include those related to downtown and parking, the waterfront, downtown infrastructure improvements, for example, sidewalks, sewers, streets, parks, etc. Arena debt services cleanup for the Ponobscot River and allowable tier three costs. This resolve was reviewed by the council as part of the budget review process. This item is being amended by substitution. I move passage of amended council resolve 26-206. >> Second. >> Resolve 26206 has been moved and seconded as amended. Is there any discussion? >> Council Beck. >> Yes. Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. >> Six yes to no. >> Resolve 26-026. 62 no. It does have passage. Next item, please. 26-207 resolve appropriating special assessment funds for Bangor Center Development District expenditures to be made in fiscal year 2027. Council Leonard. >> Thank you, madam clerk. This resolve will appropriate $285,600 in funds for the municipal development district special assessment for expenditures to be made for the Bangor Center development district program. Budget highlights include marketing, $85,550, beautifification, $40,250, events, $44,000, networking and outreach, $3,750. Safety and security, $340,000. General and admin, $246,534 with a total of $760,84. The balance of the funding beyond the special assessment funding of $285,600 is comprised of downtown TIFF funds in partial support of general and administration costs funds raised by the downtown Bangor partnership through sponsorships, marketing and events and anticipated additional funds requested for the services from Street Plus. Madame Chair, I move passage of resolve 26207. >> Second. Resolve 26-207 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Seeing none. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Meer, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. >> Six yes to no. >> Six. Yes to resolve 26-207 uh 6 yes to no. It does have passage. Next uh next resolve please. >> Madam chair before we go to this item I have a conflict of interest to disclose. Uh it's come to my attention that design wall housing will be receiving if this passes $25,000 for an efficiency uh project. Uh my wife serves as a volunteer member of their board. >> Okay. Does the council feel that he has a conflict? >> Madam Chair, I would move that councelor Beck has a conflict of interest. >> Second. >> It's been moved and seconded that council Beck does have a conflict on this item. >> Have a nice walk. We need a vote on that. >> Was the conflict doubted? No, >> I don't think so. >> It was not. >> I don't think it needs to be roll call. >> Okay. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This resol uh this resolve will appropriate $837,221 in community develop block grant funds for the federal fiscal year 2026 city fiscal year 2027 awarded through the US Department of Housing and Urban Development as well as $250,000 in program income from anticipated loan repayments. Madam Chair, I would move passage of resolve 26-208. >> Second. Okay. Resolve 26-208 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Seeing none. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Foon, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Haw, >> no. >> Five, yes. Do no. >> We resolve 26208 um five yes to no. It does have passage. Next item, please. >> 26-210 order adopting municipal development program and financial plan for the Bangor Center Development District. Councelor Leonard. >> Thank you, Madam Clerk. This order will adopt the municipal development program and financial plan for the Bangor Center development district. This is for the city council to consider the program to be implemented for the Bangor Center Development District. The program has been prepared by the Bangor Center Management Corporation downtown Bangor Partnership. Budget highlights include again marketing $85,550 beautifification $40,250 events $44,000 networking and outreach $3,750 safety and security $340,000 general and admin $246,534 with a total of $760,84. Madame Chair, I would move passage of council order 26-210. >> Second. Okay. Order 26-2110 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Seeing none. >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council, >> yes. Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. 6 to no. >> Order 26-210. 6 to no. It does have passage. Next item. >> 26-211. Order authorizing the city manager to enter into a contract with Bangor Center Management Corporation doing business as downtown Bangor Partnership. Council Dean. Thank you, Madame Clerk. This order authorizes the city manager to execute a contract with the Banganger Center management corporation downtown Banganger Partnership for the purpose of providing management services and administration of the development program for the Banganger Center Development District for the period of July 1st 2026 through June 30th 2027. The proposed budget is $760,084. The revenue consists of $285,600 in special assessment funds, $43,746 in TIFF funds, and 200,738 from sponsorships, events, and marketing, and anticipated additional funds requested of $230,000 for the services for street plus. I move passage of council order 26-211. >> Second. Order 26-211 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? >> Council Beck, >> yes. >> Council Carson, >> yes. >> Council Dean, >> yes. >> Council Fu, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mor, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Council Hos, >> no. >> Six, yes. Two, no. >> Order 26211. uh six shift you know it does have passage. Next item new business >> public hearing application for special amusement license of Darren Courier doing business as Nocturnum draft house 56 Main Street. Council Beck. >> Thank you madam clerk. Madam chair I move we open the public hearing for the application for special amusement license of Darren Courier doing business as Nocturnum Draft House 56 Main Street. >> Second. >> Okay. Public hearing is open. >> Seeing no one approach, uh, Madam Chair, I move that we close the public hearing. >> Second. >> Public hearing is closed. >> Madam Chair, I move passage of the application for special amusement license of Darren Courier doing business as Nocturnum Draft House, 56 Main Street. Second. >> Okay. The application for special amusement license Darren Courier has um has passage. >> Madam Chair, on this next item, I have the same conflict of interest uh because it also contains the same $25,000 for the efficiency project for uh design wall housing. >> Have a nice trip. >> I I think you should vote the just take the formality of of voting the conflict on this item as well. Madame Chair, I'll move that councelor Beck has a conflict. >> Okay. >> Uh 26226. >> Moved and seconded that councelor Beck has a conflict in this item. Is there any discussion? Roll call, please. >> Yes. Yes. >> Yes. Uh, Madame Chair, I move that we open the public hearing on council order 26-226 authorizing the execution and filing of the fiscal year 26 annual action plan with the department of housing and urban development for community development entitlement block grant funding. Second. Okay, it's been moved and second, the public hearing is open. >> Madam chair, seeing no one approach, I move that we close the public hearing for council order 26-226. >> Second. >> Public hearing is closed. Madame Chair, I move uh passage of council order 26-226 authorizing the execution and filing of the fiscal year 26 annual action plan with the department of housing and urban development for community development entitlement block grant funding. >> Order 26 >> 226 has been moved and seconded for um for passage. This order will authorize the city's community development block grant program for the coming year under title one of the housing and community development act of 1974 with the department of housing and urban development. This order also has the effect of assuring and certifying upon signature of the city manager compliance with certain federal regulations pertaining to the use of these funds as described in the documentation attached to this order. The city has been an entitlement community under this program since 1987. The city expects to receive 837,221 in federal community development block grant funds. In addition, we estimate that approximately 250,000 will be available in program income primarily as a result of repayments of outstanding property rehabilitation loans. Among the projects eligible to be funded in the coming year are property rehabilitation, home ownership assistance, neighborhood and downtown public improvements, including parks, social service, and nonprofit funding, acquisition, demolition, and clearance activities, and aiding in the retention and/or creation of affordable housing units. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for the approval at the June 15, 2026 business and economic development committee meeting. Order to two try that again. Order 26-226 has been um moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, I don't think we had a doubt. Did you doubt? >> Sure. >> Oh, sure. Why not? Jeez. [laughter] Okay. Lisa. >> Councelor Beck. >> I'm sorry. He's gone, isn't he? Councelor Carson. >> Yes. >> Council Dean. >> Yes. Council Fume, >> yes. >> Council Leonard, >> yes. >> Council Mer, >> no. >> Council Walker, >> yes. >> Did you say no? >> Yes. Thank you. [clears throat and cough] >> Said yes. >> What was your vote? >> Yes. >> Okay. >> Yes. You said no. I said, >> yes. >> Six yes, one no. All right. Six yes, one no. It does have passage. Next item >> 26-227 order amending the schedule of fees by amending sewer rates starting July 1, 2026. Council Dean. >> Thank you, Madame Clerk. This order will amend the city schedule of fees to increase sewer rates by 9% beginning July 1st, 2026. The impact on the average residential user will be about $3.84 per month and the impact on the minimum user will be $243 per month. Despite this increase, Bangor's rates remain well below the rates of surrounding treatment plants. The Department of Water Quality Management continues to invest heavily in ongoing infrastructure needs in order to continue to support replacement of aging infrastructure and expansion of capacity to support residential and commercial development. These funds will be used to comply with state and federal environmental requirements, maintain aging infrastructure, and expand capacity in critical development areas. This item was reviewed at the council budget workshop on June 3rd, 2026. I move passage of council order 26-227. >> Second. >> Order 26-227 has been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, the order does have passage. That brings us to the end. of the agenda. I know we have staff out there just waiting to say goodbye. Any last comments? >> Can I say something for you? >> Yes. >> Um, we were 206-223 and it never came up other than there was no comment section on that one. Um, I'd like to know if I could give what I wanted to say to the council and who can I give it to? You >> sure? That was first reading. >> Yeah, that was under first reading. So, you can Yeah. >> So, she can speak next time. >> Yeah, next time. >> Just know that >> it will come out. Tell her >> she shook her head last. So the next time it comes up she'll be able to Is there any other um closing comments back here? No. Council Flu. >> Thank you. Um thank you everyone for coming and for sticking with us so late. Um I'll be quick. Um Saturday is Pride Day and there are lots of activities. Um, and if you support our pride community, show up. If you don't, feel free to stay home, but please don't show up and be disrespectful because a lot of work has gone into it. Um, and with that, I'll just say thank you again for showing up and for speaking and for all of your passion and good night, Bangor. Council Walker, >> I appreciate everyone being here and for public comment. Good night, Bangor. >> Good night, Bango. >> Council Carson. >> Good night, Bangor. >> Council Beck, >> I'll just say there's never a bad weekend to go to the waterfront, but I'm really excited this Saturday for Pride. I look forward to uh celebrating with everybody down there. Good night, Bangor. >> Council Dean, >> good night, Bangor. >> Council Leonard. >> I'll be really quick. I want to thank our uh city clerk, Lisa Goodwin, and her staff for facilitating another successful uh election. Thank you so much for your due diligence. But I also want to thank the volunteers who also dedicate their time that day to helping residents, making sure that they were able to vote uh not just uh effectively but in a very timely uh fashion. And just really quickly, I do want to point out that we are one of the few states that uses rank choice voting. And I did see some discussion being had uh regarding the use of rank choice voting. And one word that kept coming up was scam. And the thing I just want to push back on that is please before you use words like that, make sure you are able to educate people on the mathematics as to why that is a scam. because this is very much a sound uh uh policy for voting and it's a big there's a lot of reasons why we did move this uh um that this type of voting into this uh state. So [sighs] I really want to encourage caution when people accuse our election system as a scam. It just causes a lot of unnecessary division. Thank you.