PALMYRA, Maine — Voters in Palmyra have three choices in deciding the fate of the town’s community center.
The annual town meeting will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at the community center. Municipal elections begin at 10 a.m. Friday at the town office.
The town meeting warrant consists of 57 articles but the former school turned community center on Route 2 has generated the most interest.
Article 19 asks residents to discontinue funding the community center, sell the building and evict its business tenants.
Article 20 would move the town office to the community center and appropriate $45,000 for the move and upkeep of the building — $20,000 would be raised while $25,000 would come from surplus.
Article 21 would keep everything as is but appropriate $40,000 for upkeep of the building — $20,000 would be raised while $20,000 would come from surplus.
The school was built in 1954 and the building was renovated twice, according to Don Hill, a community center booster. After the Palmyra Consolidated School closed in 2010, it was given to the town by RSU 19.
Hill said it doesn’t make sense to sell the building because it’s regularly used and is the only building the town has for certain functions, such as the annual town meeting.
“What if we have a town meeting, will we have to go to another town to have our own town meeting?” Hill said. “We own [the building]. We got it for nothing. It would probably cost $5 million to build that building today.”
Hill added that more than 260 functions were held in the community center last year, ranging from birthday parties to weddings, athletic events and funerals.
Weeville Daycare and Preschool occupies one wing of the building. Other parts of the building also are being used, including for Weight Watchers.
Selectman Don Harriman said the building should be sold.
“A community shouldn’t be in the real estate business and not in the rental business,” said Harriman. “We have no business being in the rental business and competing with the other facilities that rent. I’m a fiscally conservative Republican. I believe in free enterprise and I don’t believe the government should be competing in it.”
Harriman said the townspeople should vote with their wallets and not with their hearts.
“A lot of people are tied with that building because they went to school there or their kids went to school there. Financially, I don’t believe the community can support it,” he said.
Sell it. It’s a waste of our money.
Sell it – Because so many people are knocking on the door to buy it???? Right let’s vote to sell it and have it sit vacant for who knows how long, while the town loses $$ on an empty building that provides nothing but a place for rodents to live! Or let’s keep it open and take the $$ it’s bringing in and try to expand on it.
Ames building – Vacant
Hartland Academy – Vacant
SAS – Vacant
Old Sebasticook Valley credit union – Vacant
Old Pittsfield pharmacy – vacant
Harriman needs to move back to Pittsfield. He seems to be against everything in that town. Is this building truly costing the taxpayers of Palmyra money or is it self-supporting?
I for one have a few questions for Mr. Harriman.
Why did you choose to live in Palmyra? I would like to know why you live here, because everything that I have heard from you – you want to change the very things that make Palmyra Palmyra!
As an elected selectman by the people of Palmyra – and those people also voted to keep the building and make a go of it – What have you done as an elected official to try and make that happen? I have seen the other selectmen (some who may or may not have been fully on board with keeping the building) attend meetings, events and offered their services to keep the building going because that is what they towns people voted! What have you done to help (weather you agreed with the townspeople’s decision or not)?
Did you make an effort to sit down and talk to anyone that has and is using the building? And what having the building available means to them? Or because you have never giving the building a chance you never took the time to see what benefits it could bring to our community.
Vote with your wallet and not your heart. Then I request that you do the same! Because in your heart you want the building closed. Your wallet is going to be impacted even if we vote to sell the building – People in your community that you are elected to serve will be out of a job – guess what your wallet is going to pay for those folks! Your wallet is going to have to maintain the old town hall and separate office building. 2 buildings that are 2 small for the town to use — so again your wallet is going to take a hit when we have to hold town functions in another town!!! So please don’t vote with YOUR heart!