BREWER, Maine — Residents will decide in June whether they want the authority to oust elected members of their school board and their council decided to temporarily ban nightclubs from part of the city during a meeting Tuesday night.
The City Council decided to place a referendum question on the June 9 school budget approval ballot asking residents whether they want to establish a recall procedure for school committee members.
A recall process already exists for city councilors, and has since the mid-1980s, according to City Clerk Pam Ryan.
Under the proposed ordinance change, at least 30 percent of the city’s 7,300 registered voters would need to participate at the polls in order for a recall vote to be valid.
The amendment push stems from recent criticism of the seven-member school committee’s decision in December to not renew the contract of Superintendent Jay McIntire. City Councilor Jerry Goss said he inquired about the process after hearing concerns from the public, only to find out there was none.
McIntire spoke during a Tuesday night public hearing on the issue, arguing that there have been instances in the state in which elected officials haven’t “acted in their town’s best interest” and that voters should have recourse in the event something like that happens in Brewer. He said he was speaking in his role as a resident and father, and that the School Department has taken no position on the issue.
School Committee Chairman Kevin Forrest stated in an email that “while the timing of this potential change may be suspect due to recent decisions by the school committee, it will ultimately serve to provide a common ordinance of protection for the citizens with their elected officials.”
In other Tuesday night business, the City Council voted to establish a moratorium for up to 180 days on nightclubs, taverns and lounges in its convenience business zone, which primarily stretches along the waterfront on Main Street and includes homes and businesses near Cianbro.
“Someone expressed interest in starting up a nightclub in one of the buildings along our Riverwalk Trail,” Brewer Economic Development Director D’arcy Main-Boyington said in an email. “Our trail is used by many families, and our council did not want to take the risk that such a business could make the area unfriendly to families.”
City councilors also say the city’s written definitions of these sorts of businesses aren’t adequate and they need time to craft regulations for such establishments.
Brewer leaders also are concerned about how a nightclub or similar business might play into the city’s comprehensive plan for the waterfront area.
The plan deals in depth with the future of the Brewer Waterfront. A decade ago, Brewer crafted a master plan for its waterfront Penobscot Landing, including an entertainment district and public market, facilities for boaters, an outdoor amphitheater and recreational trails, among other things.
“We will still be allowing establishments that offer alcohol, but only if they are primarily a restaurant-focused business — like High Tide or the Sea Dog,” Main-Boyington said. “We will still allow nightclubs and bars in our General Business District, but not along our waterfront.”
Follow Nick McCrea on Twitter @nmccrea213.