YORK, Maine — Selectman and Republican state Senate candidate Mike Estes stands behind his decision to send a campaign mailer recently to the town’s York River watershed residents telling them “Your Property May Be Affected — Forever” if voters approve a river stewardship plan this fall. It is “purely informational,” he said.
But Chuck Ott, chairman of the York River Study Committee, said the mailer contains “absolutely false” statements “designed to sow fear.”
Question 2 on the York ballot asks voters to approve a river stewardship plan created by the York River Study Committee, and to approve designation of the river as a Partnership Wild and Scenic River under the National Park Service. The study committee developed the plan for more than three years and its roots go back to 2008 when residents first began working toward the designation.
Estes is the Republican candidate for District 35, which includes York, Kittery, South Berwick and Eliot — all towns in the York River watershed. Last week, he sent a mailer to 2,200 York residents in the watershed, alerting them about Question 2.
[Nearly 2,300 more homes could be built in the York River watershed, study finds]
“I probably could have used my campaign money more wisely” than for such a targeted mailer, Estes said, adding he couldn’t easily obtain the addresses of watershed residents in the other three towns. “But I did think this was an important thing for the people of the town of York. If I had sent it to everyone, it would sound like I wanted them to vote ‘no.’ And that’s not what I’m doing. I just felt these residents (in the watershed) should be aware. I’ve given them the link to the study online, and asked them to draw their own conclusions. I’m providing information.”
The Board of Selectmen voted 3-2 recently to put the stewardship plan on the November ballot. Estes and Todd Frederick voted in the minority, saying they wanted residents to have more time to review the plan.
“My whole issue with me is you’re not ready for this,” Estes said. “I wanted to push this out until May so people had more time to investigate. I totally understand the urgency of the committee. I thought it was a great process. I can understand they want to move forward, but I feel like it was a rushed process.”
Ott categorically denied this. He said all committee meetings have been public, and the group has spoken to government committees and boards, civic organizations and other groups over that time, in addition to staffing information booths at festivals and other events in the four-town area.
But the core of Estes’ concern is that the federal government could play a role in river and watershed management in years to come. This concern, said Ott, has been addressed clearly and often by his committee from the start: the federal government will play no role in management. Designation, on the other hand, will allow a stewardship committee to apply for federal grants available only to Partnership Wild and Scenic River programs.
Estes said, for instance, that the stewardship plan, once approved by the four towns, must still be adopted by Congress. He said “you don’t know” what changes Congress might make to the plan. “After our vote, it’s not a certainty” that the plan will be adopted unscathed.
“That’s completely false,” said Ott. “Congress can’t change anything. I believe it’s Mike’s motive to make false statements like that that will sow enough seeds of doubt that people will question this plan.”
[Study begins of York River, ‘stunning natural resource’]
Estes doesn’t want the federal government involved in any part of York River management — even if it’s just providing grant funding. “Why couldn’t we do that ourselves? If the Harbor Board said they have trouble controlling traffic on the river and we need help for a study, I think selectmen would put something on the agenda. The bottom line is, I’m concerned that the federal government would have administrative control of the river. I don’t want to take that away from the town.”
Ott has long made clear the stewardship plan itself contains only recommendations for possible future action by local land management boards as a guide for local zoning. National Park Service representatives have been to several selectmen’s meetings stating the NPS will have no involvement in the river’s management.
Ott said the study committee is sending out a letter this week to all those who received a mailer from Estes that will “state what this plan does and what benefits it can bring to our town. The evidence is overwhelming. But what the letter does not do is make false statements.”
Estes declined an invitation from Ott to join him in a debate in the next few weeks. Ott hoped it “would draw public attention to this article, and to give people the facts.”
In related news, several residents at the Board of Selectmen’s meeting Monday night asked the board to consider a review of the stewardship plan and Partnership Wild and Scenic River Act and prepare a report for residents prior to November. Chairman Todd Frederick said Tuesday he will speak with Town Manager Steve Burns and perhaps speak individually to board members to see if there is any appetite for doing that. “It’s an interesting question that should be pursued.”
Follow the Bangor Daily News on Facebook for the latest Maine news.