Nearly two hours into a Town Council meeting in Winterport last week, Councilor Tammy Higgins’ jaw dropped.
Local business owner Joseph Tyler, who has been critical of Town Manager Casey Ashey and other officials for their roles in cutting ties with the operator of the town’s drag racing track earlier this year, had just thanked the council for not renewing Ashey’s contract.
That information was supposed to be a secret. Negotiations for employees’ contracts are meant to be kept private under Maine’s public access laws. Anyone discussing those details in private meetings is not supposed to divulge the details.
“That is way inappropriate,” Higgins told Tyler, asking how he’d heard about the contract negotiations.
“It’s all around town,” he responded.
It was a messy example of how the dragway controversy has reverberated through politics in the Waldo County town that is roughly 20 minutes from Bangor. Ashey will change jobs in the middle of a rocky period for local governments across the state.
Ashey confirmed after the Oct. 7 meeting that his three-year contract will not be renewed when it expires in January. After contract negotiations, he said that he decided to stop pursuing a new contract and move on from the job.
Tyler has repeatedly expressed anger at officials including Ashey since the dragway contract dispute. Tyler was a subcontractor on the now-canceled contract; the general store he owns with his wife had been a snack vendor at the racetrack. In November, Tyler submitted a petition calling for Ashey’s resignation. At a tense April meeting, he accused Ashey of lying.
It’s not clear where Tyler heard that Ashey’s contract would not continue. He spoke with less certainty on Monday, saying only that “if it wasn’t renewed, [it’s] probably the best thing that ever happened in this town.” He then hung up on a reporter.
Ashey, who has been in the job since 2023, expressed confidence in his work as manager. He added that he’s looking forward to his next career steps.
“I feel as though me and my team are doing a great job,” he said.
Daniel O’Connor is a Report for America corps member who covers rural government as part of the partnership between the Bangor Daily News and The Maine Monitor, with additional support from BDN and Monitor readers.