In a departure from previous meetings that have been marred by disagreement between council members and the mayor, the Stevensville Town Council, without a lot of discussion and no major disagreements, approved a number of items at its October 22 meeting, among them the selection of three applicants to interview for the open Ward 2 council position caused by the resignation of Raymond Smith. The interviews are scheduled for Thursday, November 1 at 7 p.m. and are open to the public. Applicants Jim V. Crews, Jerry A. Phillips and Annemarie McCormack will be interviewed, in that order.
The council also took action on the following items:
• Approved in a 3 to 0 vote changing the regular council meeting days from the 2ndand 4thMondays to the 2ndand 4thThursdays of each month beginning in January 2019.
- Approved 3 to 0 the minutes of the August 13 meeting. Council president Bob Michalson noted that the confusion over those minutes was his fault.
- Approved 3-0 a revised set of town job descriptions
- Approved 3-0 a resolution setting wages and compensation for elected and appointed officials and employees.
- A motion to do a special audit of the 2019 fiscal year budget was defeated on a 2-1 vote with Councilperson Stacie Barker casting the dissenting vote.
- A motion to vacate an alleyway that has been abandoned was defeated on a 3-0 vote
- Approved 2-0 the interview process for the replacement of Raymond Smith’s Ward 2 Council seat. Councilman Michalson abstained.
- Approved on a 2-0 vote interviews for council applicants Jim V. Crews, Jerry A. Phillips and Annemarie McCormack. A fourth applicant, Phoebe Patterson, will not be interviewed by council members Robin Holcomb and Stacie Barker. Michalson recused himself from the process of selecting a new council member.
- Approved 3-0 the amendment of the 2017-18 budget to include the purchase of lap top computers for the council and two grant matches, one for the airport project and one for the fire department.
- Approved 3-0 the purchase of a market analysis by Geo-Data Services for $15,000, with $10,000 coming from a Department of Commerce grant and a $5,000 match from the Town’s Economic Development fund.
- Approved 3-0 changing the Nov. 12thscheduled council meeting to November 8thand cancelling the second meeting in December.
- Directed the Mayor to shop for rates on CDs set to expire at the end of October and either choose a higher rate or let them automatically renew.
- Approved 3-0 a change in zoning at 411 Church Street from Commercial C-1 to Commercial C-2 which would allow some residential use of the property.