04-10-2023 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 21, 2023 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 4 of 8 CITY ADMINISTRATOR/ENGINEER REPORT City Administrator Edwards had nothing to report. PUBLIC COMMENTS Walsh opened public comments but said before public comments, he wanted to pick up from the end of the last City Council meeting with credibility issues concerning Councilmember Benson and Brad Erickson who he called her biggest financial supporter. He said some new information had come to light in the form of an affidavit where Erickson allegedly admitted lying to police. So I'm going to finish with a quote from Thomas Jefferson. “He who permits himself to tell a lie once finds it much easier to do it a second and third time so at length, it becomes habitual. He tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him. The falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart and in time depraves all its good dispositions”. Kim Carswell 261 Cygnet Place, said I just have a statement to make. Wouldn't it be impressive to observe a collaborative Council meeting without verbal tongue beatings? Wouldn't it be terrific for the Council to pay attention to others without dismay, avoiding the bored facial expressions that we see today? Wouldn't it be fantastic to see the Mayor speak to all with a respectful tone, without consistently feeling the need to pick up an old bone? Wouldn’t it be great for the meetings to end on a positive note without the rancor and negativity that fill all the quotes? Wouldn't it be wonderful to see more kindness and respect for our Mayor, to the others that people elect? I'd like to put that in the minutes please. James Elder, 195 South Brown Road, Orono, said he was pleased that Mayor Walsh, at his public coffee meeting the previous week, stated there would be an open discussion regarding the Orono Fire Department, including questions and answers, at a future Council meeting after disclosure by staff of cost estimates and needs assessment. However, he said he believes it is necessary to devote time to a public hearing in a larger venue to accommodate the hundreds of Orono citizens very interested and affected by this matter. The expenditure of many millions of tax dollars on a redundant Fire Department building warrants a full and accurate discussion. By one estimate, a $4 million capital expenditure, which many estimate is low, increases the property tax on a $1 million residence by approximately $850. Transparency, accuracy, and communication are universally acclaimed principles of good governance. They are called for here. Todd Newcomer, 1070 Old Long Lake Road, said there have been many questions asked about how much the City is going to spend on the proposed Fire Department. Because of his background in fire service, he said he has been getting many phone calls with questions and one that keeps coming up is in regard to apparatus and how they're utilized, their life expectancy, and how they are purchased. The department that I worked for has basically a 10-year life expectancy on fire engines because they have over 60,000 calls a year. Smaller communities such that we live in can extend those life periods out to approximately 15 to 20 years. He said fire engines and fire trucks are two separate things with separate uses and so trucks, which are not utilized as frequently, have a longer life expectancy and can last upwards of 20