By Maggie Raymond
A dozen residents attended the second “Coffee with Councilors” Saturday, as Town Councilor Joel Martin served up free coffee and an invitation for residents to share concerns.
Among the topics raised by residents were the cost of renovating Town Hall; property tax increases and rates; the number of town employees; and the new state housing growth law.
Resident Lee Millin brought up the $7.4 million Town Hall renovation and his increased property assessment.
“As a new resident, I don’t know what’s wrong with the Town Hall, but after we bought our house a year and a half ago, all of a sudden we got an assessment and it was assessed at another $100,000, and the mill rate also went up,” said Millin. “With the cost of the Town Hall renovation, I thought, whoa, am I going to have to move?”
Others in attendance also discussed the recent property valuations and why South Berwick’s tax rate is higher than those in neighboring towns.
One factor in increased property taxes was that the town had not been assessed in 17 years, despite a legal requirement to conduct one every 10 years, Martin explained.
“That unfortunately led to a big sticker shock,” he said, adding that other communities have tax advantages like industries that South Berwick doesn’t. “I would like to find a way to reduce the burden on homeowners by attracting more businesses and industry to town and ways to keep South Berwick affordable.”
Martin said he wants to explore a process that separates annual Town Meeting budget deliberations from voting, allowing residents to cast paper ballots.
Elected in November, Martin described his background and his interest in serving on the council, as well as his motivation for participating in these informal gatherings.
“When I was running for election to the council, I heard a lot of concerns about property taxes, about transparency of council operations, and a desire for residents to have a safe space to express their differing positions in a healthy way, with the goal being what’s best for South Berwick,” he said.
The next Coffee with Councilors will be 9:30 a.m. March 28, again in the third floor meeting space in Town Hall.
