The Gorham Town Council met on Tuesday, October 4. Chairman Pratt opened the meeting; there were 30 members of the public in attendance. The Gorham Little League Minors All-Star Team led the council with the Pledge of Allegiance. In addition to the seven councilors, the town manager and town clerk were present at the meeting.

Open public communications included five community members expressing concerns over the town-wide revaluation’s inaccuracies and errors. One community member spoke about concerns about the property tax stabilization program, asking that taxes be capped at last year’s rates. One community member expressed appreciation for the re-pavement of Mighty Street, and thanked Councilor Hartwell for his service.

Councilor communications included a Finance Committee report from Councilor Hager, a Little Rams Committee report from Councilor Kuech, a report from the GPCOG regional meeting from Councilor Wilder Cross where they discussed plans for the upcoming year to expand housing choices for the homeless, public transportation options and the need to continue welcoming asylum seekers, an Ordinance Committee report from Councilor Hartwell, and a Jetport Noise Abatement Committee meeting report from Chairman Pratt. He also reminded all present to give blood if they can. Nate Moody was congratulated for being recognized as one of MaineBiz 40 under 40 young business leaders. Those present were also reminded about USM’s annual Old-Fashioned Outdoor Band Concert on October 15 at 1 p.m.

The town manager’s report included a reminder to citizens that absentee ballots are available for the November 8 election. He noted that tax bills have gone out for the new tax year and if there are any discrepancies or errors, he encouraged citizens to apply for an abatement. He also reminded people that Baxter Memorial Library will hold their annual Halloween parade through the municipal building on October 25.

The School Committee report was given and included that enrollments are slightly lower at the K-5 level and higher at the 6-12 level this year, an acknowledgment of the productive Aspire program, and an acknowledgement of current NWEA testing in Gorham schools. The report also mentioned a ‘Little Rams’ committee report that was released, an announcement that Gorham schools are seeking grant funding to run Pre-K programs on site at schools, and an announcement that to further promote transparency, Gorham schools have decided to make all public record requests, along with corresponding records that were shared public. You can view this information by going to the Town of Gorham website and clicking on “Community” and then “FOAA Requests.”