Municipalities research Internet options; Lubec eyes expansion choices

The September 14 meeting of the Lubec Select Board was preceded by the fourth public presentation by the town's broadband expansion committee. Led by Martha Howell, the meeting attracted 18 members of the public, including two from Trescott, both of whom expressed an interest in including their neighborhoods in the Lubec initiative. Howell pointed out that the committee "would be delighted to include them and also Edmunds." However, as they are located in the unorganized territory, they would need to bring UT Supervisor Dean Preston on board. Howell went on to say that she had spoken with Preston several times, but that he was -- so far -- reluctant to become involved. She urged the two to approach Preston, as the timing of grant applications means "the train is leaving the station."
Lubec voters approved the submission of grant applications on behalf of a municipally-owned system during the town business meeting held August 3.
Meeting presentations included discussions with Mark Ouellette from Axiom Technologies, Myles Smith from the Maine Broadband Coalition and Christa Thorpe from the Island Institute. Ouellette, who has been present in earlier presentations, and Thorpe spoke via Zoom; Smith was present. All three expressed confidence that the grant applications would be successful. Oulette pointed out that Lubec is ahead of many other communities, as the committee had been working for several years, initially led by Selectman Rachel Rubeor. It has been noted that neither Rubeor nor the other committee members will personally benefit from the proposed expansion, as most are within the limited territory served by Spectrum; the company has not expressed an interest in expanding into remote areas in Lubec such as Straight Bay or Boot Cove roads.
Howell again explained that the initiative is designed to be "tax neutral," as costs will be borne by subscribers and not taxpayers; billing rates will be dependent on the speed requested but are lower than present commercial rates. She urged those who plan on taking advantage of the early subscription offer -- which includes free installation and the placement of lines down remote driveways -- to add their names to a list being held at the town office.

Select board business
The select board meeting began with Public Works Supervisor Ricky Bradley asking approval to purchase a pavement cutter to be mounted on the town's excavator. This device, which will be paid for via the public works standing account, will allow a faster and cleaner job when it is necessary to run plumbing beneath town roads, as has been done recently on North Lubec Road. It will also be available to both the water and sewer companies. The "about $4,000" request was passed 4-0. Board Chair Carol Dennison was not present.
Bradley also expressed appreciation to the water company for their assistance during the culvert replacement work on North Lubec Road. "Those guys were right there with us," he said, "turning the water off and on right when we needed it."
Board Vice Chair Dan Wagner informed the board that bids are being solicited for the upcoming sewer upgrade, saying that he expected them to "have a lot of zeroes and commas" leading to "an interesting meeting."
Wagner also updated the board on the status of the request to turn the Safe Harbor project over to the Maine Department of Transportation, saying "nothing heard yet."