NEW SHARON — Five trustees have been appointed to serve on the Water District board.
They are James Reis, Ed Ferreira, Jeff Brackett, Del Harris and Shanelle Lake, according to Chairperson Lake, who is also the treasurer. The appointments were made by the Select Board in late May and early June.
The district has been struggling to keep trustees and has had financial challenges over several years. The district has nearly $250,000 in loans and is cash-strapped.
Lake said Thursday that each of the trustees are appointed until the annual next town meeting in March 2025. From there, trustees can apply for terms between one to five years, she said.
The trustees have approved a two-year contract with Maine Rural Water Association in Richmond for financial and administrative services to act on the behalf of the district, she said.
The next bill sent to water customers plans to include information on the new trustees and pertinent information about what is going on in the district.
“The board is working really hard on multiple issues at this time,” Lake said.
The Maine Public Utilities Commission opened an investigation into the district in September 2023 because of the district’s financial status.
The commission held public hearings in early May. Members of the Select Board asked the state to appoint a receiver but it is not known if one was. There have been no new entries on the New Sharon case at the Public Utilities Commission website since May 3. The transcript of the public witness testimony was the last entry.
With a board of trustees seated, it is believed there is no need for a receiver.
The district was incorporated in 1967. It owes a total of nearly $250,000 on loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Maine Municipal Bond Bank taken in July 2017. The loan payments are about $18,000 a year, former Treasurer Mercy Hanson said in May.
At the time, there were about 100 customers who pay an average of $33 a month for water.
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