Squaw Mountain Road plowing and county website on commissioners’ Wednesday agenda

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — The Piscataquis County Commissioners, who normally meet on the first and third Tuesday of the month, will convene at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 23 with road issues, technology and fire protection on the agenda.

    The commissioners will revisit a decision made in 2011 to stop plowing the access road to Squaw Mountain Resort in Big Moose Township for the next five years. At that time, the ski area had been dormant for about a year after owner Jim Confalone decided not to open it for the season. The commissions reasoned that as long as the resort was not open, there was no economic benefit to county residents, so there was no reason to plow it.
    However, a non-profit organization, Friends of Squaw Mountain, leased the area last winter and have reached an agreement to continue running the operation for the next two seasons. They’ve made extensive repairs to the lodge building, leased a groomer with the option to buy and are actively marketing season tickets.
    Another road issue is a request by the E-Ville Riders Snowmobile Club to use part of the Onawa Road and Bodfish Valley Road in Elliottsville for sled travel in addition to some of the paved roads they were given permission to use last year. The request was opposed by Piscataquis County Sheriff John Goggin and Investigator Lt. Jamie Kane, who said they both had concerns about safety. However, the commissioners tabled the request until they could obtain more information from club members.
    There will also be an updated presentation on the proposed new county website by Faith Talmadge, an intern working with the county’s emergency management agency. Talmadge suggested at an earlier meeting that the county use the services of the Ellsworth American newspaper which has extensive experience with local government websites.
    The commissioners are also scheduled to discuss fire protection rates paid to local departments to cover the unorganized townships. County Manager Marilyn Tourtelotte distributed a spreadsheet at the last commissioner’s meeting, breaking down the cost per township for each department.
    Some town managers have asked the commissioners to set the rates as soon as possible, so they could make necessary adjustments in their 2014 municipal budgets. The county budget meetings are already underway.