Commissioners hire new dispatcher, renew plowing contracts

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — The Piscataquis County Commissioners breezed through their meeting last week for two good reasons: the agenda was relatively short and the furnace wasn’t working in the annex for a while. So with the inside temperature at 50 degrees, the session went quickly.

    Commissioners endorsed the recommendation of Piscataquis County Communications Director Dave Roberts and Sheriff John Goggin and hired Nathan Richards of Milo as a new dispatcher, filling a vacancy that existed since December.
    Roberts said that there were 22 applicants for the position and four were selected for interviews. “Nathan has a background in telecommunications in the military, and all the applicants brought something to the table. This is very unusual. But Nathan stood out and received everyone’s approval,” Roberts said. The nomination was approved unanimously.
    Roberts also reported that the department has been usually busy with accidents, due to the bad weather and an increase in car-deer crashes. “For some reason, there have been a lot of them (deer collisions) in Sangerville around the Silvers Mills Road,” he said.
    In response to a query from Commissioner Fred Trask of Milo, Roberts outlined the department’s policy on responding to calls from outside the county, specifically LaGrange. The community is in Penobscot County, but is served by Three Rivers Ambulance in Milo. “If someone calls from LaGrange or wherever for medical services, we’re going to respond,” Roberts said. “But I don’t want to be responsible for something that happens that isn’t in my jurisdiction.”
    Trask asked if it’s something that can be worked out between the Penobscot and Piscataquis counties’ dispatch centers, and Roberts said that he’ll work toward a solution. “But once you take a 9-1-1 call, you own it,” he said.
    In other business, the commissioners approved and signed contracts with the Monson Fire Department to service Blanchard and Elliottsville townships at $9,000 per community for the next year. The rate was the same as 2013, said County Manager Marilyn Tourtelotte.
    They also approved a four-year contract extension at $73,122 per year with Gordon Contracting Inc. for snowplowing services in Blanchard Township and a four-year extension at $107,520 per year with Belmont Construction for snowplowing in Lily Bay and Frenchtown townships.
    Commissioner James Annis remarked that it was unusual for a firm to agree to provide snowplowing services at the same rate for the next four years “considering the kind of winter we’ve had already. But we’ll take it.”
    They also signed a brief letter to Fortress Investment Group, the new owners of the former Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railroad — now known as Central Maine and Quebec Railway — welcoming them to Piscataquis County. “The railway is instrumental to the economics of Piscataquis County, especially in the Milo, Brownville and Derby area,” they wrote. “The knowledge and skills demonstrated by the employees of the Derby shop are outstanding. One only needs to take a tour of the facility to understand the benefit that it offers to the railroad.”
    Trask said that he hopes the letter reaches one of the railroad executives. “They’re awfully hard to get in touch with,” he noted.
    The commissioners also signed a tax anticipation note (TAN) with Camden National Bank for up to $1.75 million at an interest rate of 1.98 percent.