Mary Grow

by Mary Grow Two topics dominated discussion at the Aug. 11 China Transfer Station Committee meeting: commercial haulers, and the proposed new Solid Waste Management and Resource Recovery Ordinance. Committee member Jim Hines started the discussion of commercial haulers by pointing out that residents who use one, as he does, get double-billed: they pay the […]

by Mary Grow At their Aug. 11 meeting, China Planning Board members approved a section of recommended ordinance amendments and referred their document to the select board for probable inclusion on a Nov. 3 local ballot. They also approved an amendment to an existing subdivision on the west side of Vassalboro Road (Route 32 North, […]

by Mary Grow Vassalboro Cemetery Committee members spent most of their Aug. 17 meeting rehashing the months-old argument about trees in cemeteries, coming to a compromise decision affecting two cemeteries. Inside Vassalboro cemetery boundaries, they agreed, trees are volunteers, not deliberately planted. They are pleasing to the eye and provide welcome shade to summer cemetery […]

by Mary Grow Vassalboro select board members discussed two main topics at their special workshop meeting on Aug. 20, postponing decisions to a regular meeting. One topic is finding a part-time, interim town manager to fill in after Aaron Miller leaves in mid-September (see the Aug. 20 issue of “The Town Line”, p. 2). The […]

by Mary Grow In their capacity as assessors, China select board members set the town’s 2026-27 tax rate at 11.1 mils, or $11.10 for each $1,000 of assessed value. The current tax rate is 11.7 ($11.70 for each $1,000 of valuation), Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood said. However, property-owners should not expect to receive a lower […]

Vassalboro Sanitary District trustees and their consultants (in person and on line) talked mostly about finances at their Aug. 27 meeting, again with less

by Mary Grow Six of the seven members of China’s budget committee reviewed two spending articles on China’s Nov. 3 local ballot and recommended voters approve both. The articles are related. Art. 3 asks voters if they want “to purchase a new pumper-tanker fire apparatus, including necessary equipment and accessories.” The new truck would be […]

August 31, 2026 special meeting by Mary Grow In the middle of their search for an interim town manager and beginning of plans to hire a permanent one to succeed Aaron Miller, Vassalboro select board members realized they also needed to make several requests to voters on Nov. 3. They held special meetings Aug. 31 […]

by Mary Grow Most histories of the central Kennebec Valley towns mention 18th and 19th century doctors, in more or – usually – less detail. For her next project, your writer intends to share what she can learn about these early residents whose job was to preserve their neighbors’ lives and health. Henry Kingsbury’s 1892 […]

The search for a new town manager, now that Aaron Miller has resigned effective in mid-September, and financial issues were Vassalboro select board members