Public Hearing - Monday, Sept. 19, 2022 - 6:30 pm.

The Public Hearing for the Oct. 1 special town meeting will be at the Vienna Community Center on the Kimball Pond Road (Fire Station) this coming Monday, Sept. 19 at 6:30 pm.

Mark Ouellette of Axiom Technologies, as well as the Select Board and Vienna Broadband committee members will be there to answer your questions.

If you prefer to attend remotely here are the Zoom details:

Topic: Public Hearing - Broadband Project
Time: Sep 19, 2022 06:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

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Meeting ID: 832 1010 6773
Passcode: 648272
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Vienna Community Fiber

  • Vienna Community Fiber

 

Fiber graphic

Special Town Meeting - Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022 - 9:30 AM - Vienna Community Center

A frequent complaint of Vienna residents has been the lack of access to an affordable, quality, high-speed internet connection. This was even before the COVID pandemic which only made the problem  worse. People were unable to work from home or their children unable attend online classrooms.

We heard you and after three years of study, now have a proposed solution. The timing couldn't be better, as the Federal government is stepping up to help out under-served communities like ours.

The Select Board has scheduled a special town meeting on Saturday, October 1, 2022 at 9:30 AM at the Vienna Community Center to vote on an article authorizing them to negotiate and finalize a proposal from Axiom Technologies of Machias, Maine. In this proposal, Axiom will oversee the construction of a fiber-to-the-home network that Vienna will own. Vienna will subsequently contract with Axiom to operate the network and return a share of the revenues to the town.

Make an informed decision

There will be:

  • Informational Meeting at the Community Center on Wednesday, August 31 at 6:30
  • Public hearing on the article at the Community Center, Monday, September 19 at 6:30.

Please attend, listen, learn and share your opinion.

This will be a major project taking over two years to complete. When complete Axiom will offer monthly subscription fees less than what most people are paying now and with minimum speeds up to 20 times faster. Gigabit speeds will be possible for a higher subscription rate.

Further Information

 

Vienna Record: Aug-Sept 2022

View the Aug-Sept 2022 issue here

Selectmen's Minutes May 31, 2022 through July 26, 2022

Town Clerk hours 

Broadband Committee report - Special town Meeting - Oct. 1, 2022

Planning board minutes - May 25, 2022 and June 22, 2022

Dr. Shaw Memorial Library News

Editor's Notes - Article deadline for October/November newsletter: Sept. 25, 2022

Fire Department News - Successful Chicken BBQ

Mt. Vernon Community Center announcements

Property Tax Stabilization for Senior Citizens

The Property Tax Stabilization

Program: A Guide for Applicants

What is it?

Property Tax Stabilization for Senior Citizens, also known as the Property Tax Stabilization Program (the “Program"), is a State program that allows certain senior-citizen residents to stabilize, or freeze, the property taxes on their homestead. As long as you qualify and file a timely application each year, the tax billed to you for your homestead will be frozen at the amount you were billed in the prior tax year. Eligible residents who move may transfer the fixed tax amount to a new homestead, even if that new homestead is in a different Maine municipality.

Who qualifies?

To be eligible for the Program, an individual must meet all of the following as of April 1 of the property tax year for which they are requesting stabilization (so for applications due December 1, 2022, qualifications must be met as of April 1, 2023)

  1.  at least 65 years old,
  2. a permanent resident of Maine,
  3. have owned a Maine homestead for at least ten years, and
  4. be eligible for a homestead exemption on the property they are placing in the Program.

If your homestead is owned by more than one individual as joint tenants, only one owner needs to qualify for the Program to participate. There are no income or asset limitations to qualify.

Permanent resident. You must have established a permanent residence in Maine. “Permanent residence” means that place where an individual has a true, fixed, and permanent home and principal establishment to which the individual, whenever absent, has the intention of returning. An individual may have only one permanent residence at a time and, once a permanent residence is established, that residence is presumed to continue until circumstances indicate otherwise.

Ten-year homestead. You must have owned a homestead in Maine for at least ten years. The ten-year period does not have to be consecutive. A homestead means residential property that you occupy as your permanent residence. A homestead also includes property that is held in a revocable living trust for your benefit or property owned by a cooperative housing corporation if you occupy it as your permanent residence as a qualifying shareholder. It does not include real property used solely for commercial purposes.

Homestead exemption. You must be eligible to receive a homestead exemption on your home. The homestead exemption generally applies only to your permanent residence. Your property tax bill will usually show whether you are already receiving a homestead exemption. If you are unsure whether you qualify for a homestead exemption, contact your local assessor.

How do I apply to the Program?

Applications are available at the Maine Revenue Services ("MRS”) website or from your local municipal office. You can also call the Property Tax Division of MRS at (207) 624-5600 to have an application mailed to you. Complete an application and submit it by December 1, with any required proof, to your local municipality. The municipality will review and approve or deny your application.

An application form can be downloaded here

How does the Program work?

Once you have applied and are approved to participate in the Program, the property tax billed to you for the next tax year will be frozen at the amount you were billed in the previous tax year. You must file a new application each year by December 1 in order to maintain that stabilized tax amount.

For example, if you apply by December 1, 2022 and qualify for the Program, the amount of tax billed to you for the April 1, 2023 tax year will be the same as the amount billed to you for the April 1, 2022 tax year. As long as you continue to qualify and to file timely annual renewal applications, the amount you are billed each subsequent year will be frozen at the amount billed for the April 1, 2022 tax year.

The State will reimburse your municipality for the difference between the amount billed to you and the tax that would otherwise be due.

Frequently asked questions

1. Are there income or other limits on who can participate in the Program?

There are no income or asset limitations to participate. As long as you meet the age, residency, and ownership qualifications, and timely file your application, you are eligible.

2. What happens if I forget to file my renewal application?

Once you are in the Program, if you fail to timely file an application one year, the bill for the next tax year would revert to the "normal" amount of tax. You can apply again the following year, but your new stabilized amount would reset to the missing year's normal tax amount.

3. What happens if I move or change my homestead?

If you move to a new homestead in a different municipality, you must request that your old municipality notify your new municipality that you are participating in the Program and your stabilized tax amount. In addition, you will need to file a new application with your new municipality.

4. What happens if the tax assessed on my homestead goes down?

If the tax assessed for a given year is less than your stabilized amount, you will be billed for the lower amount. If you continue to qualify and file timely applications in subsequent years, your tax will be stabilized at that new, lower amount.

5. What if I no longer wish to participate in the Program?

The Program requires annual applications in order to continue participating. If you no longer wish to participate, you can simply not file an application and your homestead will revert to being assessed as it would normally be for that (and subsequent) tax years.

Maine Revenue Services Property Tax Division

P.O. Box 9106 Augusta, ME 04332-9106

Tel: (207) 624-5600

Email: prop.tax@maine.gov www.maine.gov/revenue/taxes/property-tax

Planning Board Meeting - May 25, 2022

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE VIENNA

PLANNING BOARD HELD  MAY 25, 2022

At 6:30 PM Regular members Waine Whittier, Ed Lawless, Alan Williams, and Tim Bickford visited the Landis site at 582 Ithiel Gordon Road, and shown on tax map 11 as lot 11-30-1; regular member Creston Gaither arrived soon thereafter and walked the site. The Landises would like to build a 12’ x 16’ screen porch and a 10’ x 12’ deck onto the existing house. Alan is their contractor. At 7:00 PM those 5 Board members convened the regular meeting at the Town House; minutes of the April 27 meeting were read and accepted. The Landis proposal was discussed. The site slopes somewhat toward Parker Pond and the surface has been partially disturbed.It was agreed that best management practices for soil erosion control should be required. Alan expects to place stone beneath the drip edges. He recused himself from the Board’s deliberations and vote.

Based on its on-site observations and Alan’s verbal representations, and a subsequent examination of the pertinent flood hazard map, the Board determined that the project as outlined above:

  1. Will maintain safe and healthful conditions;
  2. Will not result in water pollution, erosion, or sedimentation to surface waters;
  3. Will adequately provide for the disposal of all wastewater;
  4. Will not have an adverse impact on spawning grounds, fish, aquatic life, bird or other wildlife habitat;
  5. Will conserve shore cover and visual, as well as actual, points of access to inland waters;
  6. Will protect archaeological and historic resources as designated in the comprehensive plan;
  7. Will avoid problems associated with floodplain development and use; and
  8. Is in conformance with the provisions of Section 15, Land Use Standards.

The Board then voted  4 - 0 to authorize Creston to issue a SZO permit for this work.

Bonnie Patti has contacted Waine and would like to place a third residence, a recreational vehicle, on her Tower Road property shown on tax map 11 as lot 4-1. The Board understands that she intends to allow certain relatives by blood, adoption or marriage to live there free of charge. The Vienna Subdivision Ordinance and the State Subdivision Statute, Title 30-A, §4401, were reviewed.; Because the intended occupants are relatives and no payment is being rendered, and the Statute’s definition of “dwelling unit” includes a reference to “sale or lease,” the Board voted 5 – 0  that the proposal would not create a subdivision requiring municipal approval. Waine will advise her of this and that she will need the proper SSWD permit to proceed.

Mark Rains appeared at 7:40 PM to discuss the possibility of building a hut about 100 feet or more southerly of Webber Brook and about 40 feet westerly of the Plymouth Line border of his property (as outlined in his email to the Board of May 25. Subdivision Ordinance requirements as they might apply to this project were discussed informally. He was advised that these are ultimately legal questions which should be referred to an attorney.

The meeting adjourned at 8:00 PM.

Creston Gaither, secretary

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