By Dawn De Busk

Staff Writer

NAPLES — Funding animal control and approving a moratorium to stop new construction of retail stores in the Town of Naples — those are the two issues that cannot wait until next year to be addressed.

The Naples Select Board set a date of Sept. 5, which is a Thursday, for Special Town Meeting.

It was already understood that when residents at Annual Town Meeting voted down the budget for an Animal Control Officer (ACO) shared with two other towns, a special town meeting would be required to rectify the matter. The Town of Naples cannot exit the contract with Raymond and Casco until July 1, 2025, which is the beginning of the next fiscal year. Currently, leftover funding is being used to cover Naples’ portion of the interlocal agreement.

On Monday, the board set the special town meeting date and discussed both topics.

“The ACO budget failed during town meeting so we need to vote on that. Two weeks back, there was a moratorium on all construction for retail stores,” according to Naples Town Manager Jason Rogers.

As far as the ACO budget, the amount has not changed, Rogers clarified. Additionally, the interlocal agreement remains in effect for the rest of fiscal year, he said.

“What the voters were lacking was a description of how that service will be changed,” he said. “What was brought up is: What would it take to create our own animal control officer position?”

The work that lies before the Naples Budget Committee this winter is: Figuring out a financially feasible model for an ACO department for the town. Meanwhile, the work that lies before the town manager is writing down the job performance standards to create a new, one-town ACO position.

“If we are able to make a good case to the voters that the town could create its own ACO department, that could be ready for [Annual] Town Meeting,” Rogers said.

If it is cost prohibitive, the town might have to resume the status quo, he said.

Also, the $5,000 mini-split unit purchased for the smallest building on the Village Green won’t be installed there. The heat/AC installation was planned so that the ACO would have a set space to do paperwork, etc. 

Actually, that cost is listed under Capital Improvements and not in the ACO budget.

After having discussion with the town manager in Raymond and Casco, Rogers realized the amount of administrative time that the ACO would have in Naples might not warrant the dedicated office space.

The installation of the mini-split unit on pause; and, it is now being considered for the Singer Center, he said.

The other item to be placed on the special town meeting warrant depends on what gets completed first. 

“As we approach Sept. 5, is the moratorium ready or are the design standards portion of the Land-Use Ordinance ready? The preferred option is the Design standard Ordinance,” Rogers said. 

Vice-chair Colin Brackett asked how the Naples Ordinance Review Committee was doing with that re-write. 

Select Board Member Kevin Rogers, who sits on the committee, answered.

“We used a model from another town. We worked on plugging the terminology into existing Site Plan Ordinance. So, it went smoothly as far as what could fit where,” Kevin Rogers said.

The town planner was reviewing it and adding wording from another ordinance the committee liked.

One good option is using photos to illustrate what design standards Naples is seeking, Town Manager Rogers said. Essentially, a photo would be plugged in rather than a description, which could possibly be interpreted different ways, he said. 

“A picture works better than words,” Select Board Member Bill Adams said.

Following the discussion, the board voted, 4-0, to put Sept. 5 on the calendar as the special town meeting date. Ted Shane was absent from this week’s meeting.