Members of the Windham Town Council have unanimously approved substance prevention grants for two programs that are intended to keep students off drugs.
 |
| Members of the Windham Town Council have authorized grants of $1,800 for Summerfest Mobile Escape Rooms and $2,640 for the Windham Middle School Guitar Club. The Substance Prevention Grants are derived from cannabis licensing fees. PHOTO BY ED PIERCE |
Town council Chair Mark Morrison said he serves on the Substance Prevention Grant Committee and both applications were enthusiastically approved by committee members before forwarding them to the council for a vote.
Back in July 2021, members of the Windham Town Council committed to using cannabis licensing fees imposed by the town for retail and medical marijuana facilities for drug education and drug prevention programs. The fund grows with each license renewal fee paid to the town and members of the Substance Prevention Grant Committee process grant applications and make recommendations to the council for disbursement for worthwhile programs.
The Mobile Escape Rooms project for Summerfest is a project between Be The Influence coalition and Windham Police Department’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education Program.
Morrison said the WMS Guitar Club project is deserving of help and the grant will help students to obtain guitars and receive lessons in how to play them.
During the council meeting, Windham Town Manager also briefed councilors about the status and funding for the town’s sewer installation project.
Tibbetts said originally, Windham was able to obtain $2 million in funding from the federal government for the creation of a new wastewater treatment plant and that the town is now seeking additional funding to help connect it to Windham High School and close the treatment plant there, which is one of only two school districts located east of the Mississippi River with its own wastewater treatment system.
He says Windham will be seeking even more than the original funding for that initiative.
“We’re looking to get them hooked up and closing the school wastewater plant which empties into the Pleasant River,” Tibbetts said.
The public will also be able to learn more about another significant upcoming town project in June, Tibbetts told councilors.
“On June 4 at Windham Town Hall, the public will be able to participate in a Windham Mobility Moves discussion with Maine Department of Transportation engineers about the creation of rear access roads,” Tibbetts said.
According to Tibbetts, residents attending that informal gathering from 4 to 6 p.m. will be able to review drafts and blueprints of design plans and speak with MDOT staff and engineers about the project, which is intended to relieve congestion along the Route 302 corridor in Windham.
In addition to that gathering, Tibbetts said a televised meeting and discussion will be aired from 6 to 8 p.m. including a question-and-answer session for the public regarding the characteristics of traffic movement here in North Windham.
Councilors also received notification that the speed limit for Swett Road extending north 1.61 miles from Chute Road to U.S. Route 202/Route 4 has been lowered from 35 mph to 30 mph following an official request for a review of the speed limit there by Windham Police Chief Kevin Schofield.
In a letter to the town, Caty DeSouza, MDOT Southern Regional Assistant Traffic engineer, reminded councilors that the roadway is considered a “town way” and it is the responsibility of Windham to install and maintain all roadway signage reflecting the new speed limit of 30 mph in that area.
During the meeting, the council also held public hearings seeking public comments about proposed amendments to the 2016 Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Map, to comply with the requirements of State Law LD 2003, to reduce the Growth Areas and expand the Rural Areas and the Route 302 Transitional Areas, proposed amendments to the Land Use Ordinance related to affordable housing developments and an amendment to the Official Land Use Map to align zoning district boundaries with the Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Map growth area boundaries. Public hearings were also conducted for a proposed Moratorium Ordinance for Non-Residential Uses in the Shoreland Zoning Districts, and proposed amendments to the Town of Windham Land Use Ordinance regarding mural signage. <
No comments:
Post a Comment