HARMONY — A vote about whether to ban all-terrain vehicles from public roads was scrubbed Saturday at the annual Town Meeting.

First Selectman Donna Olson said the Maine Municipal Association informed the board before the meeting that town voters aren’t entitled to make such decisions. Nonetheless, the board took a straw poll on the issue “just for the fun of it,” she said.

The poll was close, but in the end ATV access would have been upheld — 41 were in favor of closures; 59 were opposed.

The board has no plans to address the issue at future meetings, Olson said.

More than 100 people attended the three-hour meeting at Harmony Elementary School. Out of 47 articles, 46 were approved as written, Olson said.

One article, regarding $5,000 in repairs to the Harmony Community Center, was tabled until the June school budget meeting.

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The approved warrant calls for about $440,000 in spending, which is $2,700 more than last year. The increase will be funded through property taxes, Olson said.

In the town’s two contested election races, Peter Cooley and Karen Stutzman were re-elected to the school board. Voters also chose, 54-52, to expand the board’s size from five members to seven, but the new board members won’t be picked until March 2013, she said.

Olson said many of the votes were close calls with spirited debate.

“It was a fun meeting,” she said. “A lot of people spoke on both sides, so you got a good feel of what people think.”

Ben McCanna — 861-9239

bmccanna@centralmaine.com

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HARMONY

Registered voters: 712

Attendance: 106

2011 tax rate: $20.50 per $1,000 of valuation


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