The Frosty Paw ice cream truck owned by Mary Hastings of Chesterville is seen in June 2022.. Farmington selectmen denied her request Tuesday to bring it to Hippach Field for a special school event June 13 because town policy prohibits the sale of food at the complex. Franklin Journal file photo

FARMINGTON — The Select Board voted Tuesday evening to review a policy on concessions at Hippach Field after denying a food truck the opportunity to set up for a special event there.

The policy states people can’t sell food at Hippach Field under terms of the Peter Mills Trust Fund, Chairman Joshua Bell said.

In January 2008 organizers of a playground renovation project were notified the Peter Mills Trust Fund for Hippach Field donated $4,500 to their project. The fund set up by Mills to benefit the town’s recreation department continues a vision for the field where community members swim, skate, play tennis and enjoy lighted baseball games, according to the dedication in October 2008.

In June 2022, Mary Hastings received a license for her food truck,  which specializes in frozen treats. Bell said she was approached by an unnamed school about possibly setting up for a field trip/field day at Hippach Field on June 13. She asked selectmen for an exception to the policy, he said.

The request didn’t say if Hastings would be charging for the ice cream or if the school is paying for it, Bell said. “It sounds like they would set up elsewhere,  either on the way back to school or at school” if the request is denied, he said.

Selectman Dennis O’Neil suggested the truck could park on the street.

“There is no soliciting on town property,” Bell said. The policy is why candy bars and such can’t be sold at Cap Ripken baseball games, he said.

If the request was granted, O’Neil said, the board would have to allow others.

“Every baseball game is a special event,” Selectman Matthew Smith said. Businesses across from Hippach Field rely on sales from attendees, he said. “It has always been a big topic. It has come up before. I think it is a good policy.”

“The policy is no, so until the policy changes the answer has to be no,” Selectman Richard Morton said. “I wouldn’t mind looking at the policy again at some point.”

While a student at Farmington High School there was always a concession stand, he said, and there were businesses across the street then.

Smith said the language of the Mills Trust might need to be looked at and changed.

If the board says no, the policy should be reviewed to make sure the board is applying it properly, Morton added.

In other business, the board approved a proclamation celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Teague World War I Memorial Arch. The recognition was held Monday.

The proclamation recognizes May 27 as the official day of commemoration for the 100th anniversary of the arch. “Teague World War I Memorial Arch stands as a timeless symbol of honor, sacrifice, and remembrance,” it reads.

On May 14, Franklin County commissioners agreed to sign a similar proclamation. They previously approved money from their allotment from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to improve the monument area on Fairbanks Road. Mt. Blue Area Garden Club organized the restoration with help from the Roderick-Crosby American Legion Post 28 in Farmington and volunteers.