Kayakers and paddleboarders participating in the Rivers For Change trip in July 2024 take off from the Oosoola Park boat launch on the Kennebec River in Norridgewock. At the annual town meeting Monday, town voters approved a proposal to raise $75,000 for the construction of a gazebo and do other associated work at the park. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel file

NORRIDGEWOCK — Town voters rejected a proposal to create a new community event and engagement coordinator position but approved all other proposed spending at Monday’s annual town meeting.

About 40 voters from the town of about 3,000 gathered in the Mill Stream Elementary School gymnasium to work through the town meeting warrant. The roughly 20-minute meeting was mostly business as usual as voters approved total spending of $3.37 million and signed off on other items, including an updated Shoreland Zoning Ordinance.

Earlier in the day, residents rejected the proposal for the new position, which was voted on at the polls along with municipal elections. Forty-seven were in favor; 91 were against it.

The new position would have been a full-time role, tasked with organizing the town’s parks and recreation activities and annual events, according to a draft job description.

The proposal asked voters to approve $48,000 to fund the position for 75% of this year. A full year for the position was budgeted at $63,000.

The Select Board unanimously had recommended it be approved. The Budget Committee had recommended 3-1 it be rejected.

During the evening meeting, the only real point of contention on the 43-article warrant was a proposal to raise $75,000 for the construction of a gazebo and do other associated work at Oosoola Park.

That proposal, recommended by the Select Board and rejected by the Budget Committee, passed by a vote of 23-15.

With the approved gazebo project and rejected position, spending for the next fiscal year approved by voters totaled $3,371,033. That figure is a 7.98% increase over spending approved last year.

The departments with the largest approved spending include public works at $770,750, administration at $474,200 and fire at $344,120. Approved capital reserve appropriations totaled $1.13 million, with $750,000 for roads and $110,000 for fire department equipment accounting for a large portion.

Subtracting the $2,558,200 in projected revenues that voters also approved, there is a net of $812,833 to be raised by municipal property taxpayers.

That figure is up $23,360, or 2.96%, over the budget approved last year, according to financial documents.

Town Manager Richard LaBelle said previously that the modest increase was due to “pretty tremendous work” by both the Select Board and Budget Committee.

Somerset County and Maine School Administrative District 54 budgets have not yet been set for the next fiscal year, so it is too soon to know any impact to the property tax rate for this year’s tax commitment.

In municipal elections, there were no contested races in open seats for Select Board, MSAD 54 board of directors, tax assessor, Budget Committee member, Planning Board member, library trustee and sewer commissioner.

The four incumbents of the five-member Select Board running for reelection — Ronnie Blodgett, Matthew Everett, Charles Farrand and Lindsey Lynch — were returned to the board. As of the end of Monday’s town meeting, there appeared to be a tie between two write-in candidates for the fifth seat, LaBelle told voters.