Mount Desert officials balance convenience, cost, and safety as they consider changes to public trash disposal. Board also approves new police officer hire from Cherryfield.
Jul 21, 2026
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MOUNT DESERT—A plan to potentially move the dumpsters from the town’s garage has not yet been finalized and more community outreach about the plan will occur, the town Selectboard heard, Monday night, July 20.
The plan to potentially remove the dumpsters was first discussed at an earlier Selectboard meeting this July after the Municipal Risk Assessment (MRA) team determined that the dumpsters presented a liability for the town. That liability impacts the town’s insurance.
The dumpsters for household trash and constant access to them have been a mainstay for the community, which also has weekly trash pickup.
The concern after the MRA visit is that there is a significant risk to safety.
“I’ve been getting a lot of comments about the dumpsters at the town garage,” Selectboard member Martha Dudman said. “A lot of concern. There are people in the town who, because of the narrow lane leading down to their houses, the trucks can not get in.”
Many people rely on those dumpsters to get rid of their household trash whenever they want to.
Closing those dumpsters, so far, has been the main thrust of the town’s focus after learning of the liability. That’s because of the added cost for staff to monitor the site and because the site is small.
“We recognize that this is going to be a major shift for residents because it’s definitely—it’s a creature comfort going away,” Town Manager Alex Kimball had said at the earlier meeting.
The minutes of that July 6 meeting read, “It has been suggested to close it in some manner and have an employee on hand during open hours. This would require hiring another employee. It was deemed that removing the dumpsters and securing the area with a gate that could be locked to the public was the best alternative. Director Henkel estimated closing the facility down fully in the fall.”
“I think we need to discuss further what we need to do to keep our residents happy,” Dudman said. “I understand the concerns, but I think by closing it all together? We’re going to have a problem on our hands. I think it needs more discussion.”
Selectboard member David MacDonald said that he thought that the July 6 meeting was just the beginning of discussion.
“One of the points we made was communication is going to be a key. Well, we’re starting to communicate, and now the communication is coming back to us. So the residents’ input should shape where we come down,” MacDonald said.
Public Works Director Brian Henkel suggested multiple ways that people could still have their trash taken care of even if the site with the dumpsters is closed to the public. Bins can be placed at the end of private roads and those bins can hold multiple cans. People can have a small dumpster for their own use. In both those cases the town trucks could pick it up. People can transport it themselves to the EMR facility in Southwest Harbor.
He encouraged Selectboard members to send people his way if their sites made town pickup difficult.
“I’ll try to work with individuals and their particular circumstances,” Henkel said.
The town policy, currently, is if a town truck can’t get down a private road, if it’s brought to the next available road, the town will pick it up, Henkel said.
“There’s a variety of reasons to shut it down. That’s, you know, it is a safety issue. today,” Henkel said. “On top of the fact that we have a lot of abuse in that area. There’s vehicles immediately parked behind town vehicles that are trying to do their job backing up. There’s a fair amount of trash that comes through there that really isn’t from town.”
That, he said, isn’t fair to taxpayers either. Property taxes pay for trash disposal in the town. The more trash disposed, the higher the cost.
“I think we caught one guy that left the mattress. That was our one victory in 10 years. We paid for cameras all over that campus. And then five years later, we had to hear about how we needed more HD cameras,” Chair John Macauley said.
He said he thinks the problem is enforcement.
“It’s the e-word. Nobody likes it, but you’ve got to have it,” Macauley said.
Kimball said that the town continues to discuss solutions.
“Let’s try to look at the trash issue holistically,” MacDonald said, citing recent changes to the town’s recycling system as well.
OTHER BUSINESS
EMPLOYEES
After an hour-long executive session, the Mount Desert Selectboard approved the transition of Nancy Parsons from a probation to full-time status. She is both the town’s finance director and treasurer.
“Nancy has stepped into her extremely important role with the town flawlessly, and is an unquestioned asset to the Town of Mount Desert. Nancy’s six-month probationary period ended July 8, 2026, and I would recommend that the approval be retroactive to that date,” Kimball said.
She began in January 2026.
The board confirmed the hire of Colton Devoe as a full-time patrol officer effective July 20, 2026.
According to a memo from Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Police Chief David Kerns, “Colton is currently self-employed and operates a property services business. He and his family reside in Cherryfield.”
STORMWATER CATCH BASIN MONEY
The board approved a contract with Clarke Construction for the installation of a stormwater catch basin for $336,930.45
According to a July 6 memo by Henkel, the Selectboard authorized the contract with Hedefine Engineering to design the collection pipe and catch basin in Steamboat Wharf Road.
“The cost of that contract was shared with the property owner of 4 Steamboat Wharf Road who contributed 60% while the Town was responsible for 40%. That share was proposed and approved as the stormwater design would make improvements to both private and public property. The costs of the design of the stormwater collection system within the limits of the parcel that is 4 Steamboat Wharf Road, were fully covered by the property owner. The owners are proposing to again share in the costs of the construction of the stormwater catch basin and collection pipe in the same proportions as the design work,” Henkel explained.
E.L. Shea, Inc. is the general contractor; Clarke Construction LLC is the earthwork contractor.
The town entered a “time and materials” contract with Clarke Construction to finish the project.
“Given the complexity of the work area attributable to buried utilities, estimating the cost of the installation is difficult,” Henkel wrote. “A time and materials contract will allow the town to constrain the costs, where possible, and will allow for flexibility should there be unforeseen difficulties. Included is a schedule of pricing for labor and equipment from Clarke Construction and a design of the proposed improvements.”
FIRE DEPARTMENT NEEDS
The town released up to $32,000 to purchase structural firefighting gear for Assistant Fire Chief Kyle Stewart, on-call firefighter Mitchell Burr, and firefighter/EMT John Wells who was recently hired as a full-time employee.
The town issues two sets of gear for each of its firefighters so that one is in service while the second is decontaminated and cleaned. Stewart, who was recently hired, is set to replace Chief Mike Bender who has announced his retirement.
The board also released $9,200.91 to repair the fire department’s 2012 Ferrara fire truck.
According to a memo from Chief Bender, “The repairs included removing the radiator to replace a leaking gasket, replacing a faulty actuator that controls the turbocharger’s internal vanes, and removing the DEF tank to replace the sensor that monitors the fluid level.“
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
The town’s current waste rules and places to dispose of and recycle item.
The town’s fire department page
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