WATERBORO — Fewer than 1 percent of this community’s 4,708 registered voters attended the annual Town Meeting in June, prompting selectmen Tuesday to begin discussing alternatives, like an annual budget referendum or a town council form of government.

Attendance, selectmen and others say, is dismal; people just aren’t turning out for the annual Town Meeting like they used to. Figures supplied by Town Administrator Gary Lamb Wednesday show 35 voters attended the recent Town Meeting on June 14, where a $5.1 million municipal budget was decided, 30 turned out in 2013, 73 in 2012, 46 in 2011 and 59 in 2010.

“The time has come to look at this thing differently,” said Selectman Dennis Abbott Tuesday. “It’s nothing we can do immediately, but ”¦ we have to entertain a move to a different process.”

Abbott pointed out poor attendance has plagued the annual Town Meeting for the last several years.

Selectwoman TammyJo Girard said she’s spoken with residents of other communities, who also report low attendance at Town Meeting and fewer volunteers willing to step up and take part in municipal committees.

“I love Town Meeting, but I understand maybe the time is coming to look at something different,” she said.

Girard said she had concerns about an annual budget referendum, though she didn’t voice them Tuesday.

Selectmen opined that people are either working lengthy hours to make ends meet, or are simply not interested.

“People feel frustrated and uninformed,” said Selectmen Chairman David Woodsome, “but they’re not willing to step up and act. In the last 20 to 30 years, we’ve surrendered our rights by not being involved. It’s a problem everywhere.”

Abbott said he believes the selectmen’s board has been transparent and open.

“It cuts against the grain when people say they don’t know what’s going on,” he said.

Girard said she heard from business owners at a recent roundtable that jobs were going unfilled because those entering the workforce aren’t interested in working long hours or shift work. She said that mindset plays a role in municipal government as well.

“It shows you where the attitude is these days,” she said.

If a budget referendum approach is adopted, voters would act on a budget ballot in the voting booth, during voting hours, instead of showing up at a specific time for Town Meeting, where there is discussion and votes from the floor.

Selectman Gordon Littlefield pointed out that the budget referendum is an “up or down” vote.

“There’s no discussion,” he said, adding a referendum isn’t as flexible a form of government as is Town Meeting or a town council.

Selectman Jon Gale said the only factor that tends to increase attendance at Town Meeting is if there’s a conflict. But he, too, pointed to difficulties with a referendum budget.

“If you need to make changes in the middle of the year, it’s devilish hard to do,” he said. “It’s not a good way to go.”

Gale forecast that a budget referendum might be a stopgap for a year or two, but felt ultimately, Waterboro would move to a town council form of government.

“(A town council) is the most flexible, but unfortunately, it’s the least involved for the public,” said Gale.

Abbott pointed out that even with a budget referendum, selectmen could hold a Special Town Meeting during the year, if need be.

Lamb, who was a long-time Sanford Town Meeting member, agreed that a change may be in the offing in Waterboro.

“I love Town Meeting, and I fought like a caged animal in Sanford to keep it,” he said, but he noted attendance at Sanford’s representative Town Meeting also dwindled, and ultimately, Town Meeting was eliminated in the city through a charter change.

In Waterboro, the charter adopted in 2012 outlines a process for a move to a budget referendum. A change to a town council form of government would require a new charter commission, which would review the entire charter ”“ a lengthy process that can take several years from start to finish.

According to the charter, abolishing Town Meeting and instituting a budget referendum requires a petition signed by 15 percent of the town’s registered voters ”“ in this case, 706 voters ”“ to put the matter to a public vote. Any registered voter, including selectmen, may initiate a petition drive.

A budget referendum is used in some other York County municipalities, like Kennebunk, Wells and Lebanon, which used to hold traditional Town Meetings.

For years, Waterboro’s Town Meeting was held in March, but was moved to April in 2002 to avoid winter storms, which selectmen at the time thought contributed to fewer people attending. By 2008, the annual meeting had moved to June.

Selectmen are expected to continue talking about the issue.

“Something needs to be done,” said Woodsome, the chairman, “and it has to be considered over the next few months.”

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.