Kudos to Raymond Selectmen

The Raymond Board of Selectmen should be praised for standing up to county government. We laud any attempt at reducing unnecessarily high taxes.

The board voted unanimously Tuesday night to reject the county’s tax bill, totaling nearly $500,000. While the move was symbolic (town officials have already said they intend on paying the bill within 60 days), it’s still an excellent message to send: As a town, we’re tired of being heavily taxed, and we want you to stop wasting our residents’ money.

It’s nice to know there are town leaders out there who know how the average Mainer feels. Raymond does a pretty good job at trying to keep the tax rate low. They have a One Raymond Committee, which is seeking to combine town and school expenditures any creative way possible. Also, an active voting populace meets each year at annual town meeting, filling the gym at Jordan Small Middle School making sure not a nickel more is spent than needed. Even town hall on Route 85, modest as town halls go, operates in what the town manager terms “the Yankee way.” If you’ve ever seen the inmates out painting the side of the building, you’ll understand how cheaply Raymond tries to conduct business. As a result, taxes are relatively low. They can be lower, but that’s another topic for another day. (Can anyone say TABOR?)

Raymond’s move concerning county government is in response to the county deciding to build its own dispatch center in Windham, and not moving dispatching services into the Raymond Public Safety Building. Raymond officials say the county wasted money in the process and should be held accountable, hence their action Tuesday night.

So, while it’s hard to hold any government responsible for anything nowadays, it’s nice to see the little town of Raymond trying to do what it can to upset the status quo. Kudos to selectmen for being bold and uncompromising. It is a fruitless venture, but at least it sends the message that next year the county better do something to keep expenses down.

A fresh start

It’s nice to see that Bodge’s Variety, a Standish hotspot for years, will soon be reopening under a different name, “K&M Variety.” It’ll also have different owners, Kate Andrews and Marlene Ela, of Standish.

In a world where the closest many people get to community is a chat room on the Internet, variety stores can offer a hangout for townies, a place where local news and maybe even a little local gossip can be heard. And practically, they’re a quick, convenient alternative to shopping at large supermarkets where shoppers fulfill the surgeon general’s recommended dose of daily exercise just trying to buy a gallon of milk.

Variety stores are plentiful throughout Maine, and a small town is really not complete without one. Bodge’s Variety was no exception. It gave people in that end of Standish a place to gather in the morning over a cup of coffee. So it was sad to see it go, especially with no reason given for why it closed. This newspaper tried showing up at the Bodge’s residence, calling the family, but all for naught. And every effort to find out what happened ended with closed doors and no one willing to go on record. It seems it’ll remain a mystery.

But that’s the past, and now’s the present. What’s inspirational is that Ela and Andrews are former employees of Bodge’s who have always wanted to start a business of their own. They will probably thrive in that prime location, and we wish them well. They’re living the American Dream, and we will watch them as they take over a business that will now take on their personality and enthusiasm.