With the summer season coming to an end, Frye Island residents need to decide on a budget and ordinances before leaving for the winter.

The annual town meeting will start Saturday, Oct. 11 at 9 a.m. at the Community Center on the island.

Two groups will vote Saturday, those registered to vote in the town and homeowners who belong to the Board of Island Trustees. This system was set up to give island homeowners a voice even if they are registered to vote in their winter homes.

Both groups must approve items on the town meeting warrant.

Approximately 1,500 residents live in 485 homes on the island in Sebago Lake, some visiting on weekends during the summer season and some staying in their cottages from April to November, when the ferry stops running from Raymond.

The proposed almost $949,000 municipal budget includes funds for four town departments: administration, public works, public safety and recreation, with the largest portion almost $426,000 for public works. The municipal budget is slightly down from last year, said Town Manager Wayne Fournier.

The town share of school and county taxes is up from the current year, though, with funds going to School Administrative District 6 increasing from more than $955,000 to more than $1.2 million, which is an increase of around 21 percent.

Some town residents think they shouldn’t pay so much to the school budget, given that residents don’t send a single student to SAD 6 schools.

“We understand that everybody should be paying for education,” long time resident Patricia Karpacz said in July, adding that it was the amount that seemed unreasonable.

Early in 2008 the Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld a ruling by the Cumberland County Superior Court to allow the Legislature to ban Frye Island from withdrawing from SAD 6 and exempt the island from the formula the state uses to determine how much each town pays based on the number of students.

“The school budget is always a challenge,” Fournier said. “We just have to prepare for it.”

Residents will be asked to approve a $40,000 transfer from the general fund balance to counteract the increase in school funding.

Residents will vote on two new ordinances at Saturday’s meeting, governing the use of utility vehicles, including golf carts, and use of town beaches. The regulations laid out in these ordinances mirror policies already put in place by the town selectmen, Fournier said. Residents will also consider amendments to the town land use ordinance to prohibit clear cutting and govern setback reduction appeals.

It is ferry rates that Fournier predicted would inspire the most debate at Saturday’s meeting. While the ferry service, like the island’s golf course and marina, is supported by user fees and not taxes, it is part of the town’s charter to allow island residents to set ferry fees.

Residents will consider several options this year, with tickets ranging from $26-36 for an automobile coming from the mainland ferry terminal and $10.50-15 for island property owners to take their cars on the ferry.