I, too, question the timing of the upcoming Five Town CSD school bond vote and scheduled public hearing when all the items being addressed are long standing ones the district has been aware of for years.

At a gathering this past week that included cross section of Camden/Rockport residents, we discussed both the timing and the impact financing this bond will have on next years overall CSD budget and taxpayers. To cite just one question that arose — the wisdom of installing astroturf at cost of $2.6 million when professional teams are removing it due to its role in player injuries?

And for me, the wisdom of giving up on the expensive, environmentallly sound geothermal system we were sold on when school built.

The 4 to 6% budget impact of financing this bond and the resulting projected 10%-plus  increase to the overall 2025-26 CSD education budget (as cited by superintendent) is significant especially for Camden and Rockport taxpayers who just saw their property taxes increase 25 to 50%.

Recalling my time on Lincolnville School Board I imagine it is also an untimely and big ask for the towns of Appleton, Hope and Lincolnville.

Responding to public questions and concerns regarding proposed expenses and their impact is an important part of a public budget process. On occasion during public sessions regarding proposed budget items it has felt like some questioning and scrutiny that should be welcomed by our administrators is responded to defensively and at times even dismissively.

This brings me to the scheduling of a public hearing on January 2, a time of year when people’s attention is elsewhere if they are even in town, to be followed by a stand-alone vote January 14 in the dead of winter.

Unfortunately it has the appearance of being timed this way intentionally (not the first time), slipping between budget cycles, town meetings  and scheduled votes, and so quietly tucked away from the awareness of many, if not most, voters in our five towns — Hope, Appleton, Lincolnville, Rockport and Camden.

Disappointed.

Judi Schelble, of Camden, is a retired CHRHS teacher