On the agenda: Camden Minutes — facial recognition (Oct 6)

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Camden Select Board
Minutes of Meeting
October 6, 2026
Members Present: Chair Christopher Nolan, Vice Chair Kenneth Gross, Susan Dorr, Bobbi Oxton
Blake, Chrisso Rheault, Delegated Town Manager Jodi Hanson, and other members of the public.

The full meeting video and video minute marks are available at
https://www.youtube.com/c/TownofCamdenMaine. Pursuant to MRS Title 1, §403, minutes are
required to record member attendance and Board actions, not verbatim discussion. The video
recording is the of�icial public record.
Call to Order

Agenda Adjustments: (Video Recording Minute Mark 0:10)
The Board agreed to postpone item 6A, the charter revision process, to its next meeting. A memo
from Town Attorney William Kelly did not make it into the packet, and members felt the public
should see it before any discussion.

1. Public Comment: (Video Recording Minute Mark 1:13)
Karen Grove, Blake Street, Camden, served on the charter commission that re-wrote the current
charter. She explained that the work ran from 2019 to 2021 largely because the charter had not
been revised in 40 years, and that every legal change had to be reviewed by the Town Attorney
and the Maine Municipal Association. She said a new review should not take nearly as long.
Gross noted that the charter calls for a charter review committee every �ive years, which can
recommend amendments, and that this is a simpler process than a full charter commission.
Grove said she saw little practical difference, since any changes go to the voters either way.

Molly Mulhern, Mechanic Street, spoke for the group Camden CAN about the Energy Technology
Innovation Partnership Project (ETIP). Camden and Rockport, with support from the Island
Institute, plan to apply jointly by mid-November for federal technical assistance from the
Department of Energy's national labs to develop a strategic energy plan. If funded, the work
would run from March through the end of 2027. It would look at energy costs and backup power
for warming and cooling centers and shelters, and it would include a $20,000 grant with no local
match. She said both towns' planning directors support the application and that a volunteer
working group would carry most of the workload.

2. Approval of Minutes: (Video Recording Minute Mark 8:38)
The Board reviewed the September 22, 2026, meeting minutes.
Dorr moved; Rheault seconded to approve the minutes. The motion passed on a 5-0-0
vote.
3. Consent Agenda: ADOPTED (Video Recording Minute Mark 9:04) ADOPTED
a) Approval of victualer license renewals for Birchwood Camden, Camden House of Pizza,
Grand Harbor Inn, Sea Dog Brewpub, and Snow Dogs.

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Camden Select Board
Minutes of Meeting – Page 2
October 6, 2026

It was noted that the addresses for Camden House of Pizza and Grand Harbor Inn. The
correct addresses are: Camden House of Pizza is 12 Mechanic Street and Grand Harbor Inn is
14 Bay View Landing.

4. Public Hearing for Liquor Licenses: (Video Recording Minute Mark 11:06)
a) Application of Snow Dogs at 20 Barnestown Road for renewal of an on-premises beer and
wine license and special amusement permit.
b)
Chair Nolan opened the public hearing. No public comments were offered.

Dorr moved; Rheault seconded to approve the application for Snow Dogs. The motion
passed on a 5-0-0 vote.

5. Town Manager Report: (Video Recording Minute Mark 12:05)
• In-person absentee voting is underway at the Town Of�ice and runs through Thursday,
October 29. Completed ballots can be left in the drop box outside the Elm Street door. The
Town Of�ice will be closed October 8 for the Maine Municipal Association convention in
Augusta. The Camden Opera House was recently featured in the New York Times, and a
link to the story appears in the September 29 newsletter.
• The Police Department hired Arthur Smith as patrol sergeant. Sgt. Smith most recently
served as a captain with the Knox County Sheriff's Of�ice, and he began his career as a
reserve of�icer in Camden in 2004. To save money, the Planning Of�ice will not �ill its
vacant planner position. It will instead contract with the Midcoast Council of
Governments, partly to help update the zoning code for the new state housing rules
ahead of the June 2027 Town Meeting.
• Since July 1, the Town has collected $69,365 in parking meter revenue, $32,887 of it at
the Public Landing, along with $18,116 in parking citations. Meter software and service
fees over the same period came to $16,734. The downtown parking meter fund balance
stands at negative $248,885. Metered parking ends October 31, after which free all-day
parking resumes at the Public Landing, though enforcement continues through the
winter.
• Public Works is �inishing stormwater work on Chestnut Hill ahead of paving, working on
the turnarounds near the Rawson Avenue bridge, and getting ready for winter. The
winter sand is now in the shed. Resurfacing of the Seabright Dam spillway is complete,
and crews have moved on to the berm and �lashboards. Nancy Hughes is preparing rental
information on the Public Landing building for the next meeting.
• On the town manager’s search, the Board received 23 applications, interviewed �ive
candidates, and has narrowed the �ield to two. Department heads will meet with both
�inalists the week of October 12, ahead of second interviews. The Board hopes to make a
selection by the end of October.
6. Fiscal Year 2028 Budget Process: (Video Recording Minute Mark 18:12)
Budget Committee Chair Sara Skrivanich looked back on last year's process. The Select Board
adopted the committee's recommended budget in full, and 66 percent of voters approved it.
She credited part of that success to Select Board members taking part throughout, and to the

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Camden Select Board
Minutes of Meeting – Page 3
October 6, 2026

MuniCast forecasting model and �iscal brie�ing, which will become a regular part of the
process. Draft recommendations include a �ive-year forecast and more consistent TIF
reporting. She proposed a mid-year check-in in late December with department heads, the
Budget Committee, the Select Board, and the new town manager, followed by an orientation
session in late February before the committee's work begins in March.

Hanson said the budget must be �inished by mid-to-late April to make the June ballot, and
that staff begin work on it December 1.
Nolan and Gross said Select Board members had felt limited in how much they could take
part in past years. Ms. Scrivanich said the guidelines were meant to keep the Budget
Committee's time from being crowded out, not to discourage participation, and she
welcomed questions sent ahead of meetings.

Karen Grove noted that years ago the two boards often put competing budgets before voters,
and said the current approach produces a single, clearer recommendation.

Nolan asked that the December meeting include target setting, a conversation with the
schools, and a preview of the bond's impact. Rheault also asked for an early look at rising
energy costs. Hanson and Skrivanich will propose dates for the December meeting.

7. Action Items (Video Recording Minute Mark 43:04)
a) Approval of Personal Property Tax Abatements
Hanson presented four uncollectible personal property tax accounts totaling just under
$400. Most are six or seven years old and involve taxpayers who have died or accounts where
collection efforts are exhausted. Pursuing them in small claims court would cost more than
the amount owed, so the Tax Collector asked that they be abated and charged to overlay.
Oxton Blake moved; Rheault seconded to approve the abatements. The motion passed
on a 5-0-0 vote.

b) Set Date and Time for Special Town Meeting and Approval of Warrant Articles (Video
Recording Minute Mark 43:55)
Jeff Nathan, Parks & Rec Director explained that the federal Land and Water Conservation
Fund grant requires its own warrant language beyond the standard article voters approve
each June. The director at the Bureau of Parks and Lands has signed off on the proposed
Article 2, and the language must be approved by October 30 to keep the application alive.
The grant requires a 50 percent match, which would come mainly from a pending $250,000
Maine Trails Program grant along with in-kind staff time. No new taxpayer money would be
involved.
Together, the funds would build the beginner and intermediate trails in phase one of the
Snow Bowl trails master plan. Because a separate state grant was not awarded, paving the
Snow Bowl parking lot is unlikely under this round. The cost of the special town meeting
itself will be minimal, since it will be decided by an open town meeting, show of hands.

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Camden Select Board
Minutes of Meeting – Page 4
October 6, 2026

Rheault moved; Gross seconded to approve the warrant and set a Special Town
Meeting for October 20, 2026, at 6:00 p.m., ahead of the regular Select Board meeting.
The motion passed on a 5-0-0 vote.

c) Adoption of the Town of Camden Municipal Emergency Medical Services Transport
Plan (Video Recording Minute Mark 57:27)
Fire Chief Farley explained that a new state law, effective January 11, 2026, requires every
municipality to adopt, post, and �ile a plan stating how ambulance transport is provided.
Camden's plan names Northeast Mobile Health as its transport provider under Maine EMS
"Model B," a contract with an outside service. The plan records existing practice and does not
change it.
Rheault moved, Dorr seconded to adopt the Municipal EMS Transport Plan. The
motion passed on a 5-0-0 vote.

d) Approval of Contract with Axon for Body Cameras, In-Car Video, Tasers, and Training
(Video Recording Minute Mark 1:02:00)
Chief Weaver explained that the department's in-car cameras are more than ten years old
and no longer supported, its tasers are obsolete, and its body cameras, handed down from
the Sheriff's Of�ice, can't hold a charge for a full shift. The proposed �ive-year package starts
with a $3,500 payment this year, followed by annual payments each August 1. It covers
equipment, warranties, secure cloud storage, and virtual-reality training of�icers can do at
roll call, with new equipment at the end of the term. He said he speci�ically excluded license
plate readers and facial recognition.

Oxton Blake raised concerns from an email sent by Jessica Ives about Axon's data practices.
In answer to questions about tasers, the Chief said they are rarely deployed, with at least two
uses in the past two years, and that simply displaying one often ends a confrontation. Other
members asked who controls the stored video and how it is protected.
Chair Nolan, who audits technology security professionally, questioned an Axon
representative on Zoom. The representative said Camden's data is kept in an environment
only the department can access, is encrypted in transit and at rest, and is not shared with
federal agencies, and he agreed to send Axon's SOC 2 Type 2 report and privacy policy. Nolan
offered to review the report for material exceptions. Dorr said she supports the equipment
but wants more assurance about privacy before voting.
Raymond Andresen, Cove Road, thanked the Board for taking the privacy concerns seriously
and suggested the Town publish the safeguards once they are con�irmed.
Gross seconded; Nolan moved to table the item until the requested documentation is
received. The motion passed on a 5-0-0 vote.

e) Select Board Priorities (Video Recording Minute Mark 1:35:47)
The Chair opened a discussion to agree on board priorities for the next seven to eight
months. The list was compiled from the priorities workshop held about a month earlier

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Camden Select Board
Minutes of Meeting – Page 5
October 6, 2026

Rheault:
Harbor - Work is under way on harbor armoring zoning, but little else is in motion. The
public landing, sewer infrastructure and Bay View Street are highly �lood-threatened.
Proposed convening affected inner-harbor business and property owners to coordinate,
noting Rockport has already gone to bid on its project with grant funding.
Annual town meeting (non-voting). Proposed an informational, moderated forum where
residents can ask questions and raise issues, modeled on the circle-format session held at the
middle school before the dam removal vote. Argued a town voting meeting on the budget
would disenfranchise most residents, since few can attend.
Suggested routing some items, especially zoning amendments, through the Select Board
acting as a special town meeting rather than the full ballot. Current zoning amendments can
take eight to nine months, which can cause developers to walk away. May require charter
changes or legal review.
Dorr:
New town manager. Hiring is a key opportunity to set priorities with the new manager, who
should understand that the board is the policy-setting body.
Praised department heads and �iscal oversight; budget pressure re�lects rising costs.
Opposed micromanaging.
Usually at the beginning of the new Board, the Town Attorney does a Select Board
orientation training session that did not happen as a group this year. Proposed a group
orientation with the new manager, plus regular department visits (e.g., weekly), building on
the public safety building and wastewater treatment tours. Hanson supported this.
Gross:
Town manager search (nearing conclusion) and charter review committee
Green burial work (ongoing)
Starting the budget process earlier, with a discussion in December
TIF funding and school budget: invite the new superintendent of MSAD 28 / Five Town CSD
to meet the board and present the school budget, as was done several years ago; possibly
invite the county administrator too
Exploring regionalization and shared services, department by department, with Lincolnville,
Rockport and Hope
Planning future use of the Elm Street School, starting early
Oversight of the $5.9 million Megunticook River project; Jodi and Jeremy are project
managers, and invoice tracking is in place for audit. Watershed coordination with
neighboring towns is also needed.
Revitalizing town committees
Reviewing the Select Board bylaws, not done since 2022
Board review of grant applications, since they can express or set town policy
Jeremy Martin:
Jeremy listed recently non-active committees: energy, dam, personnel (removed by charter),
Camden Economic and Community Development Advisory Committee (CEDAC) and Parks
and Recreation. Committee work has become more project speci�ic. He said a broad energy,
sustainability and resilience committee makes sense, and that TIF documents call for CEDAC
involvement.

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Camden Select Board
Minutes of Meeting – Page 6
October 6, 2026

Oxton Blake asked whether TIFs are needed, noting the town attorney's reservations and
uses outside the listed purposes. Jeremy explained TIF revenue is tax on increased value
since the district was created, directed to voter-approved uses such as staff, landing
restrooms, infrastructure or housing support. Camden has a downtown TIF (extended to
2040) and a highway TIF that generates little revenue; there is no housing TIF. Martin and
Hanson are working with an outside expert, at no charge, and expect to present within about
a month. The board favored a dedicated TIF workshop.

Oxton Blake
The Historic Preservation Committee will meet with the board on November 10 for
discussion of an ordinance for the June ballot.
Budget and TIF are top priorities.
Raised resident questions about how stipends are set, citing the dam agent job description
provided by Dave St. Laurent was only one received.
Wants Knox County Communications, the �ire chief and the lead paramedic to review
whether Camden's coverage meets the contract, after concerns raised at the Lincolnville
meeting. She has heard from about two dozen residents.
Objected to substantial items appearing as action items without prior discussion, citing Mt
Battie Street.
Nolan responded that he and Vice Chair Gross have been meeting with staff on Tuesday
before agenda setting, and all members may submit items. Presentations must be in the
packet, which is now distributed on Fridays. Weighty issues should come �irst for discussion,
and action items can be deferred if more data is needed. The second monthly meeting could
serve as a workshop (e.g., on TIF).
Dorr asked that the town manager’s written report not be read aloud; highlights only.
Nolan noted after the advisory parking vote, they will resume traf�ic ordinance updates with
the police chief, despite a loss of earlier draft work. Also wants traction on the Tannery plan
and the Curtis Island Lighthouse.

8. Select Board Reports: (Video Recording Minute Mark 2:29:14)
Rheault reported on the emergency preparedness summit held in late September, which drew
about 50 organizations. Concern centered on heating costs this winter and �ire safety as people
return to long-unused wood stoves, and the member urged residents to have their chimneys
swept. The member also praised Public Works for its repaving of Park Street.
Dorr reported meeting Rockland's mayor, who invited the Board to tour Rockland's harbor park
and resiliency work.
Oxton Blake reported a Mid-Coast Solid Waste tour is planned for the week of October 19.
Nolan reported that he and Gross met with Dave St. Laurent ahead of the Rockport joint
meeting.
Chris Friden of the Historic Resources Committee asked how the committee's presentation to
the Board would work. Chair Nolan said there would be back-and-forth discussion and
suggested he come to the November 4 agenda setting meeting at 12:15 p.m. Mr. Friden also
noted a new exhibit on deconstruction and reuse at the library.
9. Adjournment (Video Recording Minute Mark 2:35:30)
Oxton Blake moved; Rheault seconded to adjourn. The motion passed on a 5-0-0 vote.