WEST PARIS — Residents rejected a proposed initiative to regulate yard and garage sales at the annual town meeting Saturday.

None of about 75 residents in attendance at the Agnes Gray School gymnasium voted to approve Article 11, the Yard Sale Ordinance.

The discussion leading to the vote was particularly active.

“This is kind of an after-the-fact ordinance,” remarked one townsperson, “and it seems kind of mean-spirited, because it seems intent on one particular taxpayer in our town, who does pay his taxes, no matter what we really think about what it looks like.”

The proposed ordinance sought to limit yard sales to four consecutive days and required all signs to be removed within six hours after the end of the sale. A no-cost permit from the Town Office would be required. The town currently has no regulations for yard sales.

“It says, ‘not to disrupt the residential environment of the town of West Paris,'” continued the same townsperson. “I think out on Route 26 it’s not really a residential area. That’s my opinion and I do intend on voting against this.”

“This antique person who has been doing this since I can remember, since I was a kid,” said a second townsperson. “I don’t understand that now, all of a sudden, why this is necessary after all those years.”

The yard sale ordinance was the only article defeated at the town meeting, but others generated controversy. Article 10 allows selectmen to “waive the foreclosure of a then-pending real property tax lien.” It was approved by a 29-21 show of hands that required a careful and prolonged count. One townsperson was concerned the measure would allow delinquent tax accounts to remain that way indefinitely.

Article 6 specified a 7 percent interest rate for tax accounts not paid by Nov. 14 this year. One townsperson opposed the measure.

Article 8 set an interest rate of 3 percent to be paid by the town on abated taxes. The measure was approved with “minor opposition,” as observed by meeting moderator Vern Maxfield. Maxfield made the same remark regarding the vote for Article 19, a funding vote for $14,120 to pay operational costs for municipal buildings, and for Article 32, in which voters approved $27,180 to fund ambulance services.

All other warrants received universal approval, according to Maxfield, although several generated protracted discussion. Some of these were for fire department funding, baseball field renovations and funding the General Assistance program.

Residents considered 41 warrants, which totaled $1.19 million in taxpayer burden. To that figure, $530,170 can be contributed from non-tax sources.

Voters also chose municipal officials. Randy Jones was elected as selectman/assessor/overseer of the poor. Veronica Poland was elected to the SAD 17 board of directors, and Ralph Brown was elected as a Water District director. All are three-year terms.

Selectmen convened after the meeting adjourned and selected Wade Rainey as interim town manager until a full-time replacement is hired.