LIVERMORE FALLS — A public hearing will be held at 6 p.m. Oct. 15 to review warrant articles to be voted on during the Presidential election on Nov. 5.

Town Manager Carrie Castonguay said there will be five articles for voters to consider on Nov. 5 and the first two are ones that must be on the warrant. The third question seeks approval to appropriate $75,000 from the Police Department Reserve Account for the purchase of a new patrol vehicle, she noted.

At the Sept. 3 selectmen meeting, Haroon was charged with getting quotes for a police cruiser for voters to approve the purchase in November.

Estimates for the Police Department cruiser have been received from Island Tech Services [ITS] in Levant and Bailey Brothers of Livermore Falls to give an idea of what the package will look like, Castonguay told the board.

Bailey Brothers’ quote for a 2025 Ford Interceptor hybrid was $50,500 for the vehicle and about $22,677 to outfit it. A 2024 Chevy Tahoe police pursuit vehicle from ITS was quoted at $54,000 and almost $24,766, respectively.

Selectman Bruce Peary asked Police Chief Ibrahim [Abe] Haroon which vehicle he recommends and why.

“For me, what I recommend is the Ford Interceptor hybrid,” Haroon responded. “It is a hybrid system. I discussed it with the town’s mechanic, if he had any concerns about the hybrid system. He did not.”

Haroon said he favored the hybrid because it physically turns off the idling while the cruiser is sitting in idle. “I am concerned about engine hours,” he noted. The car this will potentially be replacing has 14,000 engine hours, the hybrid system would be better on longevity and have lower maintenance costs, he felt.

Selectman Jim Long asked if the Ford would be essentially the same as the hybrid the town has now. Haroon told him it would be exactly the same.

“We are happy with that,” Long said.

‘Other agencies that are using the same type of car, they are not reporting any issues,” Haroon added.

The fourth article concerns changing the retirement plan for eligible employees in the Police Department from the current Maine Public Employees Retirement System [MainePERS] Special Plan 2C to Maine PERS Special Plan 1C effective no sooner than Dec. 1. On Sept. 3 selectmen approved the change, which would help recruit and retain officers, Haroon said then. It was estimated the new plan would cost about $10,000 more per year. Long felt it would be worth it.

The fifth article seeks to enact the Town of Livermore Falls Property Maintenance Ordinance.

In other business, Sewer Superintendent Mark Holt said there have been issues with vehicles and pedestrians using Foundry Road during construction hours. “We are working with the Police Department, reporting plate numbers now to stop people from going through there,” he stated. “It says “Road Closed” and it is for a reason. We had a close call a few weeks ago with a pedestrian, so we are tightening up on pedestrian traffic through there and vehicle traffic.”

Peary asked if the road was a shortcut.

“No, it is just people out for a walk, people just driving down through,” Holt replied. “They drive right by the “Road Closed” signs and the ‘Sidewalk Closed” signs.

It is for the public’s safety, Holt emphasized. “We are not trying to be mean or cruel or make people go around,” he stated. “It is a safety issue. I have talked to a few people, explained. Somebody nearly got hit.”

Holt said excavators will be working on the retaining wall, several hundred cement blocks weighing a couple thousand pounds will be offloaded, so traffic needs to be limited.

“Police are talking to people when they get the plate numbers,” Holt noted. “It’s not that we are trying to control everything down there but we just want to make it a safe work zone, safe for our townspeople. It is public safety .

Currently Foundry Road is closed 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, or if there is a late load, Holt said. “If you see someone unloading you can’t go through,” he noted.

Holt expects Foundry Road to open towards the end of October or by mid-November. “There may be some days that it will have to be closed for a day for paving, that sort of thing, next spring,” he added.