SPANIARD’S BAY — Newly elected Spaniard’s Bay Mayor Paul Brazil chaired his first meeting since being sworn in Monday night, Oct. 16.
Early into the meeting, concerns from the Spaniard’s Bay Volunteer Fire Department were brought forth to council. Questions were asked regarding medical assist calls, and whether or not the brigade is to respond to any, some, or all of them. It was noted that the previous council advised the department to respond to no medical assist calls, however, a week prior to Monday’s meeting, the brigade was advised to respond to a certain call regarding an accidental gunshot wound to a moose hunter near Tilton.
Coun. Tracy Smith, the town’s fire department liaison, was not present at Monday night’s meeting, though it was advised that council would hold a meeting with the brigade in the near future to discuss the matter.
Speed bumps
A letter from a resident on Chipman’s Road resulted in lengthy discussion between council members regarding the effectiveness of speed bumps in the community.
The letter, which was passed along to the public works committee, addressed the need for speed bumps, or speed moderation in certain parts of the Spaniard's Bay, however, some members of council were not convinced speed bumps would make much of a difference.
“I think we need to be looking into other ways to reduce speed in the community,” said Deputy Mayor Darlene Stamp. “(Speed bumps) don’t always work everywhere, and it really depends on where you place them. I’m sure there are other ways we can monitor speeds and keep them under control.”
Coun. Eric Jewer, who was reelected to his seat on council during this year’s municipal elections, agreed with Stamp’s notion that speed bumps aren’t the only solution.
“They were great in parking lots, or in front of school,” said Jewer. “But when you put them on long stretches of road, people are just going to speed right back up after driving over them.”
No major plans were made in regards to the letter, though council deduced that with the upcoming winter season fast approaching, they would have plenty of time to come up with a viable solution to the town’s speed problem.