Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-08-10 City Council Minutes MINUTES OFREGULAR MEETING BANGOR CITYCOUNCIL—AUGUST I0, 2026 Meeting called to order at 7:00 PM Chaired by Council Chair Hawes Councilors Absent:None Meeting adjourned at 8:36 PM PUBLIC COMMENT Tim Riley spoke regarding the needles, cans and other trash around the City. Teresa Fallon stated her daughter was the victim of racial discrimination and wanted people to think about what they are teaching children. Hilari Simmons did not want the City to fund the Together Place. Jacquline Smallwood asked that the City slow down on Project Hope. CONSENT AGENDA ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. COUNCILOR *Explanatory Note:All items listed in the Consent Agenda are considered routine and are proposed for adoption by the City Council by one motion without discussion or deliberation.Any member of the public may request that the Council remove an item from the Consent Agenda for discussion. An item will only be removed if a City Councilor requests its removal to New Business. Councilor Mallar requested that Council Order 26-247 be moved to New Business, MINUTES OF: Bangor City Council Regular Meeting of July 27,2026, Government Operations Committee Meetings of January S,2026,February 2,2026, and February I8,2026, and Business and Economic Development Committee Meetings of June 1,2026,June 1 S,2026, and July 6,2026 Action: Approved 26-246 ORDER Authorizing the Sale of Properry Located at 10 Hersey Avenue LEONARD to Hershey Rental LLC in the Amount of$IS,000 Action: Passed 26-248 ORDER Authorizing the City Manager to Execute a Construction DEANE Contract with Sargent Corporation for the Penjajawoc Sewer I-95 Crossing Project Action: Passed 26-249 ORDER Authorizing the City Manager to Execute a Sole Source BECK Contract with Coastal Traffic,Inc.for MioVision Cameras for Bangor Traffic Signal Upgrades Action: Passed Page 1 MINUTES OFREGULAR MEETING BANGOR CITYCOUNCIL—AUGUST 10, 2026 CONSENT AGENDA ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. COUNCILOR 26-250 ORDER Authorizing the City Manager to Execute a Collective WALKER Bargaining Agreement between the City of Bangor and Bangor Federation of Public Employees,Local 6071, Representing the Fleet Services and Ground Support Equipment Employees Action: Passed REFERRALS TO COMMITTEE AND FIRST READING ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. CDUNCILOR 26-251 ORDER Authorizing Issuance of$4,455,000 of the City's General DEANE Obligation Bonds to Finance Upgrades and Improvements to the KMart Pump Station, and Other Sewer/Sewer SeparationlCSO Infrastructure Improvements and a Tax Levy Therefor Action: First Reading and Referral to Finance Committee on August l7,2026 26-252 ORDER Authorizing a Loan in the Amount of$6,575,000 from the DEANE Maine Municipal Bond Bank State Revolving Fund to Finance Replacement of the Perry Road Pump Station, and Other Sewer/Sewer Separation/CSO Infrastructure Improvements and a Tax Levy Therefor(First Reading and Referral to Finance Committee on August l7,2026) Action: First Reading and Referral to Finance Co`rzmittee on August 17,2026 26-253 RESOL VE Accepting and Appropriating up to $300,000 from BECK MaineHousing with a$126,000 Match from Bangor Opioid Settlement Unspent Funds to Support Project HOPE Action: First Reading and Referral to Government Operations Committee`rzeeting on August 17, 2026 UNFINISHED BUSINESS ASSIGNED TO ITEM NO. COUNCILOR PUBLIC HEARING: 26-242 ORDER Authorizing the Execution of a Credit Enhancement LEONARD Agreement with Bangor Housing Development Corporation for a Portion of the Property Addressed at 205 Corporate Drive Page 2 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETIN B G ANGOR CITYCOUNCIL—AUGUST 10, 2026 UNFINISHED BUSINESS ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. COUNCILOR Action: Motion made and seconded to open Public Hearing Public Hearing Opened Michael Furrow,Hilari Simmons,Emily Ellis,Michael N'ood, Jacqueline Smallwood spoke against the Order. Justin Russell stated that any action costs money. Jennifer Lawler,Adam Baker, and Chris Saunders spoke in support of the Order. Mike Myatt,Bangor Housing,stated the project would have an impact but regardless there would still be homelessness. He stated that without the TIF the project could not move forward Motion made and seconded to close the Public Hearing Public Hearing Closed Motion made and seconded to Amend by Substitution by amending the first line to state the City Manager, or her designee, is hereby authorized to execute and place conditions upon a credit enhancement agreement. Vote: 8—1 Councilors Voting Yes: Carson,Deane, Faloon, Fish,Leonard,Mallar, Walker, Hawes Councilors Voting No:Beck Passed to Amend by Substitution Motion made and seconded for Passage as Amended Vote: 6—3 Councilors Voting Yes:Beck, Carson,Deane, Faloon,Leonard, Walker Councilors Voting No:Fish,Mallar,Hawes Passed as Amended PUBLIC HEARING: 26-243 ORDER Authorizing the Creation of a Tax Increment Financing FALOON District for Affordable Housing for a Portion of Property Addressed at 205 Corporate Drive with Bangor Housing Development Corporation Action: Motion made and seconded to open Public Hearing Public Hearing Opened Suzette Furrow asked if pedophiles were allowed to live in Yellen Pines and were they created a district of lawlessness. Hilari Simmons asked how many Councilors were paying taxes in the City. She wanted to know if Yellen Pines would be drug free. She asked if they were encouraging the problem or solving the problem and felt they needed to start thinking about what is best for all the citizens of Bangor. Page 3 MINUTES OFREGULAR MEETING BANGOR CITYCOUNCIL—AUGUST 10, 2026 UNFINISHED BUSINESS ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. COUNCILOR Mike Furrow asked if the TIF would apply to the Hope House or Theresa's Place. How much destruction is being done in the place in Portland and how�nuch is the destruction of Yellen Pines going to cost. Mike Myatt stated that pedophiles would not be housed at Yellen Pines. Motion made and seconded to close Public Hearing Public Hearing Closed Motion made and seconded for Passage Vote: 6—3 Councilors Voting Yes:Beck, Carson,Deane, Faloon,Leonard, Walker Councilors Voting No: Fish,Mallar,Hawes Motion Passed NEWBUSINESS ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. COUNCILOR 26-247 ORDER Appointing Nominees to Various Boards and Committees DEANE Suzette Furrow commented that Michael Myatt is a resident of Hermon and she didn't understand why they put people on committees who do not live in Bangor and he benefits from the industrial homeless comple.� She indicated Janet Jonas sits on the Planning Board and is also a board member of Dignity First. She thought nzore attention should be given when they have people on these committees and their conflicts and potential financial gain. Action: Motion made and seconded for Passage Vote:S—4 Councilors Voting Yes:Beck,Deane, Faloon,Leonard, Walker Councilors Voting No: Carson, Fish,Mallar,Hawes Passed 26-254 ORDER Authorizing the Official Naming of the Baseball Field at WALKER Mansfield Stadium in Honor of Ronald J. St. Pierre Action: Motion made and seconded for Passage Vote: 9—0 � Councilors Voting Yes:Beck, Carson,Deane, Faloon, Fish, Leonard,Mallar, Walker,Hawes Councilors Voting No:None Passed Page 4 MINUTES OFREGULAR MEETING BANGOR CITY COUNCIL—AUGUST 10, 2026 NEW BUSINESS ASSIGNED TO ITEMNO. COUNCILOR 26-255 ORDER Authorizing the City Manager's Appointment of Eric Pelletier LEONARD As Fire Chief Action: Motion made and seconded for Passage Vote: 9—0 Councilors Voting Yes:Beck, Carson,Deane, Faloon,Fish, Leonard,Mallar, Walker,Hawes Councilors Voting No:None - Passed l�_ _� ATTEST: is J. Good in,MMC, City Clerk Page 5 Good evening.My name is Teresa Fallon.I'm a mother of three,a person in recovery,a case manager,and a resident of Bangor. I'm here tonight because my daughters,who are now nine and ten years old,have experienced racial discrimination in this community for years.It began when my youngest daughter was only six years old. My children have been called racial slurs and had insults made toward their skin and their hair.Recently,at summer camp,a child would not pass the ball to my daughter and said,"I'm not aliowed to touch Black people." What I want to talk about is bigger than what has happened to my own children. Discrimination takes on many forms—we discriminate based on the color of someone's skin,whether they have a home, whether they struggle with addiction,and even where someone was born. These painful experiences do not just disappear when the moment is over.They leave a life-long impact. Recently,a video was made to discredit the experiences I have publicly shared about my children.The creators of that video do not deserve recognition from me.But I do want to say this:when a parent speaks out about discrimination their child has experienced—or when anyone expresses that they have experienced discrimination—our response should not be to immediately question,dismiss,or discredit their experience.it should be to listen. I think we need to talk about where children learn these things. Children are not born believing that someone is less worthy because of the color of their skin.They are not born believing that someone is less worthy because they are unhoused,strugg�ing with addiction,poor,or simply different from them. They learn it from us. They hear the conversations happening at home.They hear the jokes and the comments.They hear the way adults speak about people who look different from them.They also hear the way adults in this community speak about people experiencing homelessness and substance use disorder right now. Eventually,they repeat those things to other children.They begin to believe that our differences,our circumstances,or our hardships make some people less dese"rving of dignity than others. Adults and parents have to be willing to look at what we are teaching our children through the way we speak and behave. My daughters should not have had,to learn how to respond to racism at six years old.They should not have to wonder whether someone will make a comment about their skin or their hair when they walk into a new space.And no child should have to hear someone they love reduced to a label because they are struggling with substance use disorder or homelessness. I'm standing here because I believe we can do better. I want my daughters—and every child in Bangor—to grow up knowing that the adults in their community will take discrimination seriously,that we don't leave people behind because of their hardships,and that we are willing to hold ourselves accountable for the environment we are creating for them. Our children are learning from us. And what we teach them today is the community they will create tomorrow. Thank you.