LUBEC — The Board of Selectmen met this week to consider the future of several historically significant sites, including the red house owned by the town of Lubec.
There was also discussion about who might take responsibility for repairing the triangular border navigation marker on the Gun Rock breakwater.
The board also addressed budget issues, zoning concerns tied to development near the town’s airport and a gift to the town that will fund improvements at Stockford Park.
The red house overlooking Johnson Bay may be nearing the end of its days. The building at 123 Main St., built in 1850, needs a new roof, but as the board began discussing maintenance costs, audience member Carl Hood reported seeing erosion damage to the foundation serious enough to raise questions about the structure’s overall soundness.
Discussion then shifted to weighing the pros and cons of demolishing the building versus selling it.
Board Chair Carol Dennison explained that the purchase was made with about $300,000 in federal grant money through the Safe Harbor Initiative.
The last resident was Annie Gerrish, a local teacher.
On the other side of the Lubec peninsula, a new development has emerged in the story of the Gun Rock border marker.
Harbormaster Ralph Dennison told Monitor Local two weeks ago that he had filed multiple reports on the deteriorating triangular marker with two federal agencies — the Army Corps of Engineers, which last made significant improvements to the breakwater in 1956, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Neither agency responded. Now, a century‑old international organization might be stepping in.
At Wednesday’s meeting, Town Administrator Suzette Francis told the board she had received an email from Graig Hill, engineering technician with the International Boundary Commission’s Eastern Regional Field Office. Hill wrote that Range Mark 27, which sits at the end of the breakwater, along with “all other Range Marks and survey control points” on Passamaquoddy Bay, should be renewed and repaired for their historical significance.
Hill said the renovated marker could serve as a tourist attraction and benefit local businesses. He added that he plans to raise the issue with International Boundary Commission leadership next month in Washington, D.C., and hopes to have an update on the project by March.
The International Boundary Commission was founded in 1908 by a treaty between the United States and the United Kingdom, which signed on behalf of Canada, then under British jurisdiction, to “define and mark the boundary” between the two countries.
Three local residents — Ricky Wilcox, David Ward and Brian Fernald — were reported to have taken part in other International Boundary Commission projects in the western United States.
In other matters, the board’s budget discussion centered on how best to approach the upcoming talks. Selectman Mark Kelley moved to change the schedule and format, arguing that department heads should be included more often. He also pushed for an open, unmoderated format.
The first meeting is set for 3 to 5 p.m. Jan. 28 at the Town Office. The second is scheduled for 3 to 5 p.m. Feb. 11, also at the Town Office. Both will be open to the public and may be broadcast on Zoom and Facebook. Each will be followed by the regularly scheduled Board of Selectmen meeting at 5 p.m.
The board discussed a zoning issue involving a garage built on land next to the town airport. Lubec Public Works raised concerns that parking at the garage could interfere with the town’s use and maintenance of the airport.
Code Enforcement Officer Alex Henry said that without a local land use ordinance, the town’s Planning Board has no jurisdiction to approve or deny such projects.
The town’s last attempt to pass a land‑use ordinance was rejected by voters in August.
Francis also announced a gift being left to the town.
Tracey Hair of the Maine Community Foundation, a philanthropic group based in Ellsworth and Portland, told the town it will receive a $75,000 gift. A benefactor to the foundation died without a will, and under MCF policy, the money is directed to causes the donor supported in life.
The unnamed benefactor was a longtime supporter of Stockford Park, and the Maine Community Foundation asked that the gift be earmarked for the park’s maintenance.
Dickie Huntley of Lubec Public Works said part of the money will go toward the town’s matching share of a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant to restore shoreline protections at the park.
A rabies clinic is scheduled for noon to 2 p.m. Jan. 29 at the Lubec Fire Station on School Street. Shots will be $10 for dogs and $20 for cats, administered by veterinarian Dr. Brandi Smith of Mount Desert Island. Prepayment may be made at the Town Office and is reimbursable.
Editor’s note: This story was updated to reflect the “red house” is owned by the town of Lubec, not the Historical Society.
