By Lisa Wilcox
Staff Writer
CARIBOU — The Aroostook County Commissioners met in the Caribou Courthouse on June 19, approving an interlocal agreement with the city of Caribou and the North Lakes Volunteer Fire Department, and a two-year lease agreement with Maine Pretrial Services Inc.
Caribou’s interlocal agreement with NLVFD is in the amount of $1,126 for one year. The two-year lease agreement with Maine Pretrial Services is in the amount of $9,771, allowing the agency use of office space in the Caribou Courthouse building. Maine Pretrial Services is a non-profit agency that provides pretrial bail supervision of defendants who are charged with crimes or probation violations and might otherwise have to wait in jail until trial.
The commissioners also approved awarding a West Gate Road in Limestone paving project to Lane Construction and authorized County Administrator Doug Beaulieu to negotiate a price with the current contractor who provides snow removal for the Fort Kent Registry Building. The snow removal project had gone out to bid, but no responses were received.
Beaulieu provided the commissioners with a Board of Corrections update, advising that Michael Tausek, executive director of the BOC, had submitted his resignation. Tausek will be moving over to the Department of Corrections as the deputy warden at the Maine State Prison in charge of programming. Beaulieu expressed that he felt Tausek’s resignation was a big loss to the counties because of the director’s sympathy and passion for county government.
Aroostook County Sheriff Jim Madore and Chief Deputy Sheriff Craig Clossey provided the commissioners with a spreadsheet that outlined the Sheriffs’ Department’s response to the DOC’s Aroostook County Jail inspection report. The Sheriffs’ Department will be sending their formal response to the issues to the BOC. The commissioners were happy with the report and the department’s plan of action.
Madore also updated the commissioners on Maine DOC Commissioner Joseph Ponte and members of his staff meeting with the Sheriffs’ Department to discuss the cause behind the Aroostook County Jail’s overcrowding and possible solutions to the problem.
According to Madore, the meeting concluded that a jump in the pre-trial population has contributed to the overcrowding problem. Ponte has divided his staff into different areas to research possible solutions such as work programs, pre-trial programs, housing and staffing. Madore reported that a few of the commissioner’s staff also visited the jail for a tour.
County Commissioner Norm Fournier provided the commissioners with an update on the Maine County Commissioners Association and the insurance risk pool. He explained that a major claim will most likely be filed against the risk pool as the Cumberland County Courthouse had a serious flood and a great deal of records were lost.
Fournier then reported on the MCCA’s vote regarding a proposed stipend for a lobbyist. According to Fournier, half of the group felt that the lobbyist should not get anything and half felt that they should. Fournier proposed reimbursing the lobbyist with a $4,000 stipend, which the MCCA approved.
The next County Commissioners meeting will be held in Houlton on Wednesday, July 17, at 4:30.
