ORFORD — Voters on Town Meeting Day will weigh in on a contested race for a seat on the Selectboard, and a municipal budget of more than $1.1 million.
Ruth Hook, a longtime member of the Budget Advisory Ccommittee, is challenging Selectman Fred Kidder II for a three-year term on the Selectboard. In 2019, Kidder was elected to finish out the term of a selectman who stepped aside, while Hook finished third in a three-way race for a three-year seat. All other elected posts on the Australian ballot show incumbents running uncontested, and two open Planning Board seats with no candidates.
The proposed operating budget calls for the town to spend about $60,000 more than the amount voters approved in 2019. Among warrant articles separate from the operating budget, town officials are asking for more than $276,000 to bolster 12 capital-reserve funds, including $146,000 for work on bridges and roads.
The warrant also includes a petitioned article seeking to make the road agent an elected position, rather than appointed by the Selectboard. Voters at the 2018 Town Meeting rejected a similar proposal by a floor vote of 43-24.
Orford Town Meeting will start at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 10, in the gymnasium of Rivendell Academy off Route 25A. Ballot voting for Selectboard, Planning Board and town treasurer runs from 4 to 9 p.m.