Residents at the annual town meeting turned down a proposed ordinance that would have slowed growth on the town’s west side.

The intent of the growth ordinance, said selectman Joan Mooney, was to limit the number of building permits that can be issued in parts of town that are not serviced by public water and sewer lines.

But residents voted strongly against the ordinance, so there will be no limits on growth this year, Mooney said.

The town’s $14.6 million budget was passed, with a few minor modifications.
Residents also approved a $1.3 million project to replace the sea wall at Webhannet Drive, which sustained heavy damage during storms over the past two years.

The town meeting, held at Wells High School, included balloting on Friday and a moderated discussion on Saturday, which drew about 100 people.

James Spiller was re-elected as a selectman, beating Russell Fox and Richard Lambert in the only contested municipal race.

A moment of silence was held Saturday for Harold Pauk Jr., the longtime manager of the town transfer station, who committed suicide earlier this month at the facility.

Voters at Saturday’s annual town meeting approved a budget that will result in a tax rate decrease and also implements a mandatory recycling program.

Town Manager Dana Lee said the town’s property tax rate should decrease by about $1.60 from the current rate of $24.50 per $1,000 of a property’s valuation.

Lee said the town voted to adopt a mandatory recycling program effective July 1. He said the town will require residents to place recyclables in a single stream bin at the town transfer station, a move he predicts could save as much as $25,000 in waste disposal costs.

In the town election Friday, Peter Bolduc Jr., who ran unopposed, was elected to the Board of Selectmen. Norm Davis and Martha Stone, who ran as a write-in candidate, were elected to the School Committee.

Voters elected a new selectman and eliminated funding for the Turner Center for the Arts at their annual election and town meeting.

In Friday’s election, Richard Keene defeated challengers Jeffrey Timberlake and Calvin Rose Sr. for the only available selectman’s seat. He replaces Joan Bryant Deschenes, who decided to run for a seat in the state House of Representatives.

Town Manager Eva Leavitt said residents at Saturday’s town meeting voted to dissolve the Turner Center for the Arts Board and withhold $12,825 in funding for the center.

Leavitt said the board was having difficulty raising funds to pay for its overhead expenses. The 3-year-old center occupied space in the Leavitt Institute building, which also houses the town library and a town history museum.

Voters re-elected Denise LaCasse-LaFlamme to the Board of Selectmen and gave tentative approval to a school consolidation proposal that would send local students to Freeport High School.

LaCasse-LaFlamme, who received 175 votes Friday in the three-way race for two openings, was returned to the board along with former Selectwoman Christine Charette, who received 159 votes. Catherine Curtis finished last.

Town Clerk Shannon Plourde said voters by a 168-123 margin approved two school referendums, which authorize the Durham School Committee to enter into a contract with Freeport to send students to Freeport High.

Most of Durham’s high school students currently attend Brunswick High School. Durham must finalize its school choice options at a townwide vote set for June 10.