Residents urge Finance Committee to study dam removal’s financial impact; public asks when dashboard will be public

During public comment, resident John Linehan urged the Finance Committee to invite Dr. Ruth Moore to present her analysis of the financial consequences of removing local dams, saying her presentation showed a potentially "devastating effect" on Ellsworth's finances.

Linehan (157 Shore Road) told the committee he had attended a community meeting that included a 15–20 minute PowerPoint by Dr. Moore and recommended the committee or council hear the same presentation, either privately or at a council meeting, so officials can understand the fiscal trade-offs.

Another resident, Raymond Williams (56 Hancock Street), asked when the Power BI dashboard demonstrated earlier in the meeting would be available for public viewing. Williams said he wanted a chance to review the dashboard and noted the contractor's presentation confirmed his view that the assessing function has been kept current.

Josh Berry, the assessing contractor, replied that a surface-level public view might be possible this summer but said he would be "more comfortable waiting until we have a good grasp on the data itself and make sure we're not putting things out there that's gonna cause a lot of commotion for the city and council." He said staff is working on a plan for a public-facing version once the internal commitment and data validation are complete.

Why it matters: A formal cost analysis of dam removal could have budgetary implications for the city and should be considered by the Finance Committee as it plans budgets; public access to the dashboard bears on transparency and residents' ability to review assessment data ahead of budget and rate decisions.

Next steps: The chair said staff will follow up on the suggestion to invite Dr. Moore and the committee will work with Berry on timing for any public-facing dashboard release; the meeting adjourned with a reminder of the Thursday budget workshop.