Town office services for New Sharon residents available in Chesterville

NEW SHARON – The Board of Selectmen signed an agreement with the town of Chesterville at an emergency meeting Saturday, arranging services for residents after a burst pipe closed the town office earlier this week.

On Tuesday, a pipe associated with the furnace system burst in a back room at the town office, sending hot water and steam rushing into the building. While no one was hurt in the incident, the building has been closed. The town office is an old high school built in 1950 that was purchased by the town years ago after the district consolidated.

As the seamed pipe that burst was wrapped in asbestos insulation, Board Chair Lorna Dee Nichols said in an email Saturday, air quality within the building is now an issue. The asbestos and air quality issues would need to addressed before the office could reopen for business, and the building remains closed to the public.

Nichols said that the town signed the agreement with Chesterville at an emergency session. New Sharon residents may travel to the Chesterville Town Office at 409 Dutch Gap Road for all of their motor vehicle needs: new registrations, re-registrations, trailer registrations, etc. The Chesterville Town Office hours are Tuesday and Wednesday, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; and Thursday, from noon to 7 p.m.

Chesterville is providing the service at no cost to New Sharon, Nichols said.

New Sharon also has online registration services through Rapid Renewal, which will continue to work for preexisting vehicle registration renewals.

Nichols said that the board was working to secure a voting location for the town for the Nov. 5 election. The board is also looking for temporary space for the town clerk, treasurer, assessor’s agent and code enforcement officer.

“We again apologize for any inconvenience caused to our residents and ask for your continued patience as we work to restore full services as quickly and safely as we can,” Nichols said.