While one-half of the former interlocal committee is still deciding on its next move, the other half has already formed a department and committee.

The Damariscotta Board of Selectmen agreed, 5-0, on Wednesday, Nov. 18 to create a new public works committee that will oversee the newly formed department.

The committee will feature selectmen George Parker and Joshua Pinkham who were both part of the transition committee, which guided the new department through the ending of the interlocal agreement.

The new committee will be made up of staff members and selectmen and will help guide the newly minted Damariscotta Public Works Department through its inception.

Newcastle and Damariscotta had partnered on a shared public works department for several years but the agreement came to an end in July. The two towns agreed to an October 31 extension while the final details of the split were hammered out.

The two towns almost split during Damariscotta's town meeting, before ultimately deciding to split later in the summer.

Newcastle held a public meeting in October where the town voted against forming a stand-alone department.

Damariscotta has a pair of contractors – Hagar Enterprises and Sprague's Excavation – for its public works needs and recently appointed Hugh Priebe as foreman to oversee the day-to-day operations.

“The transition committee met Nov. 17 and did a tour of the town roads,” Town Manager Matt Lutkus said during the Nov. 18 meeting. “Based on that, Hugh came up with a draft assessment of all the roads in town, and we're asking Hugh, George and Josh to review it.

“It's an excellent start. Based on our roads inventory we can start developing a work plan for the coming fiscal year and get to work on a five-year plan.”

Parker said the draft assessment was a highly organized look at Damariscotta's roads.

“I was pleased that Hugh knew the conditions of each of the roads before we went (and saw them),” he said, adding that the department's first year will face a number of uncertainties. “There's going to be a learning curve that first year for everyone. Hopefully, it can be fairly seamless.”

Pinkham said that having a work plan in place, and knowing where work crews will be expected, will be a boon to the town as it moves forward.

“Once we get a work plan and know what to do, each part of the year will be a lot easier,” he said.