Follow-Up On Corruption In A Small Town, Well Put

Lisbon Maine is f$#@ed. It is one of the most corrupt towns I have seen in a long time. I have lived in this town on and off for almost 30 years. The locals are nice but the town officials are awful.

There is a garage in town - there is a auto mechanic there and next to it is a trailer. Most people dont even know the trailer exists, as it is hidden behind a fence and fairly obscure.

There is a local guy who runs an IT shop there, he does basic repairs, some web design and in home repairs. He gutted the entire trailer so it is a wide open room with desks on either side and made one of the bedrooms a store room, filled with shelves etc.

Now, the office trailer is in the village zone, meaning that no mobile homes used for people to live in are allowed to be there unless they are grandfathered. The town ordinances do allow an office trailer as long as it is temporary - the guys there are planning on building a new building for offices there this year.

The town just recently forced the land owner to remove the trailer completely. Stating it was a mobile home used for people to live in. Mind you, the code enforcement officer did not enter the trailer at all for an inspection he walked around the outside and said it was a mobile home and then tried to leave. Once he was confronted, he informed the owner and the IT guy that if he didnt declare it a mobile home he would lose his job. He was afraid Steve Eldridge (the town manager) would fire him, which would result in him losing his pension.

Another recent thing the town council decided to do - limit public speaking at town meetings. Now, I can understand limiting it, you don't want everyone talking over each other and having the meeting get out of hand. However, when someone from the public does go up to speak, and they bring up something the council does not want to here, they are instantly asked to leave and if they do not they are escorted out by the police.

Is...is this news? Chances are it was parked there because it was too dangerous to drive and unload elsewhere during the storm. Which is more important - enforcing a parking ban, or someones life?

No, he was not parked there due to the storm. He parks there all year round. He has never gotten a ticket. His wife is a council member for the town - so apparently this gives him a free ride to do what he wants.

So basically, if you don't live in this town and don't know the people, don't guess what it's like.

I know every town has corruption - its common. However, if you were to come to this town and start talking to people, you would find alot that is just flat out disgusting.

 http://www.reddit.com/r/Maine/comments/qgrdw/corruption_in_a_small_town_in_maine/

 Submitted by: Another Concerned Citizen in the Town of Lisbon