Vassalboro extends winning streak in annual report competition
Photo / Maureen Milliken
Vassalboro, Freeport and Swan's Island town reports are among the winners in this year's Maine Municipal Association Annual Report Competition.
You could call Vassalboro the New England Patriots of the Maine Municipal Association Annual Report Competition, but the town is better than that.
The Patriots may have won six Super Bowls since 2002, but that's nothing compared to the streak the community of 4,200 along the Kennebec River has run up — eight first-place wins in its population division in as many years in the contest that ranks town reports.
No other town in Maine can make such a claim.
The annual competition, which has been held for more than 50 years, recognizes the best reports produced by the towns, judging on quality of content (60%), organization (20%) and visual appeal (20%). The towns compete in five population categories: 5,000 and over; 2,500 to 4,999; 1,000 to 2,499; 500 to 999; and under 500. First place winners are deemed Supreme, followed by Superior (second place) and Excellence (third place).
The municipal reports typically include budget information, and sometimes the meeting warrant, delinquent tax rolls, town department information, tributes to residents who have died and more. More than 140 municipalities entered their 2019 reports this year, according to the MMA.
Freeport, another perennial winner, won the 5,000-and-over category. If Vassalboro is the Patriots, then Freeport is the Pittsburgh Steelers — lots of appearances, not the same run of wins, with four Supreme ratings (including this year's), three Superiors and one Excellence.
Other winners were Mount Desert, Alna and Swan’s Island.
Winning municipalities will be presented with framed certificates, and their awards will be announced during the MMA Virtual Convention, to be held Oct. 7-15.
This year's winners
5,000 and over: Freeport, Supreme; Caribou, Superior; Gardiner and Bar Harbor (tie), Excellence.
2,500 to 4,999: Vassalboro, Supreme; China, Superior; North Berwick, Excellence.
1,000 to 2,499: Mount Desert, Supreme (finished second last year); Gouldsboro, Superior; Lamoine, Excellence.
500 to 999: Alna, Supreme (finished third last year); Carrabassett Valley, Superior (last year's winner); Bremen and Sebec (tie), Excellence.
Under 500: Swan’s Island, Supreme; Kingsbury Plantation, Superior (finished third last year); Weld, Excellence.
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