pros/cons (Bangor, Orono, Old Town: house, university, pros and cons)

[budgey]

What are some of the pros and cons with living in an unorganized township vs. an organized township? Thanks

[Bydand]

Advantages:

Wicked cheap property taxes.
Not people crowding you on every side.
Generally, more rural and slower pace in life.
Usually hunt in your back yard if you have a mind to do that.
Restriction on animal ownership WAY reduced than "in town".


Cons:

Usually not the first place the plows hit during a storm.
Usually a longer drive to a bigger grocery store/ gas station/ movie/ etc....
Have to deal with the State for everything.

That is about all the negative things I can think of actually.


Forest will be a better post about the advantages of the UT's

[Submariner]

Bydand - Good post. About sums it up.

Wicked cheap property taxes

Boy howdy, you can say that again.

Not people crowding you on every side.

heh heh heh

Generally, more rural and slower pace in life.
Usually hunt in your back yard if you have a mind to do that.
Restriction on animal ownership WAY reduced than "in town".

A-yup

deal with folks on a handshake.

Our two kayaks tied up [in the water] behind the house all summer long.

If a person wanted to, they could set a trot lines in the water down by the river out behind the house.

I seriously thought about shooting a wild turkey out through our bathroom window a few months ago. But I did not, I stepped outside.

The game warden has stopped once to chase my goats back onto my land, and I thanked him, but he did not say anything about me needing to build a fence for them. He just wanted me to train them better to stay off the pavement.

Cons:

Usually not the first place the plows hit during a storm.
Usually a longer drive to a bigger grocery store/ gas station/ movie/ etc....
Have to deal with the State for everything.

Our road gets plowed first thing early after each storm. And maybe it gets sanded once a day after that.

I drive 7 miles of good road to get onto the I-95 freeway. Then 12 miles and I am in Bangor. I have lived in urban cities where I drove further to get to shopping or a hospital. We really do not consider this way far out into the sticks at all.

Two hospitals are in Bangor, airport, tonnes of shopping, etc. The Orono university is close if that means anything. To us the Alton grocery is close by. Old Town is close and has bars, a post office, dollar store, hardware store, grocery, a great bowling alley.

When I once completely ruined all of my clothing rolling in the swamp, trying to clean the stains out would have over-whelmed my clothes washer, I was able to go right into Orono by the freeway exit to the laundromat and I used their machines.

Now I know that when you say: 'pro/con' that 'con' usually means the bad stuff. Those 'con' things, don't seem so bad to me.

I filed my building permit with LURC through the mail. They approved it in about six weeks. I have had to get building permits in most places where we have owned property before, and I have rarely had a building permit approved so fast. To me they are fast and they did not present any arguments or added stipulations, and really have not given me any kind of grief that I have come to expect from city planners and fire marshals and housing authorities.

[Bydand]

Originally Posted by forest beekeeper

Trot lines in the water down by the river [still on my land].

I seriously thought about shooting a wild turkey out through our bathroom window a few months ago. But I did not, I stepped outside.

The cons I mentioned are just general. You did some homework, because Argyle is about the perfect location to have all the benefits of an UT with almost zero of the cons usually associated with the UT's.


A couple of things to remember though. Trot lines are against the law in Maine even for a landowner on his own land. They call them "set Lines" in Maine. This is an excerpt from the fishing rules

Illegal Implements, Use of. Except as otherwise provided, it is unlawful to fish with grapnel, spear, spear gun, trawl, weir, gaff, seine, gill net, trap, or set lines. (§12656)

Illegal Fishing. Except as otherwise provided, it is unlawful to fish other than by the use of the single baited hook and line, artificial flies, artificial lures, and spinners. (§12654)

Set Line. A line extending into the water and rigged to catch fish that has one end secured to the shore or to a fixed or buoyant object and that is not personally attended.

Two Line Restriction. It is unlawful to fish with more than 2 lines at any one time during the open water season.

Still have to follow the open season rules and regulations on your own property.

And for the Turkey there are a few things landowners have to remember about taking one. This is from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife site and their hunting rule book as well.

Landowners

Any private landowner is eligible to hunt Wild Turkeys on their own land without a Wild Turkey permit during the Spring Wild Turkey hunting season or the Fall Wild Turkey hunting season if:

1. that person owns a particular piece of land that is 25 or more contiguous acres in size and is located within the turkey hunting zone designated for the season that they wish to hunt;
2. that person is permanently domiciled on that land;
3. the land is managed for the raising and selling of dairy cattle, dairy products, or beef cattle; and
4. the land is open to hunting including hunting by permission.

Any family member permanently domiciled on that land is also eligible to hunt Wild Turkeys on that land without a Wild Turkey permit.

A family member means any family member of legal hunting age, including spouse, children, grandchildren, etc. who resides on the property.

A landowner must provide proof of eligibility if requested by an agent of the commissioner.

Eligible persons may take one Wild Turkey per season, in accordance with all laws and rules of that open season including weapon restrictions, tagging, and reporting requirements.

Landowners and eligible family members may hunt during any open week of the Wild Turkey hunting season regardless of their year of birth.

Not saying you did take the Gobbler wrong at all, just don't want others to get the wrong impression and get nabbed while thinking they were in the right. People get lazy about reading the regulations and might miss the part regarding landowners.

Sounds like you have a slice of your own paradise down there Forest. I would love to have a place I could leave the water craft in the water all year. Boats, Canoes, kayaks, all of them I have kicking around my place. Very relaxing to take a float on the river, or lake and listen to the Loons, and other wildlife right around sunset. I love sitting in the shallows and having a Moose poke out of the trees and wade in to start munching on the tender bottom grasses.

[Submariner]

I am telling you that turkey was attacking my goats.

[Bydand]

Sounds good to me! How was it? Never had wild Turkey (the animal) before. Had a lot of other wild game but that is one I haven't had the chance to try.

[Boomerang]

My brother used to call his U.T. a "Disorganized Township" :->