Lubec School Board takes no action on dispute over playground access

The Maine Monitor · Ethan Bien · September 8, 2026

A quarter‑century after the playground was built at Lubec Elementary School, access to it has become a contentious issue. Photo by Ethan Bien.

LUBEC — A dispute over control of the community playground at Lubec Elementary School on South Street dominated last week’s School Board meeting, as residents objected to a new rule barring public use during school hours.

The community-funded playground has long been open to the public during school hours, but the school now bars public use at those times.

Although board members and residents offered several possible solutions, the issue appears unlikely to be resolved before the board’s next meeting.

Reached later by telephone, School Board Chairwoman Trisha McCurdy said: “I think we need to have more conversation. I believe we can do this amicably, and I do believe this can be resolved.”

School Board members met Wednesday with Select Board Chairwoman Carol Dennison, Alternative Organizational Structure 77 Superintendent MaryEllen Day and Playground Committee members Alex Henry and Ian Lookabaugh to discuss the issue. The conversation produced several potential solutions, but the board did not take up any of them Thursday night.

Access to the playground, built on school property by volunteers in 1999, has been a point of contention since earlier this summer when Sandra Teran and her children were asked by a teacher to leave because students were using it. The incident sparked a broader debate over whether the playground is a school‑administered space or a community resource open to all.

The Lubec school administration maintains that the playground has always been under school control because it sits on school property.

The Playground Committee, made up of local parents and volunteers, disagrees.

Melissa Lee, who led the volunteer group that built the playground, said Thursday night: “The School Board gave authorization (in 1998) for a community playground — not a school playground — to be built on school property. And in my mind, that does not give the school authorization over what happens on that playground.”

Henry proposed Thursday night that the school sell the land beneath the playground to the town, allowing the town to administer it.

“If we have a problem with liability, let’s stick to the intent — what the community intended 25 years ago,” he said.

The community playground is one of three play areas on school grounds. Two others were built by the school: a small fenced‑in playground at the northeast end of the building for younger students, and a large recreational space behind the school with swing sets, a basketball court, and a jungle gym.

No one at the meeting was certain when the back playground was built, though some of the equipment came from Hilltop School — the large brick building that served as Lubec’s elementary school from 1914 until 1956, when classes moved to the current site.

The former Hilltop School property now houses the Town Office, emergency medical services and the Fire Department.

Day acknowledged that the playground behind the school has been neglected, saying tight budgets have left no money for maintenance or improvements.

“Where is the money going to come from?” Day said. “I’ve never seen a piece of equipment put in in Washington County by the taxpayers’ budget.”

The former Hilltop School, which served as the elementary school in Lubec from 1914 to 1956, now houses the Town Office, emergency medical services and the Fire Department. Some of the playground equipment at Lubec Elementary School was moved from Hilltop when the new school opened. Photo courtesy Maine Memory Network.

School Board member Richard Huntley added that the board once considered purchasing new equipment, but the idea never made it through budgeting.

“We cut the $10,000 or $15,000 that we were looking to spend,” he said.

Teran, whose children are home‑schooled, proposed forming a volunteer committee or parent‑teacher organization to raise money for maintaining and improving the back playground.

“It is possible to write grants. It is possible to fundraise. It is possible to fix the playground behind the school,” she said. “I don’t even have kids in this school, and I would be willing to help this School Board fundraise, starting tomorrow.”

School Board member Wanda Reed suggested the board make a motion to form such a committee, but McCurdy said a motion was unnecessary.

Huntley proposed leasing the property to the Playground Committee for a year to give the effort to improve the back playground time to take hold. The board did not take up that idea.

Reached by telephone after the meeting, Henry said the Playground Committee would meet again with School Board members this week to develop a proposal the board could vote on next month.

“We’re not willing to accept any compromise that limits community access,” he said.

Home schooling policy

Teran also asked the board for clarification on the school’s home schooling policy.

“Are there any plans to adopt one? Because Lubec is the only school within the Sunrise County (School System) that does not have one,” she said.

She said she searched the district website for a policy and found only evidence of a previous School Board discussion that ended without one being adopted.

The School Board last voted on a home schooling policy in November 2019, but the proposal failed, 2-3.

Under state law, parents who elect to home-school their children must register with their school district. Parents or guardians in the unorganized territories register with the Maine Department of Education’s special education director.

Day said she now has six registered home-schooled students in Lubec.

Board reorganization and updates

McCurdy was reelected as School Board chair, with Jane Lanctot succeeding Reed as vice chair.

Reed asked the board to again consider broadcasting School Board meetings, noting that other town meetings are broadcast.

McCurdy said they would need someone to manage the live feed and respond to viewer questions, and that AOS 77 has been advertising for that position.

Application information is available on the school district’s website .

Read the full story at The Maine Monitor