How OOB government actually works

The five-member Town Council

OOB elects five councilors at-large. Terms are three years and staggered, so one or two seats come up most years. The council picks a chair from among its own members at the first meeting after each election, so the chair is not separately elected by voters.

Council sets policy, adopts the operating budget, passes ordinances, and hires (and can fire) the town manager. Councilors are not full-time and do not run individual departments. They do appoint members to the fifteen boards and committees that handle planning, zoning appeals, design review, finance, and conservation.

The Town Manager

The town manager is hired by the council and runs day-to-day operations. The manager supervises every department head, prepares the draft budget for council, executes council policy, and signs most contracts. In OOB the manager oversees roughly 100 full-time and 100 seasonal staff out of Town Hall at 1 Portland Avenue.

As of May 2026 the manager seat is in transition following Diana Asanza. Confirm the current status on the Town Manager page at oobmaine.com before relying on a specific name.

How the budget gets adopted

The cycle runs March through June. The town manager and finance department prepare a draft. Council holds workshops with each department head in March and April to question line items. A public hearing follows in May, then council votes to adopt in June for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

Residents can speak at any workshop or at the formal public hearing. Posted agendas list the dollar figures by department, so showing up with a specific question on a specific line item is far more effective than a general comment.

How ordinances get passed

Maine towns use a two-reading process. A proposed ordinance is introduced (first reading), then a public hearing is scheduled and noticed, then the council holds the second reading and votes. Most changes take a minimum of four to six weeks from introduction to adoption.

Recent examples include the short-term rental ordinance and Chapter 78 on lodging-to-condo conversion. Both went through multiple workshops before final votes.

How a citizen brings an issue to the town

Three normal channels. One, contact your councilors directly through the council page on oobmaine.com (every councilor has a public email). Two, sign up to speak during the public comment portion of any regular council meeting. Three, file a written request with the town clerk or the relevant department, which becomes part of the public record.

For a code or rental complaint, call Code Enforcement at (207) 934-5714. For a public records request, the town clerk is the right office.

Where to watch meetings

Live and archived video runs on Town Hall Streams at townhallstreams.com/towns/oob_maine and on the Town of Old Orchard Beach YouTube channel. Both archives go back several years and are searchable by date.

Council meetings are typically held twice a month on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Town Hall. Always confirm on the posted agenda; summer schedules sometimes shift.

Where to find current ordinances

The full code of ordinances is hosted at library.municode.com/me/old_orchard_beach. It is updated within weeks of each council adoption. Search by chapter number or keyword. The short-term rental rules sit in Chapter 78; zoning is Chapter 78 Article IV; the building code is Chapter 26.