Date: Fri 05-Apr-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

budget-council

Full Text:

Council Sends Budget To Town Vote

B Y K AAREN V ALENTA

Legislative Council Tueday night gave final approval to the proposed $50.3

million budget for 1996-97. The budget automatically will go to a referendum

scheduled for April 23.

Acting three days after the final public hearing, which was held last Saturday

(see related story), the council voted 11-1 to accept the budget. Council

Member Joseph McGowan voted against the budget after unsuccessfully asking the

council to remove $2.8 million in debt service for the proposed high school

addition.

"It's not that I don't believe the addition should be built eventually - I

think it should be - but I do not think the taxpayers at this time, in this

budget year, should have to pay for a high school addition," Mr McGowan said.

Melissa Pilchard, council vice chairman, said that if the $2.8 million is

removed from the budget, there will be a fiscal crisis if the voters approve

the building project this spring. "It's much easier to take the money out then

to get it back," she warned. "I don't think it's prudent planning to take it

out, but I agree it's a lot of money."

Council members Win Ballard and Jack Rosenthal said that because of the

property revaluation and the town's sewer project, there won't be a better

year for the town to add more debt. Delaying the high school project now would

mean a loss of state aid and the money already spent for architects' fees,

plus potentially higher construction costs.

"The ramifications seem to outweigh the advantages of delaying," Council

member Gail Halapin said.

"The idea of delaying should have come sooner in the planning process," John

Kortez said. "It's our responsibility now to ask the voters what they want,

and if the people want it, we have to decide how to do it."

Mr Rosenthal asked the council to add another $62,000 to the funding for the

Children's Adventure Center to make sure that the center can operate through

the entire next school year if state aid isn't renewed after December 31. "We

have real poverty in this town - let's not be mean-spirited," he said.

Council member Karen Blawie expressed support for the day care center but said

the town already is spending about $90,000 a year to subsidize the facility

including $20,000 in direct aid, plus in-kind services and employee benefits

for the 11-member staff. This amounts to a subsidy of about $3,000 per child

for those 30 children who have subsidized tuition, she said. "To add another

$62,500, I don't think would be fiscally prudent."

Town Finance Director Benjamin Spragg said the state legislature is expected

to finish work on next year's budget by May 8 so the town should know soon

whether more funding will be available for the day care center.

The proposal to increase the funding for the day care center failed 9-3 with

Mr Rosenthal, Mr McGowan and Lisa Schwartz casting the only "yes" votes.

Mr Spragg announced that he has learned the town will receive another $50,000

in state aid next year, reducing by an equal amount the revenue which must be

raised by taxes. Because of this, the tax rate for next year will be 25.5

mills, he said.