WHATELY — Voters can expect to see a lighter budget and fewer proposed capital projects than previous fiscal years on Tuesday’s Annual Town Meeting warrant.
The meeting is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. on the side field at Whately Elementary School.
Residents are advised to bring their own lawn chairs, bug spray and hand sanitizer, though some sanitizer will be available at the meeting. Chairs should be set up at least six feet apart, with the exception of people living in the same household.
The 37-article warrant seeks to approve a roughly $5.2 million town operating budget for fiscal year 2021, which represents a 0.13 percent decrease from the current fiscal year.
“The operating budget is always key for every town,” Town Administrator Brian Domina said. “We were able to keep that a little bit lower than the previous fiscal year. … We were pleased to be able to do that.”
Before the pandemic, the Selectboard and Finance Committee had created a budget that represented a 4.23 percent increase over the current fiscal year, Domina said.
“With (the Whately Elementary School Committee and Frontier Regional School Committee) being willing to level-fund, and other cost savings we were able to achieve,” he said, “we were able to knock it down to a 0.13 percent decrease.”
If approved, Whately’s contribution to the Frontier Regional School District operating budget will be $954,419.
As for capital projects, Domina said the Finance Committee and Selectboard prioritized projects that couldn’t be delayed until later in the year, when the town should have a better understanding of revenue.
“Everybody’s going at it with incomplete information,” Domina said, noting a state budget has not yet been passed.
Voters will also be asked in Article 20 to approve the Highway Department entering into a five-year lease agreement for a rubber-tired excavator, with a total cost of approximately $180,000.
According to an explanation of the article in the Annual Town Meeting booklet, the excavator is necessary for a number of upcoming capital projects, including the construction of the pumping station off of Chestnut Plain Road, a portion of the Williamsburg Road bridge replacement project, and the expansion of the library parking lot and driveway.
The first payment for the lease agreement, if approved, will come entirely out of Chapter 90 funds; following that, payments would be from a combination of town and Chapter 90 funding, to be approved by voters annually.
Rain dates for Annual Town Meeting have been set for the same time, 6 p.m., on June 24, 25 and 26.
Reach Mary Byrne at 413-772-0261, ext. 263 or mbyrne@recorder.com.