PELHAM — Pelham residents will make decisions on a $4.65 million town budget, formally giving the top policy board a gender-neutral name, and streamlining participation in an energy aggregation program when annual Town Meeting convenes June 27.
The 29-article warrant will be presented beginning at 9 a.m. on the playing field at Pelham Elementary School, with residents and other participants required to wear face coverings and encouraged to bring water bottles and hand sanitizer. Social distancing of people who don’t live in the same household will be enforced.
The $4.65 million spending plan is $23,014, or 0.5 % higher, than the current year’s $4.62 million budget.
In anticipation of losing some state aid, the Finance Committee is reducing contributions to the reserve fund, insurance costs and recycling expenses.
“The Finance Committee, in an effort to be cautionary and expecting to see another drop in aid, decided to reduce the requested budget by approximately $75,000, which would be a good safeguard in protecting the Pelham taxpayer,” members wrote in a memo to residents.
A series of one-time expenditures, ranging from special education costs to to cemetery repairs, would be covered by $141,559 in free cash.
Other spending will come from the Community Preservation Act, including $70,000 for repainting the old Town Hall, and $11,500 to pay for the town’s share of designing a new track and field complex at Amherst Regional High School.
The capital stabilization account will be used for improvements that include $41,300 for purchasing and installing replacement windows and painting the exterior of the highway garage, and $5,600 for washing and painting Community Hall.
Like Amherst, Shutesbury and Leverett, Pelham residents will be asked to approve a change in the formula for how assessments for the regional schools are calculated.
An article to have the Board of Selectmen officially become a Select Board in all town documents and bylaws is also on the warrant.
“We feel it’s important to make this change as a way of encouraging and supporting women to serve by using a gender identity neutral way of referring to the body and its members,” said Select Board Vice Chairman Bob Agoglia.
Another article would grant the Select Board the authority to make decisions regarding community choice energy, in which the town is partnering with Amherst and Northampton on the program that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. If residents turn down the article, any approvals would have to be done by Town Meeting, which could slow down the process.
Finally, a citizens petition aims to overturn a decision from last year’s Town Meeting to make the town clerk an appointed position, and return it to being an elected position. The Select Board is opposing this due to the challenge in recruiting residents to serve in many positions in town government and the opportunity to have a wider field of candidates if the town clerk doesn’t have to live in Pelham.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
