Williamsburg voters OK $9.5M budget with increases for police, fire

The Anne T. Dunphy School in Williamsburg GAZETTE FILE PHOTO
Published: 06-04-2024 4:09 PM |
WILLIAMSBURG — Town Meeting voters approved a $9.5 million budget and all other articles on the warrant Monday evening.
“Everything passed,” Town Clerk Brenda Lessard said. Ninety-five voters showed up at the Anne T. Dunphy School for the annual meeting, which lasted 2½ hours, she said.
The budget was up 4.6% over current year spending, with substantial increases in the police, fire and town office budgets. The largest single portion of the budget, education, saw a slight decrease at $4,803,463.
The spending plan relies on revenue of $9,223,765 in taxes and $265,000 from free cash.
The emergency services budget jumped 21.4% to $750,336. Some of the increase came from the addition of a fourth full-time police officer and the first full budget year of a full-time fire chief, while Highland Ambulance’s budget request rose by almost 22% to $171,388.
Spending in the general government category rose by almost $90,000, or 12.7%, with increases in salaries, accounting software and a new public safety complex operations budget of $10,000.
The public works budget is up 6% to $704,83, with general expenses at the transfer station accounting for much of the increase.
Free cash transfers approved at the meeting included $200,000 for the stabilization fund, $150,000 for maintenance at the town offices, $65,000 for a wood chipper for the highway department and $50,000 for fire department turnout gear.
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Fiscal articles aside, Lessard said most questions from the floor came during discussion of the last item on the warrant, which sought voter approval for a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement on a solar power facility.
Some voters found the wording of the article confusing and thought it referred to a proposed project rather than an existing one, Lessard said.
The purpose of the town’s request was to level off tax payments over 20 years, she said. After about 45 minutes of discussion, the article was approved and the meeting adjourned.