mexico – The Budget Committee wants to consider closing the library and recreation center to cut spending and get the town on better financial footing.
Budget Committee Chairman Byron Ouellette said Wednesday that one option is contracting with the Greater Rumford Community Center for the approximately 400 to 450 youngsters in Mexico. That cost, he said, would be $22 per child.
It was stated at the meeting of the committee and selectmen Tuesday night that there is asbestos in the recreation center, but Town Manager John Madigan Jr. said the substance in the flooring is covered and state agencies have given the building a clean bill of health.
Ouellette, a member of the Mexico Taxpayers Association, said he wants the recreation building examined by a certified inspector to determine its overall condition.
Madigan said Wednesday that he plans to have a study done of all municipal buildings, vehicles and roads.
The committee is also looking into contracting with the Rumford Public Library for services. At the current rate of $2 per person that Rumford charges, it would cost Mexico about $6,000 annually.
Selectmen have recommended a library budget of $28,483 and a recreation department budget of about $55,000 for 2005-2006.
Madigan said his tentative $2 million budget for 2005-2006 is realistic, unlike last year’s $1.8 million spending package.
Madigan said in February that the recreation department has been operating at a deficit for years. It had a $10,000 deficit from fiscal year 2003, a $13,000 shortfall for fiscal year 2004, and another one is likely at the end of the 2005 fiscal year on June 30.
It is part of the financial problems facing the town.
Mexico has had no surplus money for a couple of years, according to Madigan, who was hired Jan. 19 to succeed 10-year veteran Joseph Derouche, who resigned Dec. 31. Madigan said it would take several years for the town to build the $300,000 surplus the Maine Municipal Center recommends for a town its size.
A combination of overspending and loss of tax revenue led to the financial situation, officials have said. Last fall, after a preliminary 2004 audit showed reserve accounts were lacking tens of thousands of dollars set aside for specific projects, assistant to the town manager David Errington said those accounts had been used for cash shortages for nearly 10 years.
In the wake of the audit report, selectmen last November began making recommendations for cuts, including the positions of librarian, recreation director and municipal buildings’ custodian from full- to part-time.
The Budget Committee and selectmen will meet again at 6 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, April 11 and 12, at the town hall. Monday they will focus primarily on the library and recreation center, and Ouellette said he thinks more meetings will be needed.
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