AVON — Voters will gather at 9 a.m. Saturday, March 21, at the Town Hall to elect officers and consider a budget of $234,840 for this calendar year.
The figure is $45,788 less than last year, First Selectman Greta Espeaignnette said.
“Our bridge improvements are complete, and we created a savings account to pay for the required paving on Mount Blue Pond Road,” Espeaignnette said. “I’m happy to tell taxpayers that this has enabled us to decrease the budget this year.”
Two warrant articles require voter approval to comply with state laws: on-premise consumption of spirits on Sundays and adoption of the state’s minimum 250-foot setback for Mount Blue Pond.
Espeaignnette said she decided not to seek another three-year term, so nominations will be taken from the floor to elect her successor.
Voters will also nominate and elect a treasurer, a tax collector, a constable and a road commissioner, all for one-year terms.
The property tax rate is $17 per $1,000 of property valuation.
Voters can approve using part of the $294,416 in undesignated surplus to reduce the tax burden.
State revenue share this year is $25,000, an increase of $4,000 from last year. The town also received 100 percent reimbursement for tree growth, veterans and homestead tax exemptions.
The single largest expense is the SAD 58 assessment, which doesn’t show signs of decreasing, according to Espeaignnette. The continued decline in student population in the district, shortfalls in state support and increasing property valuations in have shifted the costs to taxpayers.
“We spent $506,931 in 2019,” she said. “For comparison, we spent $452,942 in 2018 and $421,605 in 2017.”
Espeaignnette said several accounts have money left at the year’s end, which are carried into the next year for unexpected expenses.
Copy the Story LinkSend questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.