WILTON — After weeks of meeting with department heads and crunching the numbers, the Wilton Select Board and Finance Committee are moving forward with their 2024/2025 fiscal budget.
The Select Board and Finance Committee finalized the town’s budget at a special meeting on Monday, April 1, at the Wilton Town Office.
For total government operations, $4.9 million is being budgeted for general government, public safety, public works, recreation and social services, and community service. The town anticipates $2.2 million in revenue this year and will be appropriating $400,000 in undesignated funds towards parts of the budget.
Wilton’s Public Works Department, which covers highway maintenance, vehicle repairs and cemetery maintenance, budgeted $2,232,500, with $351,850 being appropriated towards the cemetery account, equipment purchases, and capitol accounts for the public works building and the transfer station.
A member of the Finance Committee asked Public Works Foreman John Masse at a meeting on Monday, March 25, if FEMA had reimbursed the town for the damages reported from the four different storms that occurred starting in December 2022.
Masse stated that reimbursement from the December 2022 had not been received yet but should be received in the coming weeks. The department is still waiting for reimbursement for the storms in May, June and December of 2023.
Town Manager Maria Greeley also shared that funds for an upcoming sidewalk paving project on Depot Street were also being allocated to a paving account. The project is not expected to begin until 2025, but the cost may be split between the town and the state, according to Greeley.
For Wilton Public Safety, $1,481,227 is budgeted between the fire and police department, with $32,500 in undesignated funds being appropriated towards capital improvement, vehicle maintenance and a new fire engine.
Wilton Fire and Rescue Chief Sonny Dunham told the Select Board and Finance Committee $32,000 was already allocated in an account for a new fire engine last year.
According to Dunham, one of the fire trucks will be 20 years old by 2026 and he is starting the process of building funds for a replacement engine now in the hopes of having a new truck by 2030. He stated after paperwork is finished, there is a 36 to 48 month waiting period before the department receives the truck.
“That’s standard right now,” Dunham told the board and committee members. “That’s the way it is.”
For the police department, Chief of Police Ethan Kyes shared with board and committee members he budgeted $24,000 for eight new Tasers to replace the ones they currently have, which he said were purchased in used condition from a police department in Tennessee.
“They’re older than the ones we had that were no longer working,” he commented.
Kyes also budgeted for a new police cruiser for the department’s new officer, adding that since the department has moved away from sharing police cruisers, it has seen a drop in funds spent on vehicle maintenance.
In the Parks and Recreation budget, Parks and Rec Director Jordan Schanck shared that he had budgeted for an administrative assistant to help with the department’s office duties as well as develop a modern registration system.
“We’re still doing a very antiquated registration system,” Schanck shared. “We do everything in paper and pen.”
Schanck said by getting an administrative assistant, more events can be planned and the opportunity for the department to expand into other types of programs geared towards adults would be made possible.
Greeley shared with The Livermore Falls Advertiser the warrant articles should be written and ready for Select Board approval by the end of April. Wilton’s annual town meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 17.
• TOTAL REVENUE: $2,204,026
Excise taxes: $693,000
Licenses, permits, and fees: $41,200
Intergovernmental: $1,319,326
Charges for services: $56,500
Other revenues: $94,000
• TOTAL APPROPRIATIONS: $735,183
Undesignated: $400,000
TIF districts: $128,183
Trust funds: $207,000
• TOTAL FUNDING REQUIREMENTS: $4,962,097
General government: $823,967
Public safety: $1,481,227
Public works: $2,232,500
Recreation & social services: $378,879
Community services: $45,524
• TOTAL GENERAL GOVERNMENT: $823,967
Elected officials: $9,000
Planning and code enforcement: $78,592
Administration: $460,500
Town office building: $30,000
Revaluation/equalization capital account: $10,000
Assessing services: $43,875
Contingent & legal: $22,000
Insurance: $153,000
Pension & benefits reserve: $17,000
• TOTAL PUBLIC WORKS: $2,232,500
Highway department: $1,299,200
Public works building: $53,000
Capital paving budget: $464,000
Recycling/transfer station: $336,975
Cemeteries: $77,325
Town infrastructure: $2,000
• TOTAL PUBLIC SAFETY: $1,481,227
Fire department: $263,390
Police department: $872,080
Public safety building: $58,150
Other public safety: $287,607
• TOTAL CULTURE AND RECREATION: $378,879
General assistance: $6,000
Animal control: $19,904
Health officer: $350
Recreation program: $154,675
Parks and facilities: $65,000
Library: $132,950
• TOTAL COMMUNITY SERVICES: $45,524
• TOTAL OUTSIDE ORGANIZATION: $7,159
Wilton food pantry: $3,000
Safe Voices: $3,200
LifeFlight: $959
• TOTAL TOWN-WIDE: $3,475,287 [3.4% increase]
Debt Service: $0
County tax: $575,287
Education: $2,900,000
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
