Vote on town budget May 21

FALLS VILLAGE — Residents of Falls Village vote on the proposed spending plans for 2010-11 on Friday, May 21, 7 p.m. at the Senior Center on Main Street.

The bottom line for town government is $1,542,790, an increase of $26,542 or 1.75 percent over 2009-10.

The total of proposed education spending is $2,812,992 — $1,788,719 for the Lee H. Kellogg School and $1,024,273 for the Region One School District (special education and the regional high school).

First Selectman Pat Mechare  explained to the Board of Finance at their meeting May 10 that the selectmen had decided to add a 3-percent raise in salaries for the registrars of voters and the social services director, although those departments had not submitted a request for raises.

That added  $804 to the municipal side of the spending plan, for a slightly higher total than was discussed at the public hearing last month.

The selectmen also returned to scheduled pay increases for the Highway Department, which experienced a wage freeze last year. Regular wages for the department rise from $158,000 to $162,968.

The tax collector’s salary line is up about 3.6 percent, from $13,500 to $13,995. This includes a 3-percent increase as well as certification fees.

The treasurer, bookkeeper and town clerk all get 3-percent raises. (The town clerk’s increase also includes certification fees.) The selectmen get no increase.

On the health insurance front, negotiations continue between the Region One School District’s broker and carriers Anthem and Aetna. Both Mechare and Falls Village Board of Education Chairman Andrea Downs have said there is a very real possibility of future savings — but not in time to be reflected in the spending plans to be voted on Friday evening.

The selectmen’s spending plan includes a line for a recording secretary for the Inland Wetlands Commission, which has long had a member taking the minutes.

One increase ($2,000, for a total of $5,000) is for the  ambulance reserve fund. The current ambulance is 12 years old, and the state recommends replacement every 10 years.

The budget for road maintenance is flat, with no increase. Mechare said at the public hearing that crew chief Tim Downs “left everything as is after consulting the crew.�

The town Board of Education’s spending plan, dated April 27, calls for a total of $1,788,719, an increase of $58,242, or 3.4 percent.

Salaries (including certified and non-certified staff) are up 3.6 percent, or $38,800, for a total of $1,122,878.

And health insurance is up 8.3 percent — $19,592, for a total of $256,260 — but this figure could well go down as negotiations continue.

The last page of the Board of Education budget gives the town’s expected cost of its share of the Region One budget at $1,024,273 (up 3.8 percent) and the town’s total education expenditure for 2010-2011 at $2,812,992, an increase of 3.5 percent.

Downs said at the public hearing that the board found savings in part because of the small size of the school.

“We found savings in things like athletics, because we didn’t have enough boys for soccer or basketball teams.�

Lee H. Kellogg School Principal Maria Bulson said the school has 96 students currently, and expects 86 in the 2010-11 school year. The school employs 18 full- and part-time teachers, for a total of 12 FTE (full-time equivalents).

Other austerity measures: The school is not buying any new computers, and is not offering transportation to summer school  in Cornwall.

At the public hearing, finance board Co-chairman Lou Timolat said the town is looking at a shortfall in projected revenues of about $240,000 and said he anticipated a combination of using the town’s general funds to pick up some of the slack — and an increase in the mill rate.

Latest News

Water main cleaning in North Canaan

NORTH CANAAN – Aquarion Water Company today announced a water main cleaning project in the company’s North Canaan system. The project is scheduled to take place from Monday, April 1 through Tuesday, April 16, and is being undertaken to ensure customers in North Canaan continue to receive the highest quality water.

The cleaning for April 1 and April 4 (subject to change) will take place on the following streets:

Keep ReadingShow less
Tuning up two passions under one roof

The Webb Family in the workshop. From left: Phyllis, Dale, Ben and Josh Webb, and project manager Hannah Schiffer.

Natalia Zukerman

Magic Fluke Ukulele Shop and True Wheels Bicycle Shop are not only under the same roof in a beautiful solar powered building on Route 7 in Sheffield, but they are also both run by the Webb family, telling a tale of familial passion, innovation and a steadfast commitment to sustainability.

In the late ‘90s, Dale Webb was working in engineering and product design at a corporate job. “I took up instrument manufacturing as a fun challenge,” said Dale. After an exhibit at The National Association of Music Merchants in Anaheim, California, in 1999, The Magic Fluke company was born. “We were casting finger boards and gluing these things together in our basement in New Hartford and it just took off,” Dale explained. “It was really a wild ride, it kind of had a life of its own.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Robert Cray’s soulful blues coming to Infinity Hall

Robert Cray

Photo provided

Blues legend Robert Cray will be bringing his stinging, funky guitar and soulful singing to Infinity Hall Norfolk on Friday, March 29.

A five-time Grammy winner, Cray has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and earned The Americana Music Awards Lifetime Achievement for Performance. He has played with blues and rock icons including Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, The Rolling Stones, Tina Turner, Eric Clapton and many more.

Keep ReadingShow less