Old Town looks to keep tax increase to minimum

OLD TOWN – Calculators worked overtime Thursday night at a budget workshop as city councilors debated how to trim the proposed budget to get the tax burden to under 1 mill of an increase from last year.

After plenty of back-and-forth between two camps of councilors, the council left the Old Town Public Library with directives for City Manager Peggy Daigle and Superintendent of Schools David Walker to cut money from the municipal and school budgets.

The city will look to make $75,640 in cuts, while the schools would be responsible for $29,213. That would mean each would have a 6.29 percent budget increase and would put the overall mill rate increase at 0.85 of a mill rather than 1 mill, which was the increase in the original proposed budget.

For taxpayers, the 0.85 mill increase would represent a $127.50 annual property tax increase on a house assessed at $150,000 instead of a $150 increase with a 1 mill increase.

Daigle said the city could cut about $10,000 for a streetlight project and $35,000 for a project to grind College Avenue Extension. Councilors also discussed a $55,000 surveying project for Woodland Avenue. Cutting part of that item would leave $24,360 to survey one side of the road.

Councilors Carol May, Alan Stormann and council president David Mahan were concerned about making cuts to the budget so close to the June 2 regular council meeting, during which the council must have the budget completed. Residents will vote on the budget June 10.

Stormann didn’t want to make any cuts that could “change the face of the city.”

“Nobody likes to see an increase. Nobody wants to see an increase,” Stormann said. “The fact of life is, [sometimes] you’re going to see an increase.”

Councilors William Lovejoy, Jamie Dufour and Charles Pinkham agreed they wanted to make cuts this year in order to get the tax burden down.

“I think we need to do what we can to keep the taxes as low as we can,” Dufour said.

Councilor Linda McLeod was not present at the meeting for personal reasons.

The budget workshop was held after a special meeting of the council during which councilors:

. Issued a Proclamation of Honor to Harold Lacadie as an Outstanding Citizen in the City of Old Town.

. Awarded a $74,482 paving contract to Sunrise Materials of LaGrange.

. Adopted the 2008 emergency operations plan.

. Authorized the city to waive a building permit fee of $857 and an electrical fee of $100 for the volunteer effort to construct a new home for Sonya Barclay, an Old Town woman who has terminal cancer, and her family.

jbloch@bangordailynews.net

990-8287