A Wiscasset voter casts their ballot during the town’s annual meeting by referendum and state primary election on Tuesday, June 11. Polls were open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Wiscasset Community Center. (Piper Pavelich photo)
Wiscasset voters approved an $8.1 million municipal budget, as well as amendments to four of the town’s ordinances, at the Tuesday, June 11 town meeting by referendum.
A total of 650 voters cast their ballots from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Wiscasset Community Center.
The approved municipal budget totals $8,124,690, an increase of $570,736 or 7.55%. Residents will be responsible for raising $3,794,690 in property taxes, according to Town Manager Dennis Simmons. The town will use $751,430 in state subsidy funding.
The senior center budget is $21,223, an increase of $6,638 or 45.51%. Simmons said this increase is offset by a decrease in the parks and recreation department budget, as the town shifted custodial costs from one cost center to another.
The cemeteries budget is $178,428, an increase of $38,774 or 27.76%. Simmons said this increase is due to the rising cost of repairs. Taxpayer dollars are not used to fund this budget, but rather the funds come from the Cemetery Perpetual Care Trust Fund.
The municipal insurances budget is $145,650, an increase of $39,350 or 37.01%, and the contractual services budget is $335,300, an increase of $71,300 or 27%. These increases can be partially attributed to a one-time purchase to have the town’s municipal building studied. Simmons said the town is “running out of space” in the current building, and, depending on the conclusion of the study, they may build onto the existing building or find a new building entirely.
The general assistance budget is $35,555, an increase of $6,793 or 23.62%. Simmons said this increase is to offset costs the town incurred in the winter.
The police department budget is $836,595, an increase of $137,782 or 19.71%. Both the Wiscasset Police Department and Ambulance Service budget are seeing increases because the town is now going to be leasing the vehicles used by these departments, according to Simmons. In the past, the vehicles were paid for with a capital reserve fund.
The transfer station budget is $876,762, an increase of $95,037 or 12.15%. This increase can be attributed to the increase in costs of trash disposal, which Simmons said is not a unique circumstance for Wiscasset.
Elsewhere in the municipal budget, the community organizations budget totals $84,224, an increase of $8,198 or 10.78%; the emergency medical services budget is $939,191, an increase of $89,100 or 10.48%; the town clerk/excise tax collector/registrar budget is $116,374, an increase of $9,936 or 9.33%; the parks and recreation department budget totals $1,265,716, an increase of $104,295 or 8.98%; the public works department budget totals $769,378, an increase of $57,894 or 8.13%; and the office of assessment budget totals $8,460, an increase of $610 or 7.77%.
The airport budget totals $114,577, an increase of $8,077 or 7.58%; the office of finance/tax collector budget is $300,120, an increase of $19,159 or 6.82%; and the waterfront and harbors budget is $73,195, an increase of $4,572 or 6.66%.
The Enterprise Fund-Wastewater Treatment plant budget is $981,543, an increase of $60,585 or 6.58%. The funding for this budget is appropriated from department revenues and surplus.
The fire department budget totals $181,724, an increase of $11,026 or 6.46%; the budget for celebrations is $21,500, an increase of $1,275 or 6.30%; the animal control budget is $17,651, an increase of $925 or 5.53%; the code enforcement budget is $45,323, an increase of $1,693 or 3.88%; and the office of the board of selectmen budget is $26,843, a decrease of $986 or 3.54%.
The budget for contingency is $50,000, no change from last year.
The town office administration and operation budget is $193,139, a decrease of $44,943 or 18.87%.
The budget for payment of retiree health insurance premiums is $56,660, a decrease of $11,260 or 16.57%. The funding for this budget is taken from the town’s Retiree Health Insurance Reserve Account.
The public utilities budget is $327,024, a decrease of $25,000 or 7.10%; the municipal building maintenance/operations budget is $92,275, a decrease of $6,873 or 6.93%; the planning and economic development services budget is $136,494, a decrease of $9,962 or 6.80%; the municipal boards and committees budget is $4,554, a decrease of $309 or 6.35%; and the shellfish conservation budget totals $4,450, a decrease of $190 or 4.09%.
The police department school resource officer budget is $63,553, a decrease of $2,617 or 3.95%. The budget for the school resource officer is split between the town and the Wiscasset School Department, with each party responsible for 50% of the budget.
The budget for the office of elections totals $22,154, a decrease of $37 or 0.17%.
Voters also approved multiple capital improvement articles, appropriating $998,702 to capital improvement projects, a decrease of $1,255,999.48 or 55.70% from capital improvement project funds approved by voters last year.
Projects that will use funding from the town’s capital reserve account include $111,000 for a 25% grant match to purchase generators for the town office, community center, and wastewater treatment plant; $113,000 for wastewater treatment plant pump station improvements; $620,000 for public works paving projects, including the community center parking lot; and $155,702 for the second of 10 annual payments of the 2023 capital improvement bond.
Four articles pertaining to amendments to some of the town’s ordinances were also on the ballot for the town meeting by referendum.
Amendments to four ordinances were also approved by voters. The ordinances to be amended are budget committee, recreational vehicles, flood plains, and the town ordinance glossary.
The budget committee amendment will change the committee from one that is elected by voters to one that is appointed by the select board, and will bring the ordinance’s budget process in line with the town’s current town meeting by referendum.
The other three amendments will make the ordinances more consistent in regard to recreational vehicles being used as temporary dwelling units. The glossary amendment clarifies the definition of a recreational vehicle.
