Milton budget to get one more hearing Sept. 13

After a public hearing and extensive questioning by Milton Town Council, Town Manager Kristy Rogers will revise the fiscal year 2022 budget in time for the council's Monday, Sept. 13 meeting.

That meeting will be one of the last chances the council will have to approve the budget so it can go into effect Friday, Oct. 1. 

It seemed as if the budget was fairly well set prior to council’s Aug. 16 meeting, since two prior meetings saw very few budget questions, but at that public hearing, council had an extensive list of issues it wanted to see addressed.

Councilman Sam Garde led the questioning of Rogers, starting off with how the town’s general fund surplus is only budgeted at $100,000 this year, as opposed to $409,000 last year. 

Rogers said the difference reflects the amount of surplus money that is being used for capital purchases. In fiscal year 2021, the town used $409,000, but in 2022, the plan is to spend only $100,000. The town will have extra money for some type of capital improvement project thanks to $813,000 in funds it received from the federal American Rescue Plan Act; what that project is has not yet been determined.

Garde asked about grants for the police department from the state for criminal justice and violent crimes, for which both amounts are lower this year than last. On the state criminal justice grants, Rogers said what will be available is not known at this time. She said the violent crimes grant was up in the air at the time the budget was being prepared, but she anticipated $15,000 coming in.

Garde said he supported the idea of adding another police officer. Rogers said currently, the department has eight full-time officers and one part-time. The town finance committee and Chief Derrick Harvey have both supported at least one more officer. 

Garde said the department was only at eight officers because former Chief Robert Longo had said he could run the department with that many. But with the addition of houses in Heritage Creek, the recent annexation of 26 acres at Country Lane and Route 16 that will make way for 240 residential units, and the possible annexation of 450 acres off Sand Hill Road that will add more homes to town, Garde said the town should expand the department. However, he said the actual hiring of a new officer can wait until after the town’s six-month budget review.

Council agreed to a plan that would expand the department to 10 full-time officers, hiring one for this year and bringing in one more after the budget is reviewed. 

“We’re stretching our officers too far right now with the increase in responsibilities, in the increase in various places where law enforcement is being requested. I think the chief’s justification for new officers is correct,” Garde said. 

Mayor Ted Kanakos said, “One of the reasons we need more officers is we need more hours from the police department. There’s so many things the police officers do.”

Finally, Garde wanted to see the town expand its donations, which are currently budgeted at $20,000. He said the town should give a larger donation to Grace Church, whose fellowship hall hosted council meetings throughout 2020 and into this year while COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were in effect. 

While Kanakos said he had no problem with the budget, Garde sought to increase the budget to $28,000 for additional signs to curtail speeding in town. That motion passed by a 4-3 margin, with Kanakos, Councilman Rich Baty and Councilman Larry Savage saying the issue needed more discussion. Other changes to the budget included more money for donations, which passed unanimously.

Rogers agreed to make those changes and will present the revised budget Sept. 13. 

The original draft of the budget had estimated a $940 surplus, with general fund revenues at $3.349 million and expenses at $3.348 million. The general fund includes administrative, planning, parks, police and streets revenues and expenses. 

Rogers could make up any extra money used for donations and new police officers through increasing the budgeted amount of the town’s transfer tax revenue. Rogers had budgeted $230,000 in real estate transfer tax revenue, the same as fiscal year 2021, but she typically only budgets what the town is projected to spend, not what would actually come in. The town is projected to make $519,000 in transfer tax revenue in fiscal year 2021, and that number figures to grow as building in and around Milton continues to boom. Rogers has anticipated adding 47 new residential units during fiscal year 2022, which runs from Friday, Oct. 1, to Friday, Sept. 30, 2022.

Among the capital improvement plans for fiscal year 2022 are a new police car, building repairs to the police station and town hall, a new drainage system and bulkhead improvements at the Magnolia Street parking lot, and water main upgrades on Atlantic Avenue, Atlantic Street and portions of Chestnut Street. The latter two projects have received state funding, with the $1.6 million water main project funded by a loan from the state Water Infrastructure Advisory Council, and the Magnolia Street drainage project funded 50/50 between the state and the town.