A preview of the Oct. 23 Town Meeting; More than 20 articles in the works
Published on September 20th, 2000
STONEHAM, MA - Town officials are molding articles that must harden into the October Special Town meeting warrant by Sept. 22.
Selectmen, Town Administrator Jeff Nutting and the Finance Board have drafted a preliminary list of warrant articles.
If the townspeople vote to spend everything the town asks, the total will be around $1.8 million. Also some debts will be paid early and some later (see Articles 17 and 18 below).
Selectmen opened the warrant Sept. 5 and will close it Sept. 22. As of the Sept. 11 Selectmen's meeting, the following articles are on the list to go before the Oct. 23 Town Meeting:
Article 1 is the main budget article asking for spending and transfers to amend the fiscal 2001 budget approved in May of 2000. Tentatively Selectmen are looking at asking citizens for $769 for Selectmen salaries, $25,000 for the Reserve Fund, $9,000 for the Town Accountant, $5,000 for elections, $75,000 for Police overtime, $11,000 for two new traffic directors, $1,000 for traffic directors' expenses, $85,000 for Fire overtime, $32,000 for Community Development, $255,000 for reoccurring capital costs (town vehicles and facilities upkeep), $40,000 for Schools health insurance, and $23,556 for the rest of Stoneham's contribution to the Northeast Metro Tech.
More requests could be added to this article. Selectmen may decide to extend the hours of operation at the Stevens Street dump or increase Police shift strength.
Article 2 asks to transfer $1,000 to pay outstanding bills from fiscal year 2000.
Article 3 asks to transfer $200,000 from available funds into the Stabilization Account.
Article 4 asks for $150,000 for sidewalks.
Article 5 asks for $5,000 for beautification.
Article 6 asks for $150,000 to upgrade municipal computers.
Article 7 asks for $22,000 to donate to the National WWII Monument. The figure represents $1 per person in Stoneham.
Article 8 asks for $10,000 for shade trees.
Article 9 asks the town to pay now for $130,000 worth of textbooks for the schools. May Town Meeting approved borrowing money to pay for the books.
Article 10 also asks townspeople to spend money now for $125,000 of school technology approved in May as debt.
Article 11 asks the Town to buy a Zamboni for $60,275. The May meeting approved borrowing money to get the machine.
Article 12 is the same deal as the previous three articles, asking the Town to spend $280,000 for a fire truck.
Article 13 is a request to use $60,000 to buy back accumulated School vacation time.
Article 14 is a request to use $60,000 to buy back Police sick leave.
Article 15 asks for $5,000 for traffic enforcement.
Article 16 asks for $10,000 to cover legal expenses.
Article 17 asks the town to add another $146,000 to the $100,000 already borrowed to fund the purchase of street lights from Boston Edison.
Article 18 asks the Town to hold off paying back $250,000 in debt for drainage work until next fall.
Although Nutting said he was worried about incurring more debt, he said that owning street lights instead of renting them from Edison would save Stoneham enough money in three years to pay for the purchase.
Another article that Selectmen are considering is a request from the Stoneham Tri-Community Bike / Green-way Committee to spend $61,700 for preliminary design of a bike path. The money would be reimbursed by Mass Highway.
If Mass Highway has the money and the Town gets the land it needs from an impending MBTA land transfer, then it's a go. If not, the project will stall.
Besides articles sponsored or endorsed by the Selectmen, a citizen's petition and two Health Department articles may appear on the warrant.
Franklin Street resident John DeGeorge has gathered signatures to place an article on the warrant. The article, if approved, would require the Town to leave the warrants for special town meetings open for a minimum of 14 days.
Board of Health member Mike Rolli said his board will be drafting two articles: the Board of Health wants a full-time office assistant and authority to make appointments. Under the Town Administrator Act the Town Administrator appoints Health Department officials.
Everything is subject to change until the warrant closes, and then everything is subject to the people — you, the voters at Town Meeting.
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