Stonington
Stonington town meeting preview
2010 budget up by 9 percent

by David Walsh
The Stonington town report and warrant have been printed and distributed in the community in preparation for the annual town meeting on Monday, March 1. There will be few surprises on this year’s warrant, although increases bring the 2010 budget up 9 percent.

Polling and the meeting will be held on the second floor of Stonington Town Hall. After a moderator is elected, the polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. to elect a selectman, two CSD school board members and three sanitary district trustees. At 3 p.m. residents will gather to take action on the 79-article warrant which will determine the 2010 municipal budget.

The highlights of this year’s warrant, as explained by town manager Kathleen Billings-Pezaris, show that the 2010 budget of $1,229,700 is up 9 percent from 2009 which was $1,119,360 (but still $20,000 under the 2008 budget). This year that will exceed the LD 1 tax cap; voters will approve or disapprove exceeding the tax levy limit in the final warrant article.

Last year the budget did away with tarring on town roads and worked on drainage instead, because tar prices were “astronomical.” For the 2010 budget they have added some tarring back into the budget, primarily for Oceanville Road, where culverts were replaced, and the Pumping Station Road. There are also plans to do some crack sealing to keep the town road infrastructure up. Billings-Pezaris noted that the hike in road work is offset by a reduction in winter plowing since “we’re doing better with salt.”

The Stonington Volunteer Fire Department has asked to have its equipment reserve reinstated. It was deleted last year as a cost-saving measure.

Health insurance is up because eligible people asked to be enrolled during recent open enrollments.

Adding to the health insurance discussion, selectman Evelyn Duncan explained that the costs jumped from $16,000 to $40,000 in the past year. January, she said, is when people who work for the town are allowed to join. In previous years people were offered a “take it or leave it” policy, she said. The new policy offers more deductibles and more opportunities to pick and choose the coverage they want. Because of that, more town employees chose to go back on the policy this year. Selectmen are eligible to go on the policy, but they must pay 100 percent of costs because they are not employees of the town. Town employees get 60 percent of coverage paid by the town and pay the remaining 40 percent themselves.

Billings-Pezaris said there was an increase in the economic development line for projects and to possibly hire someone for one day a week to work with the Economic Development Committee. Duncan added that Emma Miran had been working for the committee and she was paid through a grant offered by the Island Institute. That grant has expired.

The Economic Development Committee stated in the town report that Miran assisted the committee in initiating a lobster market research study.

Billings-Pezaris said, “We have a good momentum now and we want to keep it going,” referring to the lobster marketing and tourism industries.

A new item this year includes the repair and reconstruction of the Bayview Street corner and seawall, which will be considered in articles 46 through 48. The town has some FEMA money for repairs to the seawall and has asked for extensions, according to Billings-Pezaris, but time is running out. “We have to bite the bullet and do this repair,” she said, adding, “We’ll try to get it done inexpensively. The FEMA deadline (on use of funds) is partly driving this, and we’d like to do it in spring before roads are busier.”

A new one-time request is from the Deer Isle-Stonington Historical Society for $3,000 for its building fund.

Continuing Hancock County Sheriff’s Department coverage for Stonington is also on the warrant; see related story.

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