JAY – The Select Board and Budget Committee met Monday evening to firm up a proposed budget for voters. The $5.5 million municipal budget was largely agreed upon by both parties, with a few minor discrepancies in recommendations. The public will weigh in at a hearing on March 14 at 6 p.m. at the Spruce Mountain Elementary School gymnasium and voters will make the final decision on April 26 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. at Spruce Mountain Middle School.
The 2022-23 proposed budget is $216,159 more than the current year’s budget. That number does not include Regional School Unit 73 or county contributions. Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere said with additional revenues that total figure will be decreased and will be roughly $79,165 less than last year’s budget.
Fire Rescue Chief Mike Booker presented a slightly adjusted Fire Rescue Department budget, $32,239 more than his original figure. That additional requested amount would bring the total department budget to $301,139 and would cover the payroll for a per diem firefighter to work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Booker said that person would bounce between the Jay and North Jay stations, and aside from being there to support any calls, that person would perform routine maintenance to the trucks and stations. The proposed adjusted figure was supported unanimously by members of the Select Board and Budget Committee.
An ongoing project to restore the tennis courts at the Spruce Mountain Elementary School was supported unanimously. Project coordinator Deb Roberts requested an in-kind donation from the town by way of labor and equipment use for the renovation. Roberts is the organizer of the Hollandstrong Community Foundation- an organization in memory of her son Michael Holland who was killed in 2015 while serving as a Merchant Marine.
The tennis courts are in desperate need of renovations, Roberts said, and a number of local residents have voiced their enthusiasm about her efforts. Currently, tennis players mostly utilize the courts at Kineowatha Park in Wilton. The cost of the renovations is projected at $413,000, which Roberts has been working to meet through various grants and donations. The in-kind contribution from the town, if approved, would represent an amount of $9,000.
Polls will open at 8 a.m. on April 26 at Spruce Mountain Middle School. Absentee ballots will be available at the Town Office beginning March 25.
