Capital bgt 8/27
We had another capital budget meeting tonight. The highlights:
The proposed referendum question:
1) open space - $1,000,000
2) fire truck - $455,000
3) sewer plant long range plan - $150,000 (incl last yr's money, this exceeds the $350,000 referendum threshold)
4) sewer expansion - $200,000 (incl last yr's money, this exceeds the $350,000 referendum threshold)
5) Humiston upgrade - $600,000 ($462,000 goes to referendum; I believe this is for updating fire alarms and fire suppression apparatus)
Not currently mentioned in this year's capital budget (either current year or five year plan):
1) no money for strathmore dam.
2) no money for barite mines.
On the topic of the barite mines, I mentioned a book that I had recently seen discussed on C-Span:
The Day the Earth Caved In
From the Amazon review:
a 12-year-old boy was sucked through the weakened ground in his backyard into a muddy, steaming cauldron, barely escaping alive. When investigation revealed the full extent of the danger, the town and its residents were launched on a long, frustrating odyssey that drew in federal and state governments, the national media, hordes of attorneys, and large corporations.... In her engrossing saga, government agencies at both the federal and state levels are shown as irresponsible and craven, and the greed of corporations is sickening. But the townspeople, striving for economic justice while clinging to the hope of saving their threatened community, wear the mantel of nobility.
I know one thing about Diane Visconti... whether you agree with her or not, she certainly does care. And she certainly is persistent.
Finally, unrelated to the capital budget, but after the meeting I had a chance to speak with the Town Manager. I asked him about what I believe is the #1 concern for people in town: personal safety.
I asked the TM if the police were going to be offering any sort of public safety classes. He reminded me that he had mentioned a few things in which the police are already engaging, such as reestablishing "neighborhood block watches." And while I think that's good, I also asked him if the police could reach out to the community to provide "how to" information on personal safety (classes, products, etc.). I think people in town would really appreciate that right now.
Tim White
Town Council, Budget Committee
7 comments:
so I presume the town fathers are going to let Fiske screw the folks he sold homes to?....sweet for him
4) sewer expansion - $200,000 (incl last yr's money, this exceeds the $350,000 referendum threshold)
What is going to be expanded and for who?
Is any of this planned for the Northend Sprawl?
Can a fire truck be leased? $500,000 is a lot of money. Can we check this out? Safety is important but there has to be a least expensive way.
Someone should put into prospective how much this will cost us in the future (taxes). 1 or 2 mill increase? All these numbers seem ok but when you add them up. Whoaaaa.
"so I presume the town fathers are going to let Fiske screw the folks he sold homes to?....sweet for him"
The home owners should sue Fiske. The town should have no part of this.
Isn't it the way, developers are all to happy to screw someone and our town treats them special.
Regarding "personal safety" in our town-Everyone already knows that, if you have an alarm system, it should be on, keep doors locked, know who's around your neighborhood, etc. etc. What should be reviewed are the police procedures in handling emergency calls. Timing is everything. They need to adjust their procedures and be ready to "rescue" people in a more timely manner. Risking their lives is part of their job. Some might say I'm overly critical, but the only way people will really feel "safe" is in knowing they can count on the police.
anon 8:52: Fiske applied to the town to let him transfer the dam to the neighbors against their will
The neighborhood didn't start this. Fiske did. So we should go spend $$$ on lawyers?
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