Winchester to Discuss Potential Override Vote for Next Year

With the failure of last week’s , Winchester will need to decide what to fund and

But the failure of the override will make the cuts and service reductions difficult, according to Selectmen chair, Thomas Howley.

“I’m disappointed with the override vote,” Howley said. “I thought the terms we laid out in the three-year plan was really the way the town should go and would be in the best interest of the town. But I’m still confident we can follow through with the decision the voters made.”

As for the originally laid out by Town Management before the override vote, Howley said that the board would continue with the cuts on the list, unless better options are suggested.

“It’s important we implement the plan described to voters,” Howley said. “We’re not going to seek to use additional operational reserves; I think that would be really wrong. We’re going to implement the cuts list we had discussed, unless someone comes up with something better. If there are new ideas that make more sense, then we’ll go with them. But reductions have to be made.”

The $700K budget shortfall in 2012 will grow to over $1 million in 2013 and to over $2 million in 2014. But even with the growing deficit over the next two years, Howley doesn’t plan on asking voters for another general override.

“The first year is not nearly going to be as bad as the second and third,” Howley said. “I’m opposed to doing [the override] over in 2012. I’m open to having a conversation about it, and I’m sure it will be discussed, but I’m opposed to doing it. We just need to go ahead and do this. We need to follow through with our plan.”

One new position that will be added is that of an , which would help Winchester transition to ADA compliance. This position was already placed in the budget and was to get funded regardless of the override.

The ADA Coordinator will be a part-time position that the town will begin to advertise for next week. Already written into the budget, the position will pay between $21 and $25 an hour, 14 hours a week, which would total about $18,000 a year.

“It’s good to have a person focus only on the position, considering the amount of work the ADA position would require,” said Selectmen chair, Thomas Howley.

Potential Reductions

• The from their proposed budget.
• $6K – decrease in hours in Assessors Office.
• $40K – decrease in Planning Board in Professional Services
• $67K – elimination of part-time building clerk and post-permitting position in Building Department
• $40K – Reduce funding of Management Information System (MIS)
• $19,474 – Reduction of costs at the
• 3,800 – Reduction at the Archival center
• $35K – Board of Health – the town will cease funding of the and the Goose Program.
• $35K – Reduction of . This is expected to lead to increased response times, as there will be times when only two or three one-man units will be on duty.
• $35K – will lose some overtime hours and repairs to communication and equipment will be delayed.
• $100K – (DPW) –maintenance ($10K), temporary summer help ($18K), repairs ($10K), one mechanic ($42K), Transfer Station ($10K), cemetery overtime ($5K)
• $6,945 – Reduction in Wellness program