Wallingford
Selectboard Minutes
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Hall
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January 29, 2007
Present: Bill Lohsen, Charlie
Angel, Gene Gilman, Frank Bruce, and Julie Sharon
Visitors: Joyce Barbieri, Jay
Kenlan, Charlie Woods and Sandi Switzer
B.
Lohsen called the meeting to order at
7:00 p.m.
Budget 07-08. G. Gilman
questioned the increase in the Assistant Town Clerk’s salary from $23,500 to
$36,000. B. Lohsen explained that
the increase was mainly to cover the extra work involved for the reappraisal.
C. Woods attended the meeting to give a clearer explanation for his
request to budget for new carbide bits and holders for the 2000 grader.
He explained that these blades grade out the potholes and cut the hard
surface. The average life for these
blades is only five years. The road
crew is having to replace the cutting edges more frequently at an average cost
of $250 per change, up to 10 times per summer.
The cost for new bits and holders would be $4,000.
$2,000 is currently budgeted for blades, chains and shoes.
The Selectboard agreed by consensus to increase this budget to $4,000
which would bring the Highway Department budget to $191,391.66.
Town Warning.
Jay Kenlan reviewed the articles in the town warning.
Article 7 concerning the stabilization of taxes for the
Masonic
Temple
was reworded.
Article 9 concerns the change
in the way the State returns money to property taxpayers through its Homestead
Property Tax Income Sensitivity Program. The
payments will come directly to the Town to be applied to the taxpayer’s bill.
The voters will be
asked to approve applying the amount allocated to current-year property taxes to
the taxpayers' property tax installments in
order meaning: "Mr.
A's property tax bill is $4,000, he receives $2,400 property tax adjustment, and
the town has two $2,000 installment payments.
The town may elect to apply the property tax adjustment to pay in full
the first installment with the remaining $400 applied to the second
installment.” The other option was
pro rata (total adjustment would be
divided equally between both installments).
Rep. Gail Fallar will be asked to speak on this article at town
meeting.
Article 10 concerns the
stabilization of education taxes for the Boy’s Camp property owned by the
Wallingford Fire District #1. This
article came about because of the expiration of the locally approved agreements
(tax stabilization) under Act 60.
All non exempt properties must now be accounted for on the grand list and
be charged the education taxes by the state
Some of these properties can be approved for tax stabilization by the
voters, which means that taxpayers will make up the foregone education
tax. However, the Boy’s camp,
which is located outside of the fire district, does not qualify as exempt from
taxation. It will be up to the
taxpayer to decide whether to absorb the education taxes on this property for
one year. During the next year, the
Fire District will need to research whether anything can be done to make this
property exempt. Prudential
Committee Chair Chris Rabtoy will speak on this article at town meeting.
B. Lohsen made a motion to warn
a Budget of $768,949.47, with $506,453.47 to be raised by property taxes, for
consideration at Town Meeting in March, along with the ten other articles in the
warning. F. Bruce seconded the
motion. (Motion carried 4-0).
The meeting
adjourned at
7:45 p.m. |