Lebanon
Roughly $1.6 million of that increase is needed to cover debt payments, which are slated to increase to $7.6 million in the coming year.
If the budget is approved, residents can expect a tax rate increase of 36 cents per $1,000 of a property’s assessed value. That would mean an additional $90 in taxes for a property valued at $250,000. A public hearing on the proposed spending plan is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Dec. 21 at in City Hall.
“Like other cities and towns across the country we have major public works projects,” City Councilor Karen Liot Hill said on Monday. “The cost of doing this kind of work never goes down.”
Much of the city’s debt stems from “combined sewer overflow,” or CSO separation projects currently underway. Since 2000, Lebanon has appropriated more than $56 million for the EPA-required work separating sewer and storm water flows on about 15 miles of the city’s sewer system.
Construction costs are expected to total around $69 million by the time work is complete in the next decade, with about $66 million coming from borrowing.
The City Council also approved a 7 percent increase in sewer and water bills on Wednesday to help pay off projects, including the CSO. About 60 percent of the CSO debt will be covered by user fees assessed to residents hooked up to the city’s water and sewer systems, with the remainder paid through property taxes.
Liot Hill said such projects consume funds some officials would rather use on other initiatives, such as the recently completed downtown visioning study and possible improvements in West Lebanon.
“It would be nice to invest in these things and provide momentum and energy for these things,” she said. “But we are so constrained by the things we that we need to provide to the people of Lebanon and a much greater population in our region.”
However, the city isn’t expecting to get a reprieve from debt payments anytime soon. The roughly $7.6 million owed in 2017 will jump to $8.1 million in 2018, eventually costing Lebanon $11.5 million in 2021, according to city projections.
Councilor Clifton Below said paying those bills is unavoidable. Increases in health care and retirement spending also affected the budget, he said, but officials were able to avoid cutting jobs and services.
Lebanon currently employs 174 people in full-time equivalent positions, and that number would increase to 177 next year under the proposed spending plan. Below said the biggest change would be the addition of a facilities manager who would be responsible for overseeing city buildings and exploring how to save on energy costs.
“We’re doing the most we can with the littlest increase,” said Assistant Mayor Suzanne Prentiss.
As a commuter hub, Lebanon sees many people traveling to the city to work, shop and eat. Those people require services, she said, but the city is limited to relying on property taxes to pay for them.
“We’re trying to find that balance without burdening the people who live here in the city,” Prentiss said.
Total spending on 20 capital improvement projects, including the CSO, is projected at $11 million. Included in the total is $620,000 for replacing a fire engine and $900,000 toward completion of the Mascoma River Greenway, the rail trail going from downtown to West Lebanon.
Money is also set aside for upgrades to the city water treatment facility, redevelopment of the skate park and airport improvements.
Not included in the proposed budget is any raise that might be negotiated for the city’s four unions, which have collective bargaining agreements expiring on Dec. 31.
The city fire, police and other departments will have to make due with minor changes, even though they see increasing call numbers, Prentiss said. And initiatives, such as increasing the city clerk’s operating hours, will have to wait.
“We do as much with what we have and it still feels like it’s never enough,” Prentiss said.
Liot Hill said the city is hoping to supplement some of the programs that can’t be completely funded through the budget by securing money from grants and foundations, or by getting the help of nonprofits to buttress the city’s social services.
The city’s contribution to local social service organizations is slated to decrease by $17,320 next year to a little more than $216,000 in response to cuts proposed by the groups, Liot Hill said.
“By and large this is a well-crafted budget that is going to cover what is needed for the city while also continuing to advance some of the important initiatives that we’ve been working on,” she said.
Tim Camerato can be reached at tcamerato@vnews.com or 603-727-3223.