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Upcoming meetings:
School Committee
Newly Scheduled - Monday, March 27,
6:45pm at Wellesley High School, just prior to Town
Meeting.
ANNUAL TOWN MEETING
starts - Monday, March 27, 7:30pm at Wellesley High
School auditorium. Will contineu on Tuesday, March
28, 7:30pm. Televised Live on Comcast cable
channel 9.
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| Selectman Propose Override Structure |
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The Wellesley Board of Selectmen have finalized a
proposal to go before Town Meeting next week on
the structure of an override vote.
If the town budget is approved as currently
proposed, the Selectmen will outline the following
structure to fund the portion which falls outside of
the levy limit:
- $2.96 million override to fund the operating
budget
- a debt exclusion to fund an estimated $9.6 million
in infrastructure capital projects over the next 3
years
- $45,043 override to fund Sunday dump hours
- $75,603 override to fund the Branch Libraries
This structure would put 4 separate
questions on the ballot for voters to decide. As
proposed, $2.69M of the override amount is
designated to the school budget. For
more information on the debt exclusion, please see
the article below.
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| The "Pink" Book |
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By now, all town residents have received the
Report to the Annual Town Meeting, a 186
page, "pink" book prepared by the Advisory
Committee which provides detailed explanations and
critical reviews of the Articles to be presented at
Town Meeting. Additionally, Advisory Committee
makes a recommendation to Town Meeting either
noted in this book or stated at Town Meeting. These
recommendations come after hours of review,
discussion and debate.
We encourage you to take time to read the
information which has been thoughtfully and
thoroughly presented. There are important decisions
to be made at Town Meeting, and informed and
engaged citizens will make our system of governance
effective.
Be sure your Town Meeting Members know
your views before they walk into Town
Meeting.
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| Debt Exclusion as a Funding Vehicle |
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The Board of Selectmen and Town Officials will be
proposing to fund some of the town projects through
a debt exclusion.
A debt exclusion enables the projects to be
paid for through a temporary tax increase for
the term of the debt service; the tax goes to zero
when the debt is paid.
This is in contrast to funding through an override,
which is a permanent increase in the tax base
used to fund ongoing expenses. Both an override
and a debt exclusion are subject to voter approval.
The Selectmen and Town Officials will
propose to fund discrete infrastructure capital
projects proposed over the next 3 years, FY07 -
FY09, through a debt exclusion:
- $4,382,735 for school facilities maintenance and
repair (for FY08/FY09); the amount needed in FY07
is being requested under the levy limit
- $1,300,000 Park & Highway building electrical
system repair
- $2,134,000 Board of Public Works garage/office
construction
- $631,000 Surface Drainage Master Plan (for
FY08/FY09); the amount needed in FY07 is being
requested under the levy limit
- $1,073,000 Morses Pond Management Plan
- $115,000 Morses Pond dock reconstruction
Details on each of these projects are found
in the "Pink" Book.
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| Wellesley High School Project update |
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On Monday evening, just prior to Town Meeting,
School Committee will review a proposal to
request funding to conduct a programming review
on the high school project, as recommended by
the Facilities Advisory Committee.
At last Tuesday's School Committee
meeting, an update on the high school project
prompted a discussion and then a vote. Committee
members decided unanimously to support "option 4R"
as the starting point for further review. Option 4R
involves the major renovation and addition to the
existing facility.
School Committee will convene on Monday,
March 27th at 6:45pm at WHS to decide whether or
not to request funds at Town Meeting for a
programming review. This review is the first
step in defining the project specifications.
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Committee for Education in the 21st
Century
