Amendments to budget would cut extra $15,000

Finance Committee discusses eliminating exemptions for seasonal Gardner residents

By Owen Boss

GARDNER — The Finance Committee met Thursday and discussed the amendments made to Mayor Mark Hawke’s proposed budget at an informal City Council meeting Wednesday, and the proposed amendments would cut $15,000 from the proposed $53.2 million fiscal budget. At the informal meeting Wednesday night, councilors reviewed Mr. Hawke’s proposed budget and cut the $10,000 he had proposed for a senior work-volunteer program and an additional $5,000 from one of the city’s water accounts. Mr. Hawke said that he was willing to make the changes the council requested, and it has now become a matter of shifting money around within the budget to adhere to their recommendations. “The bottom line number of the budget will not change,” said Mr. Hawke. “If this is what they want, if this is what the council is looking for, I will try my hardest to make it work.” Council members at the informal meeting also discussed a change to the city’s trash ordinance. The proposed ordinance, which increases the annual per-household fee from $150 to $180 offers trash fee exemptions for seasonal residents. The council recommended that Health Director Bernard F. Sullivan eliminate the policy that currently grants 36 seasonal exemptions to residents who only reside in Gardner for half the year; the exemptions are reported to amount to approximately $2,700. Both the proposed amendments to the budget and the revised trash ordinance will be voted on at the next council meeting Monday. The trash ordinance is expected to be recommended for the first of two required printings and the fiscal budget must be finalized sometime before the end of June. oboss@thegardnernews.com

Appeared on Page 1 on 5/30/2008 (Vol. 206 No. 128)